in rear, pushed along over 3f out, headway over 1f out, edged left and one pace inside final furlong
held up, ridden and headway 1f out, ran on inside final furlong
slowly away, pushed along halfway, always in rear
mid-division, headway under pressure 1f out, one pace inside final furlong
tracked leader, raced keenly, led over 2f out, soon ridden, edged right well inside final furlong, headed near finish
slowly into stride, behind, pushed along 4f out, never near leader
mid-division, raced keenly, came wide entering straight, ridden and weakened over 1f out
in touch, ridden to chase leader over 1f out, no extra well inside final furlong
led, ridden and headed over 2f out, weakened over 1f out
prominent, ridden to chase leader to 2f out until 1f out, weakened inside final furlong
always prominent, not clear run, switched right over 1f out, ran on under strong pressure inside final furlong to lead near finish
Nonrunner
The Salwick Flyer did the job nicely when a winner over this trip at Southwell last time but the ground was a fair bit slower than this and preference today is for Claws, while Prince Of Gold and Snow Bunting are respected. Claws enjoys himself at this venue and has a banded c&d success to his name. He has dropped back to below that winning mark now and it could be his turn tonight. The Salwick Flyer can of course go well, but he has never won here and definitely prefers slower ground, so he does not look one to lump on. Prince Of Gold won here off a mark of 48 almost a year ago and has run pretty well at times in defeat since then. He is still 4lb higher however and is opposed. Snow Bunting is another c&d scorer but is now 7lb higher than his last win, over 6f here, but can go close in defeat. Wiltshire would be more interesting if the yard was in better form, but Claws gets the vote.
Wiltshire (IRE) 20-1 (8-8) Behind, ridden over 2f out, kept on inside final furlong, never nearer, 6th of 11, 6l behind Dasheena (8-5) at W'hampton 7f hcp 0-60 (6) pol in Dec.
Snow Bunting 25-1 (9-6) Held up in rear, headway 2f out, stayed final furlong, nearest finish, 5th of 11, 2 1/2l behind Mountain Pass (8-13) at W'hampton 7f sll (6) pol in Dec.
Prince of Gold 9-1 (9-12) Mid-division, ridden over 2f out, switched left over 1f out, one pace final furlong, 7th of 16, 4 1/2l behind Bond Diamond (9-6) at Beverley 1m sll (5) gf in Apr.
Balerno 11-1 (8-12) Held up towards rear, some headway over 1f out, never dangerous, 8th of 11, 3 1/2l behind Sir Don (8-11) at Lingfield 6f hcp (6) pol in Dec.
The Salwick Flyer (IRE) 9-2 (8-12) Tracked leader, edged left over 4f out, ridden halfway, ran on to lead post, won at Southwell 7f hcp (6) fbs in Dec beating Shadow Jumper (8-10) by a hd, 11 ran.
Over Ice 16-1 (9-1) Awkward leaving stalls, keen hold in mid-division, headway 5f out, weakened over 3f out, 8th of 10, 15l behind Alfie Tupper (9-4) at W'hampton 1m 1f stk 0-55 (6) pol in Sept.
Keon (IRE) 8-1 (8-9) Held up towards rear, raced keenly, headway 3f out, close up over 2f out, ridden and weakened 1f out, 7th of 13, 11l behind Beck (8-3) at W'hampton 1m 1f hcp (6) pol in Dec.
Guadaloup 16-1 (8-0) Mid-division, effort over 1f out, weakened inside final furlong, 9th of 13, 3 1/2l behind Pay Time (8-13) at Carlisle 7f fll hcp (5) gd in Aug.
Pauvic (IRE) 33-1 (8-10) Held up, ridden and weakened halfway, 9th of 10, 17l behind Winthorpe (8-13) at Southwell 6f hcp (6) fbs in Dec.
Claws 16-1 (8-12) Led 1f, prominent, ridden over 1f out, every chance inside final furlong, kept on, 2nd of 10, 1/2l behind Mister Always (8-9) at W'hampton 7f hcp 0-50 (6) pol in Dec.
Aggbag 20-1 (8-4) Slowly into stride, in rear, never near leaders, 7th of 9, 7l behind Green Lagonda (9-3) at W'hampton 6f clm (6) pol in Dec.
Midmaar (IRE) 6-1 (8-12) In touch, ridden over 3f out, kept on until weakened quickly inside final 2f, last of 12, 12l behind Epidaurian King (8-8) at Lingfield 7f hcp 0-50 (6) pol in Dec.
