led, ridden and headed 2 out, weakened flat
mid-division, mistake 1st, struggling 9th, tailed off
in touch, ridden after 9th, weakened approaching 3 out, 6th when fell 2 out
in rear, ridden before 7th, headway 9th, weakened approaching 3 out
prominent until pulled up before 7th
chased leader until approaching 3 out, weakened last
held up towards rear, ridden before 7th, always behind, tailed off
in rear, ridden after 6th, headway 8th, outpaced next, stayed on same pace from 3 out
mid-division, ridden 7th, lost place next, tailed off
mid-division, not fluent 7th, headway 8th, ridden after 9th, went 2nd approaching last, led and edged right flat, stayed on well
tracked leaders, ridden 8th, soon lost place, tailed off
held up towards rear, headway approaching 9th, went 2nd before 3 out, soon hung right, hung left and led 2 out, hung right approaching last, headed flat, no extra
Nonrunner
Nonrunner
This looks a decent contest with no fewer than five of the 14 declared runners having won last time including Tim Vaughan's Quo Video, who had to work hard to win a novices' hurdle at Fontwell and has harshly gone up 10lbs for that, and at the bottom of the weights Dont Call Me Derek, who is likely to find this tougher than the seller he won, but marginal preference is for THE JIGSAW MAN. The Rebecca Curtis-trained gelding won very comfortably over fences here last week and reverts to hurdles off a fair mark and the son of Bob Back should not be inconvenienced by the step up in trip back over hurdles. David Arbuthnot's King Ar Aghaidh was still going well before falling two out at Fakenham last time and cannot be discounted, while David Pipe's Pemberton is relatively lightly raced after just seven starts and could be of interest if staying this far. Jonjo O'Neill saddles two runners, both with good chances, in recent narrow Wetherby winner Tarvini and course and distance winner Two Miles West, who looks the pick of the pair but it is The Jigsaw Man that gets the vote in a super contest.
The Jigsaw Man (IRE) 4-6fav (10-12) Made all, mistake 5 out, clear when jumped left and not fluent 4 out, eased towards finish, won at Worcester 2m 4f nov chs (4) gf beating Watch Out (10-12) by 13l, 8 ran.
Quo Video (FR) Evensfav (11-12) Made all, ridden approaching and not fluent last, soon under pressure and challenged, kept on gamely, all out towards finish, won at Fontwell 2m 4f nh nov hdl (4) gd beating Synthe Davis (10-12) by nk, 7 ran.
Pemberton 14-1 (11-5) Prominent, led after 3 out, headed approaching 2 out, edged right and bumped after hurdle, not much room approaching last, weakned flat, 6th of 14, 6l behind Humbel Ben (10-5) at Newton Abbot 2m 3f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd.
Tabaran (FR) 11-2 (10-11) Mid-division, headway 5th, no impression from 3 out, 6th of 14, 19l behind Son Of Flicka (11-6) at Worcester 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd.
The Real Deal (IRE) 14-1 (11-1) Mid-division, headway when hampered 7th, chased winner after 3 out, stayed on flat, no impression, 2nd of 12, 2 1/2l behind Midas Way (11-0) at Stratford 3m 3f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gf in May.
Tritonville Lodge (IRE) 33-1 (11-3) Made most until 6th, weakened 2 out, 8th of 14, 20l behind Son Of Flicka (11-6) at Worcester 2m 4f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd.
Two Miles West (IRE) 8-1 (11-8) Held up towards rear, headway 7th, went 2nd after 9th, led 3 out, clear approaching last, just nudged home, won at Worcester 3m hcp hdl 0-115 (4) gs beating Supreme Plan (11-7) by 4 1/2l, 11 ran.
King Ar Aghaidh (IRE) 9-4fav (11-4) Held up in touch on inside, headway 4 out, close up 3rd when fell next, in a race won by Pheidias (11-4) at Fakenham 3m nov chs (3) gf in May, 6 ran.
Giovanna 8-1 (11-0) Prominent, fell 7th, in a race won by Midas Way (11-0) at Stratford 3m 3f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gf in May, 12 ran.
Tarvini (IRE) 8-1 (11-5) Held up towards rear, headway approaching 3 out, went 2nd approaching last, switch left to inside on flat, kept on to lead close home, pushed out, won at Wetherby 2m 6f hcp hdl 0-135 (3) gd beating Terenzium (11-2) by shd, 9 ran.
Very Cool 10-1 (11-9) Tracked leader, led 8th, driven and headed 3 out, soon hung left, weakened last, 6th of 16, 24l behind Markington (11-3) at Aintree 3m hcp hdl 0-125 (3) gd.
Dont Call Me Derek 3-1 (10-12) Took keen hold, tracked leading trio, led 4th, made rest, came well clear from 3 out, very easily, won at Southwell 2m 4f sell hdl (5) gd in May beating Talenti (11-5) by 24l, 8 ran.
Rock Diplomat (IRE) 14-1 (9-9) Never a factor, pulled up before 3 out, in a race won by Palace Merano (9-10) at Punchestown 3m 6f hcp chs 0-140 gd in Apr, 19 ran.
Another Brother (IRE) 9-1 (10-12) Held up in rear, not fluent 7th, in touch 8th, ridden and struggling from 10th, tailed off, 6th of 7, well behind King Ar Aghaidh (10-12) at Exeter 2m 3f nov chs (4) gd in Apr.
