Never that fluent and jumped right on occasions, chased leaders, went 2nd briefly and jumped slowly 2nd, 2nd after 7th until 9th, chased leaders, weakened 3 out, finished tired op 7/2 tchd 11/4
Held up in rear, closer in 3rd place 6th, went 2nd 9th, pushed along and outpaced before 3 out, lost well held 2nd next, weakened run-in, finished tired op 11/8 tchd 6/4
Le Coeur Net (6/5), Le Capricieux (3/1), Zen Master (4/1), Triple Chief (8/1), The Mighty Ash (10/1)
LE COEUR NET may have been flattered by his victory last time, but nevertheless he was 18L ahead of a rival who had Le Capricieux behind when going one better subsequently. Zen Master has had issues with his jumping and Triple Chief has looked unreliable lately. The Mighty Ash looks more of a threat on the pick of last year's form, although he still needs to find more at the business end than has been the case peviously.