16:55 Blazing Whale @ 6/5. Opening show was around the 6/4 mark which was huge, this horse should be odds-on, has some solid P2P form and his Hunter Chase form is non too shabby when compared with the likes of Swallowshide and Curraigflemens who have bombed out or been winning in poor races. Star Of Massini looks best of the rest.
17:25 Session Or Ression @ 10/1. Maxi Chop obviously the one to beat in here but bookmakers are giving nothing away with the price (I made him 6/4). It was over 4 years ago that the selection debuted in the UK when looking a possible winner prior to tipping up at Folkestone over this trip and while he's had injury problems since a return to his Irish form or something like that would see him go close in this. He's probably better over this shorter trip so there's every chance he could reverse form with Swallowshide from when the pair met at Parham a few weeks ago. Not as confident about this one as some of the others but a very good jockey up and comes from a top yard.
18:00 Little Legend @ 6/1. Another who's not looked the horse of old in 2016. Ran a solid race behind the prolific Dabinett Moon at Whitfield three weeks ago and was a useful HC horse for Cynthia Woods in 2014. Most of these have doubts surrounding them with Gauvain's age and physical issues, Polisky's inconsistency, KOA needing quicker ground and Mister Bricolage probably isn't the soundest so LL looks to have more going for him than some relative to his price.
18:35 Little Chip @ 11/2. Should be favourite IMHO and while the big prices have gone he's still value. Won a staying P2P at Charing earlier in the season and won against a fair horse a few weeks ago at Larkhill also. Claire Hart riding for Richard Bandey is another positive and the pair have done well with another in these colours in Alskamatic, LC is a tough sort who stays well so should be well suited to this and with major doubts about Carruthers ability and jockey and Join Together's attitude it's not hard to see LC taking this contest.
19:05 Joker Choker @ 9/2. Not a race I'm that keen to get involved in at the moment, would want to see a bit of a drift on him which might well happen given the support for the favourite. He went close to winning at Stratford over this trip last year and at the moment looks about the paciest of the genuine 2-2 1/2mers in the race (bar the fav). He often improves for a run so there's every chance they're using this to put him right for next Friday which is the big worry.
19:40 Flying Gnu @ 2/1. Personally think she should be favourite, this is a typically poor mares event and she won in an older horses event at Upper Sapey last time out. Her two wins in 2014 both came in May and she's generally a much better horse in the spring so it's no surprise to see they've saved her for this time of year after her UR in a three runner contest at Larkhill in December and she should go well in what looks a match.
20:15 See U Again Son @ 2/1. Travels from Wales for this and saw off the useful Rosies Peacock in an Open race last time out on quick ground. He finished runner-up to a nice looking horse of Tom Weston's at Chaddesley on heavy ground in December having filled the same berth on his P2P debut at Barbury earlier that month. He's stepped up on those efforts and has now won his last three, including over 2 1/2m in a Hunt Members conditions event at Ystradowen in March and though Brice Canyon had shown solid (120ish) form in France he will receive limited assistance from the plate whereas SUAS has a top Welsh jockey in Bradley Gibbs up.
I'll be down there tomorrow, sadly with no Barney running but hopefully he'll be at Stratford next week.
Martin