MansionBet Best Odds Guaranteed Chase (Novices' Limited Handicap)

Off time: 14:11 | Winning time: 7m 12.13s

Fortified Bay¹¹⁷

Age: 7| Weight: 11-7| J: Sean Quinlan| T: J Candlish| OR: 125

8/1

Previously with Alan King; broke his duck when winning on debut for Jennie Candlish over hurdles at Uttoxeter (2m7½f, good) in May; runner-up (well beaten) on both subsequent starts; set to make his chasing debut.

Form: 223/122

Stoneford^t³³

Age: 8| Weight: 11-4| J: Henry Brooke| T: T Coyle & K Wood| OR: 122

25/1

Won a Cork maiden hurdle (3m, heavy) for Noel Meade in April 2018; 0-9 over fences thereafter (occasionally let down by his jumping); moved on for £4,500 in September, posting a low-key stable debut at Hexham (hurdle).

Form: 39F47P

Lord Du Mesnil^p,t¹⁴

Age: 6| Weight: 11-2| J: Paul O'Brien⁽³⁾| T: R Hobson| OR: 120

5/2

Maiden (0-22); third to Ask Ben in the French Furze Novices' Hurdle at Newcastle (2m6f, soft) last December; has fallen or unseated on five of his 12 chasing starts, albeit returned from a recent break with a pleasing second at Stratford (2m6½f).

Form: 6F3-642

Cairnshill²¹

Age: 8| Weight: 11-2| J: Alison Clarke⁽⁷⁾| T: Kenny Johnson| OR: 120

5/1

120-rated hurdler (3-29); runner-up on both chase starts to date, including when keeping on from off the pace behind the in-form Bafana Blue at Carlisle (3m2f, good to soft) three weeks ago; can he continue to progress?

Form: 248722

La Cavsa Nostra⁶

Age: 7| Weight: 11-0| J: R T Dunne| T: N P Mulholland| OR: 118| BF| D

11/10

Made a winning seasonal reappearance (second start over fences) when comfortably beating Christmas in April by 6L at Chepstow (3m2f, good to soft); unseated his rider early under a 7lb penalty the following week, and sits a further 3lb higher here.

Form: F/903-1U

Forecasts

La Cavsa Nostra (11/10), Lord Du Mesnil (5/2), Cairnshill (5/1), Fortified Bay (8/1), Stoneford (25/1)

Lord Du Mesnil will have his day in the limelight eventually, and in truth this could well be his golden opportunity following a solid seasonal reappearance at Stratford. However, with obvious concerns about his fencing (similar comments also apply to La Cavsa Nostra) the percentage call is to opt for the locally trained CAIRNSHILL. Evidently reasonably progressive over fences (runner-up on both starts) he's entitled to play a leading role.