12:45 Taunton

Thursday 30 December 2021

All12:1512:4513:1513:5014:2515:0015:30

Invest Southwest Juvenile Hurdle (GBB Race)

Off time: 12:45 | Winning time: 4m 15.35s

Brainstorm^t1¹⁰⁴

Age: 3| Weight: 11-5| J: J J Burke| T: Mrs S Leech| OR: 120

22/1

Fair form when winning claiming hurdle on sole start for Francois-Marie Cottin at Fontainebleau in April (claimed for €16,777) but failed to show much on stable debut at Auteuil 5 months later.

Form: 031-P

Graystone²¹

Age: 3| Weight: 11-5| J: Bryony Frost| T: L Wadham| OR: 124| D

6/4

Three-time winner on the Flat this year and made it third time lucky in this sphere at Warwick (2m) 3 weeks ago. Room for improvement in the jumping department, but he's a player all the same.

Form: 231

Bryanwood¹⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Conor Ring⁽³⁾| T: B J Llewellyn

250/1

Fair maiden on Flat but could not have shown less on hurdling debut for his new yard when tailed-off last at Newbury. Easy to look elsewhere.

Form: 9

Chadlington Lad¹¹⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: David Bass| T: B Pauling

25/1

Fair form in a pair 7f maidens on Flat for Ben Haslam. Market can guide expectations on hurdling debut.

Form:

Chipping Away^t¹⁸⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: S Bowen| T: O Murphy

12/1

Fair form in a couple of starts on Flat for Adrian Keatley but most recent handicap debut was a poor effort. Has joined a decent yard and gelded since last seen.

Form:

Clarendon Cross²³

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Sean Houlihan| T: Mrs S Gardner

200/1

Disappointing maiden on Flat and little to shout about on recent hurdling debut at Fontwell. Easy to look elsewhere.

Form: 7

Escobedo^t1⁸⁷

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Kevin Jones⁽³⁾| T: M F Harris| BF

25/1

Fair maiden on Flat (sold from Richard Hannon 18,000 gns in October). Worth a look starting out over hurdles for yard that has enjoyed plenty success this season.

Form:

Girandole³⁹

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Fergus Gillard⁽³⁾| T: Mark Gillard

25/1

Well held all 3 Flat starts but showed aptitude for hurdling after 11 weeks off in weak contest at Exeter last month. Could have a say in this company.

Form: 2

Irish Hill¹⁶¹

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: H Cobden| T: P F Nicholls

1/1

Fairly useful form on the Flat for P. Schiergen on Flat, winning 2 of 4 starts. Has joined top yard and been gelded, so certainly merits consideration on hurdling debut.

Form:

Mind Hunter^p¹⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Charlie Price⁽³⁾| T: B J Llewellyn

50/1

Fair form on Flat, standout effort when second in 1½m maiden for Richard Hannon. Made an unpromising start to his career over hurdles so easy to look elsewhere.

Form: 7

Professor Calculus¹⁵⁵

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Kieren Buckley⁽⁵⁾| T: N J Hawke

80/1

Maiden on Flat (fair form on standout effort at 7f). Sold from Richard Hannon £5,000 in November and gelded. Faces a struggle on hurdles bow.

Form:

Shielded¹⁶

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: David Noonan| T: N J Hawke

200/1

Fair maiden on Flat. Sold from Simon & Ed Crisford for 9,000 gns in October and showed nothing on hurdling debut at Catterick 16 days ago.

Form: P

The Hood^h¹²⁸

Age: 3| Weight: 10-12| J: Tom Cannon| T: A King

16/1

Fair maiden on Flat (stays 1¼m). Finished a creditable fourth in Newbury handicap when last seen in August and he could a role to play on hurdling debut for his superb dual purpose handler.

Form:

Non-Runners

Mothill²¹⁵

Weight: 10-12| Age: 3

T: N P Mulholland J: Harry Reed

Forecasts

Irish Hill (1/1), Graystone (6/4), Chipping Away (12/1), The Hood (16/1), Mothill (20/1), Brainstorm (22/1), Girandole (25/1), Escobedo (25/1), Chadlington Lad (25/1), Mind Hunter (50/1), Professor Calculus (80/1), Clarendon Cross (200/1), Shielded (200/1), Bryanwood (250/1)

Only a handful of these make any serious appeal, with GRAYSTONE getting the verdict to double his tally over hurdles having made all at Warwick earlier this month. He sets a solid standard and, if able to brush up on his jumping, he should have too much for his inexperienced rivals here. Irish Hill is an interesting recruit for Paul Nicholls so he's feared most, ahead of Brainstorm.