Kempton Friday

IT’S been a tough couple of months for Ben Pauling with many of his horses under a cloud, so the front-running 8/1 victory of Global Citizen (David Bass) in the Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase was a welcome relief, and a sign that the string is returning to form.

The gelding wasn’t far off Champion Hurdle standard last year, and might have been heading back over timber had he not come up trumps here, but he jumped very well and held on tenaciously to beat Rouge Vif (Harry Whittington/Gavin Sheehan) with Grand Sancy third.

The winner was disappointing on his chase debut at Carlisle, but that is forgivable in hindsight as all Pauling’s horses to run at the same time ran poorly, and he was given a break to recover. The son of Alkhaadem has always gone best fresh, a fact acknowledged by Pauling after the race, and he suggested that it may be the spring before the now eight-year-old is seen again.

Surgery

Rouge Vif had undergone wind surgery since his last run, and also went without the hood he has worn of late, and ran at least as well as ever to chase the winner home. He thrived on a fairly busy schedule over hurdles, and may have more to offer, but Grand Sancy and fourth-placed Al Dancer now have something to prove if they are too retain hopes of taking high order in this division.

THERE can be no doubt that the Desert Orchid was a weaker race than it might have been with Altior ruled out with an abscess, and Bun Doran (Tom George/Jonny Burke) was receiving weight from both Duc Des Genievres (Willie Mullins/James Bowen) and Sceau Royal (Alan King/Tom Bellamy).

That said, he can’t be crabbed for enjoying his day in the sun, and was given a fine ride to win by a length and a half after a display of bold jumping, albeit with a tendency to go left at his fences.

Decent

On paper this was a decent contest, with a wide-margin Arkle winner meeting the Champion Chase third, but neither of that pair has shone this season, and while both were stepping up on previous runs, these efforts still leave a little to be desired.

Duc Des Genievres seemed to be helped by a tongue-tie here, and his rider reported that he would appreciate going up in trip, while Sceau Royal lost a shoe, and is clearly inconvenienced by winter conditions, so could well bounce back in the spring.

He’s not the most robust looking and carries no condition, so getting a bit of sun on his back is important.

Capeland was sent off favourite after a wide-margin win in handicap company at Ascot, but had no excuses, and will be hard to place on this evidence, although an end-to-end gallop would probably suit him better.