A rarity for a race of this nature in that all of the field can have a cogent case argued. State Of Madness (second choice) could well have more to offer for Charlie Clover, while Thunderstorm Katie can't be ignored in her hat-trick bid and Mart is in better form than his figures suggest. That said, KIRKDALE (nap) makes plenty of appeal with his two second-place finishes over C&D last month strongly suggesting he was handicapped to win. On the first occasion he made a big move from halfway and those exertions took their toll in the final 100 yards while last time he was finishing strongly from a poor position in a slowly run race. Unexposed as a sprinter, he is now 2lb higher but that shouldn't be an issue if this is run more conventionally.[Paul Smith]
