Indien emerges as a leading contender for the Triumph Hurdle
The former French-trained colt jumped with aplomb as he made all to score by 12 lengths from Reservoir in the hands of Mick Fitzgerald to earn a 14-1 quote (from 25-1) for the Cheltenham race with Coral.
Etendard Indien (10-11) won a Group Three contest for Andre Fabre last September and arrived at Seven Barrows with a big reputation.
He never looked like letting his followers down in the CiSTM Racing Club Juvenile Novices’ Hurdle and the only moment of anxiety came when he stuttered into the final flight, but at that stage he had the race in the bag.
Henderson, who has chosen this race to run some of his best juveniles in the past, will look to give the colt one more outing before Cheltenham.
He said: “I was very pleased with the way he jumped.
“We’ve had to keep practising with him as he’s still a colt, but Mick set a nice level gallop all the way and I couldn’t have asked for much more.
“We have Papini and Afrad, but this fellow is definitely our number one for the Triumph and I’m sure the track will suit him at Cheltenham.”
The performance also pleased Victor Chandler, who are as short as 10-1, and Paddy Power, who go 12s.
Fitzgerald completed a double in the Book Now for Feb 25th and 26th Mares’ Only Novices’ Handicap Hurdle when getting a great run up the rail from Up At Midnight, who prevailed by half a length from Floreana.
Richard Rowe is mindful that Up At Midnight prefers going left-handed and is to aim his 8-1 winner at the mares final at Newbury.
The Pulborough trainer said: “We got her qualified for Newbury at Fontwell and I might well give her one more run beforehand, in mid-March.
“She’s better going left-handed and I feel we got away with it today.”
Another hint for Cheltenham came from Liverpool Echo, whose three-and-a-half-length success over Copsale Lad in the Rasher Frith Memorial Beginners’ Chase prevented Fitzgerald notching a hat-trick.
Liverpool Echo (2-1) was ending a frustrating sequence of near-misses and his owners, the Million In Mind Partnership, who will look to run him in one of the new races at the Festival.
Syndicate manager David Minton said: “He’s not over-big but he loves his jumping, and when Richard (Johnson) pulled him wide for the better ground he really enjoyed himself.
“In fact that’s the best he’s jumped, and it was all down to the underfoot conditions.”
