Best Mate digs deep to join Gold Cup elite

THERE is a time in every sporting career when the hero gets overturned by the guy next in line, or the no-hoper or by the fairy story - and that happened to Best Mate at Leopardstown yesterday when he was beaten by Beef or Salmon.

But at Cheltenham on March 19 last, tens of thousands of people held a collective breath for fear of such an event.

In the end, though, the hero prevailed - admittedly not by as impressive a margin as many would have liked - the collective relief reflected the fact the public hero had not been humiliated and even though this was not a vintage Gold Cup, the right result emerged: Best Mate won.