Three things we learnt at Sandown on Friday

The opening contest on the card, the Betfair-sponsored Introductory Juvenile Hurdle over two miles, was won impressively by the 3-1 joint-favourite Macktoad, trained by Gary and Josh Moore, and ridden by Caoilin Quinn.

This has been far from the strongest race in recent years but the yard won this with Goshen in 2019 and there was plenty of confidence behind him as he was as big as 8-1 early in the morning.

Bought by the shrewd Jacob Pritchard Webb and by the high-class hurdler Beaumec De Houelle, who gets plenty of precocious types, he travelled and jumped, and although he was well-positioned in a slowly-run race, he could not have landed this much easier, cantering home to score by over three lengths. The runner-up Pourquoi Pas Papa shaped with promise on his hurdling debut in France back in the summer and ran another solid race.

This was Macktoad’s first start over obstacles having landed an AQPS bumper at Vichy in May – a track that lies slap bang in the middle of France and has seen subsequent Grade One winners Quevega and Apple’s Jade both run there before being sent over to Ireland. He can improve again next time with this experience under his belt.

Gary and Josh Moore are now operating at a strike rate of over 20 per cent this season after saddling three winners from three runners on Friday.

After Macktoad got the 39-1 treble rolling, Salver ran out the 12-length victor of the Grade Two Betfair Esher Novices’ Chase over three miles.

He was settled at the rear of the four-runner field early on and did not jump every fence fluently, but the runner-up Doyen Quest committed for home a fair way out and the patiently-ridden Salver got to the lead two out before cruising to an impressive win – albeit Laurens Bay and Quebecois did not seem to give their running.

Salver was cut to 25-1 for the Brown Advisory at Cheltenham and showed no issues with the new three-mile trip having ran over an extended 2m1f before Lulamba at Exeter on his previous start.

The training duo then landed the finale courtesy of Across Earth, who overcame a significant mistake at the second-last to take the four-year-old handicap hurdle. Again, Caoilin Quinn settled his mount at the rear of the field, but made steady headway to sit second coming into the home straight and he took up the lead after the penultimate flight, despite almost going down on his nose. He was another wide-margin winner for the team, landing the spoils by four and a half lengths.

Paul Nicholls has long held No Drama This End in high regard, as have the McNeill and Barber families, and their faith in the horse looks fully justified after the son of Walk In The Park maintained his faultless start to hurdling with an impressive five-length victory in the Betfair Winter Novices’ Hurdle over two and a half miles.

He again relished the soft ground and, whilst he was entitled to win this having been sent off the 4-9 favourite in a five-strong field, his stylish success under a penalty saw him cut into 6-1 favouritism for the Turners in March. He also recorded the best RaceiQ Jump Index in the race with a score of 8.4.  

A 23-length Irish point-to-point winner, the only blemish on his five-race CV is when he finished ninth in the Champion Bumper. The Challow Hurdle at Newbury will be next at the end of the month and he looks hugely exciting.