NTF 3 from the weekend…..

Some top class National Hunt racing now in the form book from this weekend past. Here are 3 that particularly caught my attention –

LAST INSTALMENT – Philip Fenton (Sunday 450 Galway – 2m6f Beginners Chase – 1st)

An extremely polished performance on his chasing debut and jumped immaculately under seriously testing conditions. Described last season by trainer Philip Fenton as a horse that is “designed to jump fences” and on this evidence its hard to argue with that statement. He was always travelling smoothly under Brian O’Connell and when asked to go and pick up long time leader Alpha Ridge he knuckled down to the task in hand and quickly asserted his class over the runner up. He won his 2nd Point-to-Point start in blistering fashion and there was always the sense he was simply biding his time over timer last season before heading over the larger obstacles. His form figures to date are already starting to suggest he is a horse that will need cut in the ground to be seen at his best –

Good to soft or worse – 1-1-1-1

Good or better – 3-P

He could be one to follow over the winter when the mud is flying.

SIR JOHNSON – Peter Bowen (Sunday 455 Aintree – 2m1f Bumper – 1st)

A horse that caught my eye at Perth when storming away with the closing bumper (22nd Sept) and yesterday he once again fired in an eye-catching performance when slamming what beforehand looked like a decent collection of bumper runners. Connections voiced after the race that they are not sure whether to put him away for the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham in March or whether to ready him for a campaign over timber. In my opinion they need to stick him over hurdles immediately! This robust 5yo son of Deploy looks ready made to jump obstacles, in fact I can’t wait for the day he jumps a fence let alone a hurdle. There are plenty of stamina influences in his pedigree and in time he could make into a decent 2m5f+ chaser. He looks to have a serious engine encased within his sturdy frame and if being send hurdling in the near future he rates as a potential stable star for the Bowen yard.

DUALLA LORD – Paul Nicholls (Saturday 205 Chepstow – 3m Maiden Hurdle)

The 6yo was making his rules debut on Saturday (had previously been scooting up in points) and travelled smoothly throughout before effortlessly moving to the lead. He looked set to land the odds before making a hash of the last and losing all momentum. Whether that was down to the fitness gauge running empty or simply down to a lack of concentration is hard to say but he still remains a horse of plenty promise. The front 2 were miles clear of the remainder and its not hard to imagine Dualla Lord coming on a bundle for the experience of his first rules start. There should be much more to come from this 6yo.

Were there any runners that caught your eye over the weekend? Drop your opinions in the comments box below and let me know the runners that caught your attention.

Over The Last Podcast

Just a quick note to direct you all to a recently launched podcast that I have had the pleasure of being involved in over the past 2 weekends.

The OVER THE LAST podcast is the brainchild of Peter Henn (Twitter name @PGHenn) and is based around the National Hunt racing scene.

Take a listen and see what you think – Over The Last Podcast

There is plenty input from some Bloggers and Twitter regulars that you may well be familiar with.

p.s Try and ignore the random alien noises that appear! Peter is looking into a) improving the sound quality or b) calling in Ghostbusters!!

Ben (NTF)