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T has been nearly 10 years since Gordon Elliott saddled Silver Birch to win the Aintree Grand National, at just 29 years of age and only 12 months after taking out his trainer’s licence. Such a highprofile result naturally marked him out as a trainer to note for the future, but few could have predicted the extent of Elliott’s success to date. Now a familiar figure in the winner’s enclosure at the major National Hunt festivals and meetings in Ireland and Britain, Elliott enjoyed a red-letter day last March when Don Cossack won the Cheltenham Gold Cup. However, triumph in blue riband events doesn’t always reflect the true breadth of a trainer’s ability, and Elliott underlined his skill in maintaining a high level of performance across his string when they won six of the seven races at their local track, Navan
Racecourse, on Sunday, 27 November. Brelade may have been the shortest-priced of Elliott’s five representatives in the 30-strong field for the opening race, a twomile maiden hurdle, but the paper form suggested he had something to find with the favourite. However, a gritty and improving effort at the close saw Brelade prevail by a neck and register Elliott’s first winner of the afternoon. Like Brelade, Elliott’s Death Duty stepped up on previous performances to win his race, the Grade 3 Monksfield Hurdle, to make it two from two over hurdles. Stablemate Bull Ride obliged in the third race, improving on the form shown when he won a Wexford maiden hurdle four weeks earlier, and finished a nose ahead of his stablemate Dawerann. While the straightforward victory of Willie Mullins’ Min (a runner-up
in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle last season) in the beginners’ chase denied the Elliott team a clean sweep in the meeting’s seven races, the fifth and feature race of the day, the Troytown Chase, provided their fourth winner of the afternoon and Elliott’s third Troytown winner in as many years. This race marked the seasonal and stable debut for Empire Of Dirt, who was racing off an official rating 6lb higher than when successful in a Grade 3 handicap chase at the Cheltenham Festival eight months earlier. Jury Duty and Three Swallowsnick completed the 41,276-1 six-timer when respectively winning a Grade B handicap hurdle and Listed mares’ bumper, and an astonished Elliott paid tribute to his team: “I pick up the trophies, but they are the ones at the back and without them I couldn’t do it.” ■
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When to use SynBioVit For horses that travel a lot or are under stress due to training/competition. For horses that have received a course of antibiotic treatment. For horses who have difficulty maintaining weight. For horses who are suffering from diarrhea. Promote optimal feed utilisation.
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