Newbury contest on Sine Nomine radar

Fiona Needham reports Cheltenham Festival hunters’ chase heroine Sine Nomine none the worse for her fall at Wetherby on Boxing Day.

The nine-year-old was plugging on gamely and in with a chance of being placed behind Some Scope in the Rowland Meyrick Handicap Chase when taking a tumble two out.

“She’s absolutely fine, she’s come out of it very bright and it’s just the weather that’s holding us up now a little bit,” said Needham.

“For such a good jumper, it was rather annoying, but when you look back, I think she made a similar mistake when she won her hunter chase there at Wetherby, but she was going much quicker in this race when she fell.

“So that’s quite significant, but she rolled straight over as soon as she hit the ground and has come out of it very well.”

Looking ahead to future plans, the North Yorkshire handler added: “Ironically, she wants soft ground but the current situation is a bit much.

“There’s a Listed mares’ chase at Newbury (January 15) which could be next, but we’ll see – we’re looking at various options.”

Having also unseated her rider when making a seasonal reappearance at Market Rasen in November, a return to hunter chasing was considered in order to seek a confidence-boosting clear round.

However, Needham said: “We’ve discussed that but I think she was doing enough to prove that she was good enough to be where she is, so I think we’re going to keep going down that route for now.”