FINIAN’S OSCAR, in the colours of the sadly departed Alan and Ann Potts, recorded a poignant victory in the Steel Plate And Sections Novices’ Chase when Cheltenham’s November Meeting opened yesterday. Fittingly, he was ridden by Bryan Cooper, whose previous success came on the same horse at Chepstow in the middle of October.

This four-runner affair was not without early drama as William Henry all but dislodged Davy Russell at the first, impeding Finian’s Oscar in the process. William Henry jumped big afterwards and was soon pulled-up when Russell’s saddle appeared to slip. Outsider Coo Star Sivola went on and jumped well for Lizzie Kelly but the winner and Movewiththetimes were merely biding their time.

When Cooper took it up on Finian’s Oscar it looked as if the 10/11 chance would win at his leisure but Barry Geraghty fired Movewiththetimes into the second-last fence and went on by a length. It was a clever move but Finian’s Oscar is a classy sort and soon regained the initiative after the last, going on to score by just over two lengths.

The Pottses, husband and wife, were great supporters of jump racing and Cheltenham honoured them in style before racing. Finian’s Oscar cost £250,000 and has the potential to go to the very top, with the JLT Chase his most likely festival target this season, although but Tizzard and his son Joe suggested a drop down to two miles would be strongly considered.

“It’s all very sad,” Cooper said. “I was in Colin Tizzard’s yard earlier this week and had just returned to the station when his son Joe rang me with the news. Finian’s Oscar is very smart and a little bit too brave for his own good. I knew Barry would wait to pounce but we found plenty, though he’s inclined to idle, as he did at Punchestown. He stays very well over this trip, two and a half miles, and I see no reason to drop back. Things had dried up for me a little bit in Ireland and I’m just so grateful to get on these horses.”

“He’s a horse that we hope will become a Gold Cup contender one day, though he won’t be going a distance of ground this season,” Joe Tizzard added. “We haven’t altogether ruled out the Arkle, incidentally.”

That was interesting to hear, though most bookmakers believe the target in March will be the JLT and the going price with most firms is 6/1.

VILLAGE DOES IT

The most valuable race on the card was the BetVictor Handicap Chase and it went to Paul Henderson’s Doitforthevillage at 13/2. The trainer was following up last year’s victory with Un Beau Roman, who finished unplaced this time.

Two-mile handicap chases can be lickety-split affairs often with late drama but Doitforthevillage won with the minimum of fuss. Last early on, he moved into fifth down the far side, quickly picked up the leaders turning for home and kept on strongly for Paddy Brennan to beat the well-fancied Kapstadt by two lengths, with 3/1 favourite Exitas a close third.

Mick Thonic, another racing in the colours of Ann and Alan Potts, made much of the running and should pick up a small handicap in due course.

SUPERB SCUDAMORE

Making every yard in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Chase over three and three-quarter miles is no straightforward task but Tom Scudamore managed it in style on his brother Michael’s Kingswell Theatre.

The 14/1 chance was always bowling along happily in front and saved every yard around the tight turns. Then, when last year’s winner Urgent de Gregaine and stable-companion Vicomte Du Seuil looked certain to swallow him up and win for France, he stuck his head out and outlasted the latter by three-parts of a length.

There were highly significant incidents, as always in this race. Need To Know was tracking the winner when a serious error stopped him in his tracks, while Enda Bolger’s strongly-fancied Auvergnat came down early. Bolger’s other runner, Cantlow, runner-up in this race last year, was travelling easily enough for most of the way but felt the pinch turning for home and ran as if the run might just have been needed.

None of this takes anything away from Kingswell Theatre, who was very brave and determined.

“It’s great to win it for my brother,” an exultant Tom Scudamore said. “I never really liked these races but I enjoyed that! He put down on me at the last and I saw the challengers coming but he saw it out well.”

“We came here not really expecting to beat the J P McManus horses because he and Enda Bolger have such a fantastic record,” Michael Scudamore added.

“I think I owe Tom a drink. The thing about him is, he’s a brilliant judge of pace and he was spot-on there.”

REMAINDER OF THE CARD

Nicky Henderson, still very angry with certain members of the print and broadcasting media over their coverage of Altior’s wind problem and when it was made public, nearly made a perfect start to the afternoon. His gallant top-weight Sugar Baron made up the better part of eight lengths from the last in the Markel Insurance Amateur Riders’ Handicap Chase but failed by half a length to catch David Pipe’s 14/1 shot What A Moment, who was regaining his confidence after failing to complete on his final two outings last term.

Punters then did very well indeed to place their confidence in Kerry Lee’s 100/30 favourite Magic Dancer in the novices’ handicap hurdle, the five-year-old bolting up to follow his victory at Kempton four days earlier.

Henderson had the last word, however, as On The Blind Side lived up to his name in the closing Grade 2 Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle. For a long while this looked to be between Calett Mad (ultimately very disappointing) and Poetic Rhythm but Nico De Boinville took his time before sending the winner, 9/2, clear on the far side of Momella and Poetic Rhythm on the run-in to maintain his unbeaten record.

“He’s still raw but this was the first time they’d gone a real racing pace and that suited him,” the jockey said. “He’ll make quite a chaser one day.”