Nicky Henderson was left scratching his head after Jeriko Du Reponet was pulled up on his chasing bow at Sandown.

A high-ranking novice hurdler last term, the five-year-old’s only defeat came in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, a time when the Seven Barrows string were under a cloud and Henderson ended up removing many of his stars from the firing line.