YOU have to go back to 2004 to find the last horse aged above six to win the Betfair Hurdle (3.35). Then, the race was known as the Tote Gold Trophy and it was won by nine-year-old Geos, who just held off a brave run from then Champion Hurdler Rooster Booster, competing off a mark of 166.

The Philip Hobbs-trained grey was sent off favourite to defend his title at Cheltenham off the back of that run and he looked set to do so when he cruised up to challenge at the last, only for a certain Hardy Eustance and Conor O’Dwyer to pull out more and win comfortably at 33/1 in the end.

Betfair was barely in the public’s consciousness by that stage, and this two-mile hurdle has followed a distinct and strong trend since - won by a novice hurdler or a second season hurdler who raced as a juvenile hurdler the previous season. Of the former category, it has yet to provide a Festival winner, namely a Supreme Novice Hurdle winner, though a few have gone close, like Get Me Out Of Here and My Tent Or Yours.

There doesn’t seem to be that class of contender in the disappointing 14-runner line-up today. That poor turn-out is a more recent trend, possibly due to an unhealthy attraction towards the Cheltenham Festival, which given the dominance of Irish-trained runners, who took all handicap hurdles at the Festival last season, seems a strange strategy. In turn, that no Irish trainer decided to come and have a go at today’s £155,000 race, seems like a missed opportunity also, for all that there was a big two-mile handicap hurdle in Leopardstown on Sunday.

Maybe this contest plainly isn’t as fashionable as it once was, but it sure is valuable, and in there lies an excellent opportunity for those who stood their ground in today’s line-up, especially in comparison to the white hot handicap hurdles at the Festival next month.

Nicky Henderson has trained more winners in the race than anyone else and appears to have two reasonable chances of extending that record with the quirky but talented Broomfield Burg and the similarly unexposed Free Street.

Of the pair, the Seven Barrows conditioner said this week: “They are both novices. Broomfield Burg was impressive when he won by ten lengths at Kempton in December. He is a horse that’s got gears. He has been learning to settle and learning to race.

“Both horses are very similar. They haven’t got that much experience but they are very professional novices. They both want a really good strong gallop. One always thinks that you get a strong gallop in a race like this but it doesn’t always happen. There will be nice ground and that will suit them both.”

No horse has won this contest back-to-back since the second renewal of the race in 1964 when Ryan Price’s Rosyth successfully defended his title from the inaugural running. Soaring Glory has a chance to join that horse today, but most race off a stone higher rating.

He beat Fifty Ball on that occasion and after a unsuccessful spell as a novice chaser, he is back over hurdles here off the same mark from which he competed last season. He represents Gary Moore who has three wins in this race.

IT’S a big day today for Paul Nicholls and Henry de Bromhead, as the pair seek form ahead of Cheltenham next month.

Nicholls has sent out one winner from 37 runners in the last 14 days and both his runners at the Dublin Racing Festival, Frodon and Greaneteen, were very disappointing. It led the Ditcheat handler to admit something wasn’t right during the week and he decided to pull stumps, declaring no horses to run since last weekend.

Given the high profile nature of today’s card at Newbury, which his horses may well have been prepared for a long way out, Nicholls is back in action today, most notably with Bravemansgame in the opening handicap chase (1.15), Clan Des Obeaux in the Denman Chase (2.25), Hitman in the Game Spirit (3.00) and Knappers Hill in the Betfair Hurdle (3.35). His stable form will be the standout theme in all of those races and interesting factor for punters to decipher.

At Naas, the much touted Journey With Me has his second start over hurdles in the Connolly’s Red Mills Irish EBF Auction Novice Hurdle (1.40) for Henry de Bromhead, who in fairness has shown signs of a form revival this week, having sent out a winner and two thirds at Fairyhouse on Wednesday and a second from his only runner in Thurles on Thursday.

Journey With Me has had his maiden hurdle form upgraded significantly since Christmas, thanks to the subsequent exploits of Minella Crooner and Kilcruit. The Robcour-owned six-year-old is 5/1 second favourite for the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle, where he could bid to give his owner and trainer a repeat win following Bob Olinger last season.