HE looked the star of the show beforehand and Saint Roi duly delivered on his return to action in the Grade 3 Horse & Jockey Hotel Hurdle and he could take crack at some of the best two-mile hurdlers around.

The ease with which Saint Roi won last season’s County Hurdle as he stepped from a maiden hurdle at Tramore was striking and suggested that he could be Champion Hurdle class. There was nothing too revelatory in this display but it showed that the J.P. McManus runner has begun his campaign in great heart.