Cheltenham April meeting review and replays

The battle for the trainer's championship continued at Cheltenham on Thursday with both Willie Mullins and Dan Skelton well represented but both drew blanks in the opening two contests but Skelton ended the day with a lead of a little over £28,000.

Mullins saddled Saint Lucie in the opening KTDA Fillies' Juvenile Handicap Hurdle and the top-weight was made the 11/10 favourite for her handicap debut after finishing in midfield in the Triumph Hurdle at The Festival.

Saint Lucie, however, could only finish a one-paced fifth as fellow Irish challenger Lagoon Nebula (28/1) fought out the finish with Clotilda (20/1); the former prevailed by a neck with the pair pulling seven lengths clear of Maxios Prime, also trained in Ireland, in third.

The winner was ridden by Sean O'Keeffe and trained by Andrew Kinirons who said: "This was the plan for a long time.

"We brought her along slowly and it worked out. She's not the biggest but she's tough and she was working well at home. Sean gave her a peach, I told him to keep her comfortable and we thought keeping wide and getting the rail was key.

"It's a first graded winner and first winner in England, it's massive."

Skelton's Our Lil (12/1) never threatened but better was expected in the Exertis-Samsung Racing Excellence Award Challenger Series Mares' Chase Final where the Warwickshire handler saddled top-weight Coco Mademoiselle.

The 9/4 favourite appeared to be travelling very smoothly when stumbling on landing after jumping the third from home, giving jockey Harry Skelton no chance of keeping the partnership intact.

It was too far out to be certain if Coco Mademoiselle would have taken a hand in a finish that was dominated by Minniemum (15/2).

Trained by Henry Daly, Minniemum made a late switch to chasing at the end of March but the impact was immediate as she ran out a wide margin winner at Exeter over three miles before finding Lady Jago, a stablemate of the favourite and non-runner here after winning on Monday, too strong at Warwick.

Minniemum was up in the weights and up in grade but ran out a convincing seven and a half length winner from the prolific Sainte Doctor to post a career best.

Minniemum was bred by former jockey Richard Johnson and is out of a sister to the high class Mighty Man who Daly and Johnson teamed up with to win the Grade 1 Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot among other races and Daly felt Johnson would be delighted with the result.

"He'll be chuffed," he said. "He'll get a breeders' prize, he always liked the money! He'll be thrilled with that.

"The family are great stayers and love good ground basically. She's edgy but Mighty Man was a fruit loop so it's no great surprise with the family. It's a fantastic prize and a £30,000 GBB bonus which is just massive.

"She jumped very neatly as opposed to flash. She's very neat and tidy, made a bit of a fluff at the second last but otherwise great."

Pawapuri (7/1) could only finish eleventh in the Catesby Estates Mares' Challenger Series Final Handicap Hurdle.

Greyval (13/2) took the valuable prize for Johnny Burke and Fergal O'Brien, edging out Bethpage by half a length.

There were four and three quarter lengths back to last year's winner, Pretending, in third with 10/3 favourite Shantwopointfive three parts of a length back in fourth.

Greyval had got the better of Shantwopointfive at Chepstow last time and increased her dominance over her rival despite having to cope with a 4 lb higher mark.

Burke said: "She's a very fast mare to work, very quick, she could run on the Flat. I rode her over two miles and rode her for speed, rode her for trouble and did everything on her that I shouldn't have done and she caught me out, I thought she'd travel through her races.

"We stepped her up and this is her right trip. She likes a bit of space, she can go through gaps but she doesn't enjoy it and I played it safe and went very wide. I knew a clear passage was key to her and from the bottom of the straight she was really motoring."

Mullins ran two in the Aston Martin Mares' Novices' Handicap Chase but had to play second fiddle to Henry de Bromhead who saddled impressive winner Theatre Native (3/1 favourite).

A little keen on her handicap debut under Rachael Blackmore, Theatre Native nonetheless proved strong at the finish, powering away from her rivals to win by 10 lengths to record her second career success and first over fences on only her second attempt at two and a half miles.

Mulins' Judicieuse Allen had already beaten a retreat and stablemate A Penny A Hundred looked to be getting the worst of a battle with Georgi Girl for the minors but A Penny A Hundred stuck to the task and regained second place by only half a length.

A Penny A Hundred picked up over £10,000 for her connections, crucial money in the title race, for her trouble and those gains were supplemented by Judicieuse Allen who completed in her own time to finish last of the five runners to finish the course.

Blackmore said: "She was a little in my hands early and there wasn't a strong pace so I just let her go to the front and she was just in a beautiful rhythm, jumping super and it was a very enjoyable ride. The trip and the ground suit her down to the ground and she powered up the hill.

"She's a lovely mare. She was going to be an impressive winner of a point for Oliver Doyle when she fell and she maybe didn't progress over hurdles like you'd hope but hopefully over fences, she'll keep improving like that."

Jubilee Alpha (4/1) returned to form in the Listed Changing Young Lives At Jamie's Farm Mares' Novices' Hurdle, beating La Pinsonniere and Saint Tartare - trained by Mullins - by one and three quarter lengths and nine and a half lengths.

Sent off at 15/2 for the Dawn Run Novices' Hurdle at The Festival, Jubilee Alpha could only finish eighth last month but bounced back to form dropped in grade and stepped up to two and a half miles, travelling kindly for Harry Cobden and pulling clear of her rivals to stamp her class on the race despite the steadier of a penalty.

Winning trainer Paul Nicholls, celebrating his 63rd birthday, said: "Nice to have a birthday winner and a very nice filly.

"Step up in trip and better ground suited her. I didn't think ours were right when they ran at Cheltenham, certainly the fillies didn't look right in their coats. I've run three today, the first one [Clotilda] got beat a neck; they look better and they've gone better.

"She got a fantastic ride. I was thinking she was a bit far back but he knows better than I do, he gave her a peach of a ride and she won very, very nicely. She give everything 5 lb and she's an exciting filly.

"I think she'll improve for a good summer and she's a real smart, sharp hurdler and the trip brought out the best of her. There's such a good mares hurdle progamme, unless you've got a big, slow, strong mare you want to be hurdling with them and she's definitely a hurdler."

Shakeyatailfeather was backed into 2/1 favourite and duly obliged for the Skeltons in the Holland Cooper Mares' Handicap Chase.

Shakeyatailfeather moved ominously into contention and even a scruffy mistake at the second last didn't halt her momentum as she was soon back on an even keel and in front going to the last. She was foot perfect at that obstacle and only needed to be kept up to her work to beat last year's winner, Something Special, by four and a quarter lengths.

Skelton was also responsible for 3/1 favourite Sheezer Dancer in the closing bumper but she had a wall of horses in front of her after coming from off the pace.

Harry Skelton had to wait and wait for a gap to appear and Sheezer Dancer was brave to go through against the stands' side rail when one did eventually appear as the leaders hit the rising ground.

The momentum was with the runners in the centre of the course though and Sheezer Dancer couldn't edge past them with Poetisa (20/1) taking the spoils by half a length from Noble Grace.

Poetisa, who was making her racecourse debut, was ridden by Brian Hughes and is trained by Toby Bulgin.

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