Unibet Greatwood Hurdle: Kerry Lee has high hopes of Nemean Lion

The six-year-old is among the favourites and a 6/1 chance with the sponsors for the prestigious handicap, having backed up some smart novice hurdles form with the win at Ffos Las on his seasonal reappearance.

She said “Nemean Lion has really enjoyed his start to the season and it was great to get the nice ground at Ffos Las (for the Welsh Champion Hurdle). I thought he might need the run but it turned out he was spot on and it was a great performance. He’s gone up five pounds for that win which puts us on 140 now, it is exciting times.”

Nemean Lion joined the Kerry Lee team from Godolphin having been trained on the flat by Andre Fabre in France. He spent two years off the track due to a series of injuries. Kerry’s father Richard and current owner Will Roseff purchased the six-year-old at Tattersall’s November Sale at Ascot in 2021 for £18,000.

“He hasn’t always been a natural hurdler. He came here from Godolphin who sold him as he’d been injured twice with a tendon injury. I think my father and Will Roseff both saw potential in Nemean Lion becoming a hurdler and a good one at that," the handler added.

“We bought him and gave him a full year off before he came into training. Last October we gave him a pipe-opener on the flat at Doncaster which was a little disappointing. He then went novice hurdling and his hurdling was a little bit shaky and his schooling hasn’t always been perfect. Richard Patrick has put in a huge amount of work and this season we’ve been schooling him every week. Prior to the Welsh Champion Hurdle we were jumping poles in the school. I have to say, touch wood, he seems to have got it now, but we will never get complacent with him.”

Nemean Lion was runner-up in the Group 2 Prix Chaudenay at Longchamp in 2020 and has made the frame in all five starts over hurdles since joining the yard, including when third in last season’s Grade 1 Unibet Tolworth Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown and winning the Grade 2 Premier Novices' Hurdle at Kelso on his final start of the season at the beginning of March.

“He’s always been a horse with a reasonable amount of potential. We don’t know where the ceiling is. When we ran in the Unibet Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown it was quite a big task and I wasn’t quite sure how it was going to go," the trainer said.

"We were chuffed to have finished third in that. Colonel Harry who we beat at Kelso has subsequently come out and won a nice chase at Chepstow this week. His career obviously progressed last season culminating in a Grade two victory. To start this season by winning one of the best handicap hurdles this season is quite exciting.”

Sunday’s trip to Cheltenham will be Nemean Lion’s first visit to Prestbury park after connections decided to skip both the Cheltenham Festival and Aintree’s Grand National meeting last season.

“It was really a deliberate plan to not go to Cheltenham or Aintree. Because of his previous injuries we have to mind him very carefully. As such we’re avoiding any ground that is quicker than good to soft. Our optimum would be Good to Soft, Soft in places. I took him up to Ayr for the Scottish Champion Hurdle and we didn’t run, the ground was much too quick.

“I would say mentally he’s changed out of almost all recognition. It’s quite exciting when you get a horse like him who is used to being in a big yard and in a regime, who suddenly now hacks about and enjoys the woodland and the forestry. We sometimes take them to the river to have a splash and he just thinks anything along those lines that it’s all just a bit of a breeze. I have to say he’s turned into a really happy horse.”

Nemean Lion has been partnered by jockey Richard Patrick on each of his five starts over hurdles and Patrick is looking forward to teaming up with the six-year-old once again in Sunday’s contest.

He said “I was very impressed, for him to come out and win like he did in a competitive race first time out. Kerry got him there in great order and he was ready to do the job. He jumped well 90% of the time, he has the odd tendency to miss one but I think that was the best thing we took out of the Welsh Champion Hurdle was the way he jumped. He met everything quick and well, and he was really fast over the last three hurdles.

“He’s always been very classy. We did well to pick him up from the Ascot sales and I think he went off at 14/1 for his Novice Hurdle around Hereford when he absolutely hosed up. He was very impressive that day.

“It would be great to think he could be a contender for the Unibet Champion Hurdle. Every jockey needs a horse like him in their career. Every win is special but riding winners for Mr Roseff is brilliant because he’s been a massive supporter of mine. We’ve had lots of success over the years with Happy Diva and Storm Control. It’s great to have another one now with Nemean Lion.”

Nemean Lion could be joined by stablemate Black Poppy who just missed out on completing a hat-trick when second on his seasonal reappearance at Cheltenham’s opening meeting last month.

Lee added “Black Poppy is in really good form since his run at Cheltenham just a couple of weeks ago. He finished second on his first start of the season giving a stone away to the winner as well, which I think was quite a decent effort. The ground is quite dependent for Black Poppy in and we’d want to see it on the quicker side of Good to Soft for us to be going there.”

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