Last season's race

• Winner: Julius Des Pictons
• Jockey: Gavin Sheehan
• Trainer: Jamie Snowden
• Owner: The Footie Partnership
• Age: 6 Weight: 11st 8lbs
• Starting Price: 14/1
• Season Form Figures: 2113
• Previous Best: 3rd - trustatrader.com Novices' Hurdle (Listed), Exeter (February 2025)

By Paul Jones

In the last decade the Sefton has been won by some top-class horses, most notably the Stayers’ Hurdle and King George VI Chase winner Thistlecrack, while many others have been beaten here - like three of the last four King George winners in Bravemansgame, Banbridge and The Jukebox Man. Cole Harden also completed the Sefton-Stayers’ Hurdle double, so it has been a much better guide to next season’s staying hurdling division than the Albert Bartlett, which tends to produce high-class novice chasers the following season.

A little surprisingly, of the 37 winners less than half (17) had run at the previous month’s Cheltenham Festival. Between 2008-2011 all four winners bypassed the Cheltenham Festival, but Lovcen, At Fishers Cross, The World’s End and Santini won the 2012, 2013, 2017 and 2018 renewals, respectively, after running big races in the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (as did Dancing City in 2024), whereas Champ was successfully stepping up in trip after finishing second in what is now the Turners Novices’ Hurdle.

Seven Sefton winners in total contested the Albert Bartlett won this season by Johnny’s Jury beating Fruit De Mer and The Passing Wife into the places. At Fishers Cross and Black Jack Ketchum ran out convincing winners of both races. In addition to the pair that completed the Albert Bartlett-Sefton double, it should be noted that Moulin Riche (4th), Wichita Lineman (2nd), Nenuphar Collonges (4th), Weapons Amnesty (5th) and Stay Away Fay (4th) were beaten here after winning the Albert Bartlett. Of the seven Albert Bartlett winners that attempted to double up here, it was the pair that had the easiest time of it in victory at the Cheltenham Festival that prevailed.

When there was no 3m novice hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, it was the Turners Novices’ Hurdle over 2m5f that was previously the principal guide with the likes of Rustle (1988), Cardinal Red (1993), Forest Ivory (1997) and King’s Road (1999) winning here after finishing second, third or fourth at Cheltenham. However, the next 15 horses that tried the three-furlong further Sefton Novices’ Hurdle after filling the frame in the Turners were all beaten until Champ six years ago. King Rasko Grey beat Act Of Innocence and Zeus Power in this season’s running.

Although the Challow Hurdle won by No Drama This End, who then flopped in the Turners, takes place over 2m4f, rather than head for the Mersey Novices’ Hurdle over the same distance, six winners of that Grade 1 event run at Newbury over Christmas to run at this three-day meeting contested this half-mile longer test instead in recent years, four of which finished second and one won. The Jukebox Man finished placed in both races two seasons ago. The Challow is usually run on testing ground and can often develop into a slog placing far more emphasis on stamina, so it is not that surprising winners of that race head here.

The best guide outside of the Cheltenham Festival has been the Prestige Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2) run at Haydock in mid-February won by Dalston Lad from Ubatuba and Tashkhan. Cheltenham’s Bristol Novices’ Hurdle run in December - won by Dalston Lad’s stablemate Carlenrig - has featured four of the last 24 winners.

Twenty-six of the last 30 winners had won at least twice over hurdles. Multiple winners over hurdles have a very eye-catching record, as horses that had won at least four times earlier in the season have won on eight occasions in the last 29 years. Only six of the last 32 winners had not run at least four times over timber and 13 of the last 31 winners had won over at least 3m.

The Russell/Scudamore stable has won two of the last five runnings with 66/1 and 16/1 chances plus she had a 100/1 shot placed in 2022. They are one winner behind the Twiston-Davies yard who won this race for a third time 10 years ago. David Nicholson had also won this race on three occasions, and his long-time assistant Alan King is just one winner shy of emulating his old boss. Champ gave Henderson a fourth win after Rustle (1988), Beat That (2014) and Santini (2018), while Jonjo O’Neill has saddled two winners from very few runners.

Four Irish-trained horses have won, three of which bypassed the Cheltenham Festival and two of which were mares. The Lucinda Russell-trained mare, Apple Away, also bypassed Cheltenham when she won three years ago.

Since Sackville’s success for the Irish back in 2000, only two of their six contenders have won. Given that an equivalent Grade 1 novice hurdle over 3m at the Punchestown Festival was introduced into that meeting fairly recently, it could mean we may struggle for big-name Irish challengers.