Slade Steel

Noted here before after he won his maiden hurdle at Naas last month, Slade Steel is worthy of note again after he won the Grade 2 Navan Novice Hurdle at Navan on Saturday. He travelled well and he showed a lot of pace to hit the front between the last two flights of hurdles, and he showed his grit and determination for Rachael Blackmore on the run-in to see of the talented Lecky Watson, whose stamina for this trip and beyond is proven. The runner-up closed Slade Steel down again close home, but it may have been that the winner was doing no more than he needed to do. There could be even more to come.

Henry de Bromhead’s horse remains a hugely exciting prospect. The form of his maiden hurdle win is working out really well, with the runner-up King Of Kingsfield finishing second in the Grade 1 Royal Bond Hurdle next time, and the fourth horse Gorgeous Tom finishing second behind Caldwell Potter in the maiden hurdle at Navan earlier on Saturday. The Robcour horse shaped as though he could improve for stepping up to two and a half miles, and that proved to be the case here, but he is not all stamina, he has pace too, and he will be of interest when he steps up into Grade 1 company now.

Navan, 9^th December 2023