When it comes to the Cheltenham Festival, bookmakers are accused – quite rightly in most cases– of overreacting to certain performances and, as a result, offering unrealistic prices. Take Coney Island for instance, who was almost halved in price in many places for the Gold Cup after beating two opponents – one who appears to have gone at the game – on his seasonal reappearance at Ascot. Now clearly he’s a horse of some potential and he might be good enough to take his chance in the blue riband event if he comes through his next race at Leopardstown with flying colours, but if just beating Adrian Du Pont, who clearly fell in a hole after going off too fast, constitutes Edward Harty’s inmate all of a sudden being a 10-1 chance in most lists, the layers have to be watching different races to everyone else. A very rare bird nowadays, therefore, is seeing a horse win a trial race and get pushed out in price, but that was the case when MIN (best price 11-2) took the Grade Paddy’s Reward Club Chase at Leopardstown recently only to be demoted by the stewards after interfering with Simply Ned.

Given the rules as they are, there was no way Willie Mullins’ inmate was going to be allowed to keep the race at the Dublin track (even more so in Ireland), but whether he would have won if Simply Ned had got a clear run or should have been allowed to keep the race is not the point, in essence, he performed much better than most observers/pundits suggested. Okay, he might have been a 2-7 shot, but that was arguably an unrealistic price in the first place given the opposition, and it wasn’t as if he did too much wrong granted the circumstances of the race either. Firstly, Gigginstown seemed to have a game plan to mess with his early rhythm by sending the blinkered-first-time Tell Us More up along sides through the first half a mile, and although Gordon Elliot’s inmate nearly fell at the third, he was enough of a menace until that juncture to eke out vital energy reserves in the favourite. The way he kept on in the closing stages once joined, therefore, is testimony to his class and the fact that he pulled clear of the two useful sorts Ordinary World and Ball D’Arc, who had nothing to do with the early skirmishes, should also be marked down as a positive. In the aftermath of the race, some decent judges suggested that the Walk In The Park gelding would be better off campaigned over further from now and go down the Ryanair route, but surely he shows too much speed and exuberance to warrant running over a stiff 2m 4f and besides, the stable has the reigning champ in the shape of Un De Sceaux – who looked as good as ever on his seasonal return at Cork.

Obviously, there’s the small matter of Altior in the way, who it terms of his form and natural ability seems way ahead of his competitors, but according to all reports he will to go Cheltenham without a run and that always has to be a risky business even allowing for the fact he’s trained by a genius. Politologue has become the real joker in the pack thanks to his brilliant season and he a lot of similarities to ex-stable mate Dodging Bullets who climbed through the ranks before capturing this prize in 2015. Of the rest, connections of Fox Norton don’t seem to know his best trip is and was bitterly disappointing in the King George, while we’ve yet to see the promising Great Field so far this season. Despite falling at the final ditch at Kempton recently, one would imagine reigning champ, Special Tiara will be back to defend his crown and given genuine good ground in the Spring, he’s not one to totally dismiss. However, the sight of him in the field would give connections of Min a target to shoot at rather than try and blast from the front and that’s one of the other main reasons the lightly-raced six-year-old makes plenty of appeal at the revised prices.

Min - 1pt e/w @ 11/2