Can latest setback be the cue for another standout season?

As Paddy Brennan sailed over the final fence in the Betfred Bowl at Aintree in April, it was hard to imagine that the season soon to come would be a crucial one for his career.

With a Betfair Chase and King George already in the bag, Cue Card in the process of soaring to a third Grade 1 success and God’s Own waiting in the wings to add two late flourishes, this was a year to remember for a jockey who hadn’t enjoyed victory in this league since he teamed up with Tom George’s Nacarat back in 2011.

When he and old ally George hit the ground running this summer, all seemed set fair for another stellar campaign – and then the bombshell dropped. The Gloucestershire trainer announced he had engaged 24-year-old Adrian Heskin as his stable jockey, leaving the 35-year-old Brennan to ponder the reasons for the split from the man who had provided him with 28 wins from 155 rides in 2015-16 and already 11 from 47 this term.