Troubled Nicky Henderson yard gets a much-needed boost after leanest February since 1997

One of the most noteworthy events of a low-key weekend was a winner for the troubled Nicky Henderson yard. On top of the bolt-from-the-blue concerns over Constitution Hill since his disappointing gallop at Kempton, Henderson's team have been going through the sort of thin spell that has become rare for Seven Barrows during the core jumps season.

There were just five winners for Henderson last month, his weakest performance in February since 1997. He quite often goes a bit quiet in the weeks before the Cheltenham Festival while his best horses are being saved for big spring targets, but recent weeks have been unproductive, even allowing for that. 

He had twice as many winners and significantly more runners last February. At one point in the last fortnight, he had a spell where six runners out of seven were pulled up, four of whom had started at 11-2 or shorter.