Deposed champ riding into battle with raw recruits and rising stars

If anyone ever doubted the full-blooded extent of Paul Nicholls' ambition as he heads into his 27th season with a training licence then they would do well to cast an eye over the Manor Farm gallops of a morning to see a familiar figure in an unfamiliar role.

The former Hennessy-winning jump jockey has returned to the saddle at the tender age of 55 and it looks less a mid-life crisis and more an attempt to eke another grain of improvement out of an operation that has already landed ten trainers' championships and won't be passing up another lightly.

"It's still a hunger to do the best you can," he grins. "I still love what I do and I've been riding out one or two lots a day for the last six weeks – something I haven't done for 15 years. I find it gives me a different insight."