How dated thinking by British trainers is creating soft horses

And so to the Grand National, where instant deification awaits any British trainer with a horse who finishes in the first six. It would represent some kind of progress after a Cheltenham Festival that saw jump racing in Britain recast as a sport on the edge of the abyss.

Drubbings sometimes happen in sport, which is unpredictable by definition. Otherwise there would be no point. A football team beaten 7-0 can rebound against the same opponent to turn the tables one week later. A soul-searching bout of introspection between matches can make all the difference. Introspection is what Britain's trainers now need to embrace.

There is plenty of food for thought, although the argument that Britain's jumps programme should be torn up and redrafted is spurious. Instant analysis in the wake of a rout can be extreme, and here was a case in point. Many of the reasons advanced in mitigation made little sense – least of all the clarion call for jumps festivals at Christmas and in February, as is the case in Ireland.