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Midnight Shadow's demise a sad reminder of why water jumps should be scrapped
There were many reasons to smile at the end of Saturday's racing – an exciting Cotswold Chase, some top performances from Cheltenham Festival hopefuls, and that amazing Paisley Park comeback.
But, unfortunately, there was one image burned into my mind that left a cloud hanging over the others: that of poor Midnight Shadow suffering a fatal injury in the Sky Bet Chase at Doncaster.
The Sue Smith-trained chaser had been enjoying the best season of his career with victory in the Paddy Power Gold Cup sandwiched between thirds in the Old Roan and Racing Post Gold Cup, but went wrong upon landing after the water jump.
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