'Tis the season to be jolly for in-form trainer Olly Murphy

Christmas came early for trainer Olly Murphy this year, with the master of Warren Chase Stables notching a personal best 20 winners in November, and his good form shows no sign of slowing as we head into a busy festive period on the track.

It was less than five years ago that Murphy burst on to the jumps scene in Britain having decided to go it alone in Warwickshire after a stellar period as assistant trainer to Gordon Elliott in Ireland during the era of Gold Cup conqueror Don Cossack.

He hit the ground running with 47 winners over jumps from 250 runners in his first season among the training ranks, then built on that with 82 victories in the 2018-19 season while maintaining a healthy 19 per cent strike-rate.

His third season provided a crucial first Grade 1 when Itchy Feet landed the Scilly Isles at Sandown and last term Brewin'upastorm's Grade 2 National Spirit win was the highlight of 80 winners.

Brewin'upastorm: a leading light of Olly Murphy's yardCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

This season, however, is threatening to be his best yet, and after a record-breaking November he is already into double-figures for December, which could be a big month for the yard with Grade 1 targets on the horizon.

"They're in good nick," says Murphy in understated but upbeat fashion. "Hopefully we'll be competitive in some of the good spring prizes when the time comes and keep climbing the trainers' table."

He currently sits in seventh position in the British jumps trainers' championship, but could be on the ascent this weekend if Thomas Darby brings his A-Game to the Howden Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot.

His trainer has never doubted Thomas Darby's ability, even if the eight-year-old has lacked consistency at times, and Murphy was fully vindicated when the horse ran away with the Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury last month, setting up a tilt at a first Grade 1 triumph on Saturday.

"I'm swaying towards running him," he says. "I don't think we've got a lot to lose. People crabbed his win at Newbury last time but he bolted in and I think he's got to go there with a good each-way chance.

"He's beaten most of them in the race and he's a very good horse on his day. The plan is to run at the moment and Sean Bowen will ride again. It's just unfortunate he doesn't turn up every day of the week, but he's a horse we think the world of."

Thomas Darby in winning action in the Long Distance Hurdle at NewburyCredit: Edward Whitaker

Murphy, 30, produced arguably the training performance of the day at Cheltenham last Saturday, saddling another of the favourites in his yard, Hunters Call, to finish a close third in the International Hurdle.

As much as any horse, Hunters Call helped put Murphy on the training map when winning Ascot's big pre-Christmas Grade 3 handicap hurdle in 2017, but considering Saturday's huge run was only his eighth since then tells you exactly how tricky he has been to train.

Yet at the age of 11 and at Grade 2 level, he put in a career-best at Cheltenham, travelling with ease throughout before Guard Your Dreams and Song For Someone squeezed ahead in the closing stages. It was a ringing endorsement for Murphy's skill as a trainer.

"He ran a cracker and is obviously a horse who still retains an awful lot of ability," says his trainer. "He's a horse who is hopefully still going to win a good race somewhere. There's a race at Lingfield [the £100,000 Winter Million Hurdle over 2m3½f on January 23] that's worth an awful lot of money and we'll probably look at something like that. For a horse who is almost 12 to put in a performance like Saturday was great."

Had it not been for suspensory problems with his front legs, there is no telling what level Hunters Call might have reached but, touch wood, he's been a sound horse for the past 18 months.

"He had a little wind op and I don't know if that's just helped him but he half looks like he's improving," says Murphy. "He's been hard to train but he's a good horse and close to a lot of people's hearts at my place."

Hunters Call leads over the last in the International HurdleCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Stablemate Brewin'upastorm, as talented as any horse in the yard on his day, is heading to the Relkeel Hurdle at Cheltenham on New Year's Day, according to Murphy, who has some lofty festive plans in place for some of his brightest youngsters.

Juvenile hurdler Parliament Hill is targeting the Grade 1 Finale at Chepstow on December 27 after bolting up on his debut over hurdles at Leicester last month, while promising novices Doctor Ken and Go Dante are in the mix for the Challow at Newbury on December 29.

"I think it's probably my best group of horses," he concludes. "I've only been training for four and a half years and it takes a bit of time to build a team up. As much as everyone wants it to, it doesn't happen overnight but we're getting a nice team together now with some nice handicap chasers, good novice hurdles and the likes of Itchy Feet, Brewin'upastorm and Thomas Darby.

"We have a bit of of strength in depth now which is great and have some nice horses coming up behind them all as well."

It could all add up to a very merry Christmas for the trainer and his team.

Soaring Glory can rise to the occasion

Had Soaring Glory been heading to Saturday's Betfair Exchange Trophy at Ascot off the back of his comfortable win at the same course at the end of October, he would surely head the market.

Instead, having fluffed his lines in a four-runner contest at Newbury that was run at more than 15 seconds below standard last month, he’s a 10-1 shot in places – and that’s absolutely fine with me.

I will be the first to admit Soaring Glory barely lifted a leg at his hurdles at Newbury but what he needs is a true-run race to show his best and that's exactly what he should get on Saturday providing the majority of the 16 entries who remain at this stage stand their ground at declarations on Thursday.

Soaring Glory: big chance at Ascot on Saturday if he takes his chanceCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

Soaring Glory has always had an unorthodox jumping style but there is no doubting the sizeable engine he possesses and he bolted up in a 23-runner Betfair Hurdle last season.

Connections had hoped he'd progress beyond handicaps this season and probably thought Newbury was an ideal stepping stone to Graded company but big-field handicaps are always going to play more to his strengths and I'd be confident of him bouncing back on Saturday if he takes his chance.

He's up 6lb for his last win at Ascot, a course at which he always runs well, and while he will be towards the head of the weights on Saturday, it's a race where the cream often rises to the top, and Soaring Glory has plenty of class.

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