Journey to the JLT begins for Colin Tizzard's high-class Reserve Tank

Joe Tizzard believes the likely soft ground at Chepstow will be of no concern to the talented Reserve Tank as the five-year-old prepares for his chasing debut against a small but talented group of rivals in the Listed Low Cost Vans Novices' Chase (3.55).

Unbeaten in 2019, Reserve Tank emerged as Britain's premier novice hurdler last season, with victory in the Betway Mersey Novices' Hurdle at Aintree's Grand National meeting and a hard-fought success in the Champion Novice Hurdle at Punchestown leaving him on an official hurdle rating of 151.

Now sent chasing, the dual Grade 1 winner looks primed for a big season over fences and is the general 10-1 market leader for the JLT Novices' Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

Tizzard, assistant trainer to his father Colin, said: "We're not worried about the ground, we're only in October so it shouldn't be too bad. He's in lovely form and has schooled well. This looks the perfect starting point for him."

Secret Investor, winner of the Grade 2 Future Champions Novices' Chase at Ayr, retains his novice status until November 1 because his victory at the Scottish track came in April, and the Paul Nicholls-trained seven-year-old sets a good standard over fences.

Posh Trish: could make her first start over fencesCredit: Paul Harding

However, should the forecast rain arrive he would be unlikely to line up, and Nicholls said: "He obviously has the best form over fences going into the race and I've always aimed him at this as he's still a novice.

"However, he doesn't want soft ground. If you look at his record he's a good-ground horse and so we'll need to watch the rain with him."

On the flip side, high-class mare Posh Trish will relish testing conditions according to Nicholls.

He added: "You can put a line through her last run at Cheltenham as it just didn't happen for her that day. She gets 7lb off the geldings and is a big, strong jumper."

The Fergal O'Brien-trained Jarveys Plate completes the field of four.

Imperial Aura 'swapping weight for experience' in the Silver Trophy

The lightly raced Imperial Aura will need to defy inexperience as he steps into handicap company for the first time in the Grade 3 Cotswold Stone Supplies Ltd Silver Trophy Handicap Hurdle (4.30).

Trained by Kim Bailey, the six-year-old was unbeaten in two starts over hurdles last season but has proved difficult to keep right and has just four career starts to his name.

The Imperial Racing Club's Ian Robinson said: "He's a horse we like a lot but he had a bit of a troubled season last year as after every race he had sore shins.

"We're basically swapping weight for experience and that's always a fairly marginal decision but the track should suit and we expect him to run a very big race."

The Silver Trophy remains one of the few Graded jumps races in the south west to have eluded Paul Nicholls, but in the promising Greaneteen the champion trainer may have the ace to break his duck.

Nicholls said: "He's a nice young horse who won twice for us last year and then had a minor injury so we decided just to leave him until this season.

"He's unexposed but we're still to find out whether he goes in really soft ground. But I'd like to think he's got a really good each-way chance."

Colin Tizzard is another with a leading fancy for the £50,000 contest, and Beaufort West looks a five-year-old primed for a big season after showing promise throughout his five-race juvenile campaign.

Joe Tizzard said: "He was consistent last season, bits and pieces of his form are quite promising, but it does look a really competitive race.

"He's on a workable mark and has a lovely racing weight so he's very much entitled to take his chance."

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