A chasing performance to warm the souls of the diehard purists

There are few occasions that epitomise the romantic martyrdom espoused by hardcore fans of old-fashioned staying chasers like an Irish Gold Cup card.

On a Baltic and bleak afternoon when the sleet sheeted down through a cutting wind in bitter fits and starts, this was a programme that warmed the souls of the purists.

Events were defined by traditional three-mile chasing types, which is as it should be. The Stan James-sponsored feature has lost much of its former aura, partly due to the manner in which the whole universe turns these days on the Cheltenham Festival.