No 'wow' factor but job done as State Man confirms Champion Hurdle potential

Sunday: Unibet Morgiana Hurdle, Punchestown

It was every bit as straightforward as odds of 4-9 suggested it should be, but Willie Mullins summed up what many spectators felt when assessing State Man's effort in running out a ready winner of the Morgiana Hurdle on his seasonal bow.

Last term's emphatic County Hurdle victor dispensed with two-time Morgiana winner and stablemate Sharjah by four lengths on his first start in a senior Grade 1, as Saldier – another Closutton stalwart who won the two-mile showpiece in 2019 – kept on to be third.

His hurdling lacked the sort of precision we associate with the division's most exalted performers, although he warmed to the task and you couldn't fault what he achieved on what was just his fourth completed start over hurdles since arriving from France.

Still, it was more a case of 'job done' than 'wow'– and 'wow' is where it is at in this sector these days.

State Man looks a serious prospect but the reality is that the bar is being set high by the peerless Honeysuckle, with the runaway Supreme Novices' Hurdle winner Constitution Hill also casting an imposing shadow.

"Looking at that I don't think Henry [de Bromhead] or Michael Buckley or Nicky Henderson are too worried, but we are going to improve too," Mullins said after recording his 12th success in the €120,000 event.

If Mullins was being pragmatic in that sense, he certainly was not disappointed with what this five-year-old achieved in extending his winning sequence to four.

With Teahupoo withdrawn after the official going dried to yielding, just four faced the starter and Saldier led them along under Danny Mullins.

They raced in Indian file at a respectful distance from each other until State Man jumped upsides two out. From there, he gradually stretched clear with Sharjah failing to land a blow, although he did outpoint Saldier for second.

It was all very orderly and might have passed for a well-organised Mullins schooling session. Nonetheless, State Man saw off two rivals rated 160-plus with the minimum of fuss.

He might not be the second coming of Hurricane Fly or Faugheen, but he is a horse with a big future.

"I was very happy with him," Mullins said. "Sharjah had been working well at home and he put him to bed when Paul asked him. Thankfully all of the hurdles were left in, so he got a bit of practice, which he needed.

"His jumping is probably not Champion Hurdle class yet but that will come. I think in a bigger field with more competition that will come. He looks a real hurdler to me."

State Man and Paul Townend clear the last on the way to winning the Morgiana HurdleCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

The sponsors Unibet, who named the race in honour of Michael Rafferty, the popular social media operator who traded as @AnaglogsDaughtr and died in June, cut State Man to 6-1 from 9-1 to secure Mullins a fifth Champion Hurdle next March.

He will likely follow a well-trodden path to get there.

"I am looking at Christmas for him now and then the Dublin Racing Festival," Mullins added of future plans. "We'll look to get the experience into him now and harden him up."

Townend, whose previous Morgiana wins came aboard Faugheen and Sharjah, sung from a similar hymn sheet. He was happy with what State Man did, but knows more will be required.

"He probably needed to do that but he will come on for it," he said. "He jumped a little bit big over a couple of the early hurdles but he was professional for a finish, I thought. I think the faster he is going the better he jumps so he is well able."

Should State Man turn out at Leopardstown on December 29, he will likely face Sharjah in the Matheson Hurdle he has won each of the past four years.

The nine-year-old, twice a runner-up in the Champion Hurdle, sets a fair benchmark, although Patrick Mullins felt he was not at his best.

"I was a little bit disappointed with him," he said. "I thought he was more ready than he was. He should have been able to go by Saldier on the bridle and he didn't. He will come on for it."

The problem for Sharjah is that so will the winner – probably a lot more.

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