Emotional Hales' tough season comes good as Millers Bank breaks his Grade 1 duck

Thursday: Manifesto Novices' Chase, Aintree

After a Cheltenham Festival dominated by the big battalions, Alex Hales struck a blow for the smaller trainers by landing his first Grade 1 success in the opening race of the Grand National meeting.

He put a "frustrating" season behind to land a joyous success in the SSS Super Alloys Manifesto Novices' Chase with Millers Bank, a horse that he and his wife Sally bred.

The eight-year-old, an 80-1 third in the Aintree Hurdle here last spring, came good after a couple of mid-season unseats to score by an emphatic seven lengths under Kielan Woods.

"We've had an awkward year," said Hales, who has trained since 2000 and has 40 horses in his yard in Oxfordshire.

"It's been frustrating. The horses haven't run half as well as I'd have liked. We've had two really good years and this year has been hard, the horses have been badly handicapped and they've not been quite as healthy as we'd have liked."

SSS Super Alloys Manifesto Novices' Chase full result and race replay

It meant this first top-level victory was all the more welcome for a man who had won two Grade 2s and a Grade 3 over the previous two seasons.

"It's quite emotional," he added. "It's wonderful really. It's taken a long time to get here. It's a massive team effort. We've worked so hard for so long to find horses like this and to do it here is just wonderful.

"This is a hard game. It's hard to compete at this level. To come here on the top stage and do this, when Sally and I bred him as well, is quite an incredible story."

Reflecting on Millers Bank's in-and-out season, Hales said: "At Huntingdon first time out he was brilliant, but it's not supposed to be easy this game and the wheels came off a couple of times.

Millers Bank (Kielan Woods) with trainer Alex Hales and his staff after the Grade 1 openerCredit: Edward Whitaker

"We got back on track in the Pendil and David Ffitch-Peyton, who rides him every day, has been saying for the last two weeks this is the best he's ever been. He was right."

Woods was also enjoying his first Grade 1 success and said: "I've had a couple of Cheltenham Festival wins but I hadn't even won a Grade 2, so this is just brilliant."

An even bigger prize could beckon as Hales said: "He'll appreciate a step up to three miles. That will open up options next season – I don't know about the King George, that's dreaming, isn't it?"

Colin Tizzard swept second and third with War Lord and The Widdow Maker and was pleased with his duo's efforts.

"War Lord ran his race until the other one went by," he said. "The Widdow Maker surprised us today. I thought he would make the running but he's settled nicely in behind the leader."

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