'You doubt yourself when you don't win - but now we can think about Cheltenham' - Sam Thomas thinking big after ending drought

Sam Thomas spoke of his relief after Alfie's Princess ended his 171-day wait for a winner in the 2m3½f mares' novice hurdle to tee up a campaign which will be geared around a shot at the Cheltenham Festival in March.

The trainer will look to follow a similar route to the Mares' Novices' Hurdle taken by 2022 winner Love Envoi, who won ordinary events in the winter before scoring at Lingfield's Winter Million meeting and in the Jane Seymour Mares' Novices' Hurdle at Sandown.

Alfie's Princess was among those to struggle as a virus hit the Glamorgan stable, but she looked in rude health on her comeback as she surged through the mud to record a seven-and-a-half-length win on her first start over hurdles under Sam Twiston-Davies.

Thomas said: "It is really satisfying. You doubt yourself when these things happen and until you have a few runners, but I'm very fortunate that I'm in a great job with some incredible horses and a really good team of staff at home to keep the whole thing going.

"March is a million miles away but we'll take it one step at a time. We learnt a lot about her last season in terms of conditions and she certainly handles this ground going forward.

"I look at the way Love Envoi did it and think we could plot our way through the season like that. She should improve enormously for this run."

Surprise success

Aye Right became an unfortunate member of the 1.01 club, after reaching the basement odds on the Betfair Exchange before being reeled in by Good Boy Bobby in the 2m7½f veterans' handicap.

There was £645.82 matched at the minimum odds on the runner-up, while Dash Grange Stud's winner traded for £11.99 at 999-1 as he looked held after jumping the last. Yet the Nigel Twiston-Davies-trained runner made late ground on the tiring leader under Sam Twiston-Davies to strike by a neck.

The winning jockey said: "I thought we got racing a hellish long way out. Aye Right got tired late on and my horse has a great constitution. I was ready to give out that he wasn't fit enough – when you're a jockey you think about blaming everyone else but yourself.

"Hopefully he'll be a perfect type for these veteran races. The final at Sandown will suit him really well."

The trainer doubled up as Chance A Tune landed the 2m seniors' handicap hurdle under 10lb conditional James Turner.

Derby success

Connor Brace came out on top in the Welsh Jump Jockeys Derby, a fundraiser for Welsh children's cancer charity LATCH, aboard the Fergal O'Brien-trained Recoup.

Over £12,000 has been raised on the JustGiving page, while bookmakers taking bets are also to donate profits for the race, which was organised by Christian Williams and jockey Alan Johns.

Williams, whose six-year-old daughter Betsy was diagnosed with leukemia in March, ran stable star Kitty's Light, who finished third. Last season's Scottish National and bet365 Gold Cup winner will now head to the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury on December 2.

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