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Sandown a great test for a novice chaser - and Gerri Colombe passed with flying colours

Gerri Colombe: a rare Scilly Isles winner for Ireland
Gerri Colombe: Sandown winner has a big future Credit: Mark Cranham

The 2m4f start at Sandown can be a daunting proposition for a novice chaser as they immediately face the challenge of the Railway fences.

Wisely, all five riders in Saturday's Grade 1 Virgin Bet Scilly Isles Novices' Chase gave themselves some space leaving the tape to get a good view of the line of three fences.

There are 14 or 15 strides between fence one and fence two before a shorter ten or 11 strides between fences two and three. How you jump these three early fences will determine your early position in the race.

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Published on 5 February 2023inThe Last Word

Last updated 19:15, 5 February 2023

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