With an exciting selection of novice hurdlers, Mark Walford reckons this could be the season a big winner comes to Cornboro.

MARK Walford winds his way from jumper to jumper and box to box at the ever-expanding yard at Cornborough House and declares: “There’s no doubt it’s the strongest contingent we have had in.”

There’s palpable excitement for him and his trainer dad Tim.

Coming off their best season on The Flat, the pair are hoping it will be a similar success story with their winter army.

Decent handicap winners have become staple fare at their Sheriff Hutton base over the last couple of years but Walford junior, who is set to take over the reins in the next couple of years, reckons the improving quality of thoroughbreds could see the 2009/10 campaign herald the victor who puts them into a new league.

“Gypsy George and Sheriff Hutton should both win decent races this year and we’ve got some nice young ones coming up through the ranks as well,” he says.

“We’re improving in quality the whole time.

“Gypsy George has come back a lot stronger and has put on 100 kilos. We’re absolutely delighted with him. He’s in steady work and he will only run when it’s very soft ground.

“There’s a chance we might put blinkers on him. He runs well in small fields and you put him in a big field, a big handicap, and he just loses a bit of confidence. It’s not that he’s a non-trier but it would help focus him a little bit.”

Nowhere were his struggles seen more prominently than at Chepstow in the Welsh National. Fancied pre-race, the Gypsy struggled to cope with an undulating track and firmer ground – finishing well down the field.

“The Welsh National was definitely too early for him last year,” Walford adds. “We’re not going to make any solid plans because then you get forced into following them.

“Chepstow is undulating but I think if it was soft ground – we’ll run him twice before Christmas and if he is really impressive in those – we would certainly think about it.”

If expectations have dampened a little for Gypsy George then they have been replaced by the feeling that Sheriff Hutton, a winner of three hurdles last year, could explode over fences.

“I think Sheriff is going to be the horse this year,” Walford insists.

“Whereas Gypsy George is an out-and-out stayer, this lad has got a little bit more speed. He’s capable of winning over two miles over fences and we’re not sure whether his trip is two and a half or three.

“We will start in a novice chase over two and a half and see where we go from there. There’s always the option of going back over hurdles but we wouldn’t be planning to run him back.

“I don’t know what his handicap will be over fences but if the handicapper rates him the same as he does over hurdles that would be fine. He would have a little bit in hand over fences and whatever he did over hurdles is a bonus.

“It was always the plan to chase with him. It was great that he won three hurdles along the way.”

Walford added: “Overall we would certainly like to get between ten and 20 winners – closer to 20 would be better. I am really looking forward to the season ahead.

“We have got some really nice novice chasers. It should be our best season over jumps. It has been on the Flat and we have got a lot better quality in the yard. It will be a good season.”


Walford runs the rule over the rest of his jumping contenders at his Cornborough House yard.

Briery Star – six-year-old bay mare: She was placed in a bumper, was second in a handicap hurdle at Hexham. We’ll start her off hurdling and I think she will love soft ground. She has really strengthened up well. I think she should be able to win a hurdle and then we will go chasing with her.

Shalyee – four-year-old bay filly: We have had problems in the stalls with her so we are forced into jumping her, although we would have done so anyway. She has run once over hurdles so far and was third – ran really well. She was a little bit green but she will have improved for that.

She is very temperamental. There’s no badness in her, it’s just when she gets to The Flat racing she wants to be racing and anything holding her up winds her up.

Banquet – four-year-old chestnut gelding: Won one on the Flat for us, at Catterick, and then won second time he ran over hurdles at Wetherby. We decided to give him a holiday after that and he went and got a horrific injury to his back leg.

It’s healing now and he’s cantering but we are only going to run him when the leg’s absolutely 100 per cent. We’ll start off hurdling with him.

Sea Venture – seven-year-old bay gelding: We haven’t had him for long. He’s doing everything well at the moment. He just tends to jump a little too big over his hurdles. We’re just trying to get him to go a little bit flatter. We will see how it goes with the hurdling as the long term aim is chasing. If we can win a hurdle we will persevere until the handicapper gets hold of him.

Blast The Past – seven-year-old bay mare: A good old favourite. She wasn’t right last season. We had a few problems with her so we just turned her in the field for a bit of a holiday.

She’s come back and she seems better than ever. When she’s right she always runs consistently and she is certain to pick up a race or two. We’ve tried her over further than two miles and she just doesn’t get home. We’ll stick at two miles on fast tracks like Catterick and Sedgefield.

Motorid – four-year-old grey gelding: He’s finished second plenty of times but we think we have recently found out why he’s not quite been finding it at the end of races. He’s had a problem with a back joint, which we have had medicated. He’s got some time on the walker so there are no immediate plans but he is sure to win a hurdle.

Promise Maker – four-year-old bay gelding: He’s done nothing but improve this year. He has schooled very well. We are not sure whether we are going to jump him or not yet but if he does we would expect him to run very well. He might go to the sales without a run depending on what the owners want to do.

Mister Fizzbomb – six-year-old bay gelding: He’s a lovely horse and a great little character. We think he is reasonably handicapped over hurdles so that is where we will go. He’s really thriving. He needed a little bit of time off when we got him but, once he had that time, he’s been in great form and I would be disappointed if we couldn’t win a hurdle with him.

Sam Cruise – eight-year-old bay gelding: This season he won a handicap chase by 19 lengths and we thought we had really found the key to him. He went off the boil a bit after that but, when things are right, he’s quite a good horse. He needs fast ground and three miles plus.

Timocracy – four-year-old brown gelding: He won on The Flat this season. He’s run very well on The Flat and might have won his first hurdle but fell at the second last. He just over-jumped. You can’t say he would definitely have won but you can almost say he will definitely win in the future.

He stays a mile and a quarter – that’s his limit – which means two miles is no problem over hurdles.

Cornish Castle – three-year-old chestnut gelding: He has won two for us on The Flat. Again we’ve been forced into jumping with him because of the stalls problems we have had with him.

He has schooled fantastically at home and we took him to the track and he wasn’t very confident over his hurdles. He made two mistakes and over-jumped at one and came down. We think he has got a lot of ability.

We’re Delighted – four-year-old bay gelding: He won for us first time on The Flat. He’s run some good races without winning since. He’s run twice over hurdles. The first time we didn’t know what to make of it as he was beaten by a good horse of Howard Johnson’s. He was a long way behind but we ran him last time and he was second. He really saw out the trip well and jumped fantastically.

He definitely will be winning but he won’t get a yard over two miles. He goes on any ground.

Miss Pross – nine-year-old brown mare: We were considering retiring her but she’s looking well and going well. She’s been a fantastic mare for us – winning a hurdle and four chases.

She’s not brilliantly handicapped but we still think she can win off her mark. She’s just a great asset to the yard, always runs well and is consistent and tough.

Harry The Hawk – five-year-old bay gelding: He’s had just one run in a handicap and he was fourth at Newcastle. He’s strengthening up all the time. He looks really well and I can’t wait to jump a fence with him.

He will have a hurdle campaign and we will be disappointed if he couldn’t win.

Minella Boys – seven-year-old brown gelding: We are all looking forward to running him over fences. I don’t think he will go hurdling at all this year. It will be straight into a novice chase. He wants three miles and needs bottomless ground. He’s a real grinder who will keep galloping all day on soft ground.