A hectic working life that is split between the British and Irish fixture lists means that Ruby Walsh will never be a challenger to Tony McCoy’s iron grip on the jump jockeys’ title. However, when he is riding in Britain, Walsh is clearly a jockey to follow.

A strike-rate of 33% for the season simply underlines the power of his partnership with Paul Nicholls and their running plans for the Argento Chase at Cheltenham emphasises that. A tentative plan to make this race the prep for Denman, before he takes on stable companion Kauto Star in the totepsort Cheltenham Gold Cup, was ruled out but that has not ruled out the Nicholls-Walsh axis as they now rely on Inchidaly Rock.

Throwing a novice into a Grade Two race against seasoned horses may seem a speculative venture but Nicholls will have a good line on the opposition and must clearly believe that Inchidaly Rock is up to the task. Having beaten Hey Big Spender at Exeter in November, Inchidaly Rock beat him again at Cheltenham in December. Inchidaly Rock lost his place after a bad blunder at the first open ditch but the further they went, the better he travelled and he looked the finished article in the closing stages.

He does have something to find on official handicap ratings with some of his rivals but he is the progressive one in the field of seven.

Madison Du Berlais is likely to go off as favourite and, even allowing for being beaten 36 lengths, his performance in finishing second to Kauto Star in the King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Boxing Day was still one of merit. However his performances at Cheltenham have never quite matched those of his overall record and he has yet to win at the track in six starts there.  Joe Lively does have a good record at Cheltenham – four wins from eight starts – and won this race last year but his recent form has been patchy at best. He is also best when he is allowed to dictate the pace but he is unlikely to be allowed an uncontested lead with Carruthers in the field.

Carruthers is likely to be up with the pace from the start but has been known to make jumping errors as he did in last year’s RSA Chase at Cheltenham. Both Knowhere and Ollie Magern could have chances on their best form but that is some way back now and their trainer, Nigel Twiston-Davies, has a strike-rate of just 6% for the last eight weeks.

The field is completed by the second Nicholls runner, Taranis, but, coming back from over 700 days off the track with a leg injury, the decision of Walsh to favour Inchidaly Rock appears to sum up expectations.    

At the start of the season the expectations for Lie Forrit may have been to win a couple of handicaps but the sights of his trainer, Willie Amos, are rising as fast as the horse’s handicap rating. Lie Forrit has won four of his last five starts over hurdles and was arguably unlucky not to make that five when unseating his rider two out at Aintree in October. 

None of which has gone unnoticed by the handicapper, who has had his finger pressed heavily on the ratings button, for which Lie Forrit has gone up from 115 to 155. None of which matters in the Grade Two Betfair Cleeve Hurdle, which is a conditions race, but it does show just how much he has improved. With Karabak not declared this should be another win for Lie Forrit before he takes on the likes of Big Buck’s in the World Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

Nicky Henderson is the most successful current trainer at the Festival, with 34 winners, and he is putting together a formidable team for this year’s meeting. One who could be prominent is General Miller and he gets his chance to prove himself in the Neptune Investment Management Novices´ Hurdle, although Royal Charm, from the Nicholls yard, is likely to push him all the way.

Paul Wheeler