Nicky Henderson has put Sir Gino back over timber at home, and the compass now seems to be swinging firmly towards a tilt at this, as plans are reshaped in the wake of Constitution Hill’s Fighting Fifth fall.

Sir Gino has been off the radar since dazzling on his chasing debut at Sunbury last Christmas, but with Henderson mulling a switch to the Flat for three-time Christmas Hurdle hero Constitution Hill, the Seven Barrows team look set to reach again for their tried-and-trusted understudy.

It was a role Sir Gino filled 12 months ago at Newcastle when Constitution Hill missed the Fighting Fifth, and with the current two-mile hurdling scene looking short on a standout star, Henderson feels reverting to hurdles could be the shrewdest move for his sidelined Grade One performer.

“He’s been chasing but he’s a dual Grade One hurdle winner and we could go either way with him,” Henderson said of the gelding, who was ruled out at the end of last season by a leg infection.

“He did school this week and we did jump hurdles and it’s the first obstacle he has jumped since his issue

“I think the Christmas Hurdle is probably the right option and we know Constitution Hill is not going to go there, I think.

“Therefore the race is wide open and it could be a nicer way to start Sir Gino off on this new expedition. What happens after that, I have no idea.”

This is just one of several avenues open to Nemean Lion after his third-place finish in what turned into a dramatic Fighting Fifth at Newcastle on November 29.

Kerry Lee’s flagbearer was a late addition to the Grade One at Gosforth Park and, though the high-profile departures of Constitution Hill and The New Lion undoubtedly shaped the contest, the eight-year-old still turned a £2,430 supplementary gamble into £15,623 by chasing home Golden Ace and the previously unbeaten Anzadam, failing by only a neck to claim the runner-up spot.

With Constitution Hill having dominated the past three runnings of the Christmas Hurdle and his next move now unclear, Lee is weighing up whether to roll the dice again at Kempton on Boxing Day, conditions permitting. She said: “I was absolutely delighted with him, he ran a great race.

“You’re never too optimistic going into a Grade One of that calibre, how can you be when you’re taking on Constitution Hill, who is rated 19lb higher than us, at level weights?

“It was a long old day, starting at 4am. We didn’t have massive expectations, so we were really chuffed, albeit it wasn’t very nice to see the good horse fall.

“We’ll be keeping all the options open now going forward. Going into last weekend we were looking ahead to the races he won last season at Windsor and Fontwell, but they are quite a way off and it would be good to get another run into him while we’ve got the ground.

“He’ll have an entry in the Christmas Hurdle and if that were to come up soft we’d look at that. If not then we’ll look at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day (Relkeel Hurdle), there’s also a race at Windsor on New Year’s Day and we’ll just keep going forward like that until the cards fall our way.”

Last season’s attempt at three miles in the Stayers’ Hurdle ended with Nemean Lion being pulled up, and a return to that trip is not on the agenda.

“I never wanted to go three miles really, it was just a case of trying things,” Lee added.

“We’ll put a line through that one and stick between two miles and two-five, ground depending. I personally think the horse is better on a flat track and I certainly wouldn’t rule out going to France if we need to go to find the right race.”

Ladbrokes Christmas Hurdle (Grade 1)
£130,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 2m, Class 1
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