Egbert might be unpredictable, but he was on a going day at Haydock on Saturday

December 23

Egbert reminds me very much of a few human beings in racing I know. For those tricky two-legged customers, in cricket parlance, “the first over is crucial”, and I’ll approach them with great trepidation, being only too well aware that, however innocuous my first question, it will all come down to ‘which side of the bed did they get out this morning?”

Alan would not dream of trying to second-guess which mood Egbert is in when he heads for morning exercise, and he observed before last week’s Tommy Whittle Chase at Haydock that “he is either very good or very bad – there is no in between”.

However, Alan sent Egbert up the M6 last Saturday optimistic that he might bounce back to form, particularly if the forecast rain hit the north west of the country, which could transform the three-mile plus race into a proper test of stamina.

Alan was not worried about the seven-year-old’s disappointing run at Exeter previously as he lost a shoe during the race and was sore by the time he got back to Barbury.

Recent gallops at home suggested that Egbert had fully recovered and was in fine form, and Alan knew that the step up in trip would be a plus. He also had the form to be a major player at Haydock, having been a good novice chaser last winter, winning at Kempton and Doncaster.

If only horses could talk, maybe Egbert would have snuggled up to Alan before he set off on the long journey north and whispered in his ear, “I feel great boss, this could well be one of my going days.”

Even jockey Gavin Sheehan confessed that he feared the worst when 16-1 shot Egbert began to lose touch with the leading group down the back straight.

Recalling the race, Gavin said:”I thought Egbert was hating the heavy ground but he kept on plugging away and got a new lease of life turning into the home straight and really came alive for me.

“He was brave at the last and the further we went the better feel he gave me. He might not be the most consistent, but he’s got all the ability going.” The fact that Gavin was stressing that stamina is Egbert’s strong point suggests that a race like the Eider Chase at Newcastle might be a New Year target.