Frodon’s Kempton return

Plans for Frodon will revolve around attempting to win the King George VI Chase for the second year running at Kempton on Boxing Day following his fifth place in Friday’s Cheltenham Gold Cup.

The Paul nicholls-trained chaser led the field, jumping with his usual fluency under Bryony Frost, until weakening in the face of the Irish challenge headed by eventual winner Minella Indo. ‘Bryony said if you had taken the Irish horses out, he would probably have beaten all the English horses,’ said nicholls.

‘But they took him on and he ran out of steam. Two and a half miles is too sharp for him — he would never have laid up with (winner) allaho in the Ryanair Chase and three and a quarter miles is too far for him.

‘He won’t go to aintree, I have secret Investor and Clan Des Obeaux to run in the (3m 1f) Betway Bowl there. The obvious thing will be to gear him up for the King George.’

Emma lavelle will aim last week’s stayers’ Hurdle third Paisley Park at the liverpool Hurdle at the Grand national meeting. The trainer said: ‘He will have to be ridden a bit more prominently so if he hits a flat spot he is not too far back.’

Trainer Rebecca Bastiman has died at the age of 40 after a long illness.