National tilt likely to be the ultimate aim for Marble Sands

David Killahena and Graeme McPherson will work back from Aintree after Marble Sands inspired Grand National dreams with his clear-cut success at Cheltenham on Sunday.

Stretching out to the furthest trip he has encountered so far in his career, the consistent nine-year-old relished the extended three-mile-three-furlong stamina test, bounding up the Prestbury Park hill to bring a trip to Merseyside in the spring firmly into focus for his training team.

Killahena said: “We’ve yet to sit down and plan where we go next, but I’d say the end goal would probably be the National and we’ll work back from that.

“He’s come out of Cheltenham really well and we’re very happy with him and it’s great to have plenty to look forward to with him

“Turning in he just looked like he had joined in and we were delighted with the performance.

“It was a standout moment for the horse for sure and we still had a question mark over the trip with the ground being as tacky as it was. But he got through the ground off that low weight and he seems to stay. He’s a lovely horse and we’d love to have a yard full of Marble Sands.”

Marble Sands seems unlikely to take up his option in the Becher Chase early next month, with connections still undecided on their route to Liverpool later in the season.

However, after providing Killahena with his first Cheltenham winner in collaboration with McPherson, the striking grey appears sure to provide plenty of excitement ahead of his eventual date with Aintree’s famous spruce in April.

Killahena added: “The Becher might come to quick for him and we were going to run him at Ascot (on November 1) with a view of going back to Newcastle for the Rehearsal Chase or Aintree for the Becher.

“We sidestepped Ascot where the ground was too quick for him and went to Cheltenham and that has worked for him, so now myself and Graeme need to sit down and go through it and make a plan working back from April.

“We ran him in the Topham last year and the ground was just a bit too quick for him. He just struggled to go with them, so if we can pray for a bit of rain at the Grand National meeting, then hopefully he could be competitive in it.”