Horses To Follow - 20 jumpers to track in 2024/25 (Part 1)

As she didn't make her stable debut until Festival season was in full swing, the encouraging start that ASCENDING LARK made over hurdles may have gone unnoticed.

Harry Derham's recruit ran well behind some decent sorts in Irish bumpers before making the move to England. On her hurdling debut at Haydock, Ascending Lark swept aside an experienced rival in Dameofthecotswolds, before following up under a penalty at Huntingdon at the end of April.

This daughter of Great Pretender is a half-sister to Champion Bumper runner-up Romeo Coolio and seemed to have plenty left up her sleeve during both of those spring victories. Derham will be looking to kick on in 2024/25, having enjoyed an excellent second season as a solo trainer. Ascending Lark could take him to those big meetings.

There are few better trainers of mares than Anthony Honeyball, especially when they're pointed at a fence. BABY SHALLY looks set to go novice chasing, having gained plenty of experience over the smaller obstacles last term.

Despite jumping terribly, Honeyball's six-year-old made a winning hurdles debut at Wincanton in December, before placing a very close third behind Pinot Rouge - who went on to finish fourth in a Grade One at Aintree's Grand National Meeting - in the Listed Mares' Hurdle at Doncaster in March. Baby Shally won an Irish point-to-point by five lengths before moving to Honeyball's yard. I expect she'll leave her current mark of 115 well behind over the larger obstacles.

A young horse who caught my eye a couple of times last season was BALTRAY. Emma Lavelle's six-year-old lugged left when attempting to challenge on his hurdles debut at Fontwell, losing out to Cape Vidal by a length, before going on to trounce an average field at Hereford a month later.

After a winter break, Baltry went close on his handicap debut at Fontwell, losing out narrowly to a well-backed favourite of James Owen's with Cape Vidal beaten 17 lengths back in third. Lavelle gets her horses jumping well over fences, especially early in the season, so I wouldn't be surprised to see this son of Milan go novice chasing. A more prudent plan could be to keep the lightly-raced Baltray over hurdles, as he looks well-treated off this mark of 112.

Having shown little in his three novice starts, CATCH HIM DERRY progressed quickly upon entering handicap company. Dan Skelton's six-year-old won cosily at Southwell in January, before finishing second behind stablemate Gwennie May Boy, who rose another two stone in the weights after following up at Uttoxeter and Aintree.

Catch Him Derry was then backed into odds-on favouritism for a three-mile handicap at Ayr in April, and ran out a ready winner, shooting up to a mark of 117. Being by Milan and out of a Presenting mare, novice chasing will be the next step in Catch Him Derry's career and if he takes to fences as quickly as Skelton's novices usually do, his winning form will continue.

A poor showing in the Gallagher Novices' Hurdle didn't take the gloss off HANDSTANDS' impressive first season over jumps and I expect Ben Pauling's youngster will rank highly amongst the British novice chasers.

Handstands won a point-to-point by three lengths last October, before claiming two easy novice hurdle victories at Hereford and Newcastle. Pauling's five-year-old then comfortably saw off Formby Novice Hurdler winner Jango Baie in the Sidney Banks, and the runner-up boosted that form with two fine efforts later in the spring.

Pauling is excellent with novice chasers and Handstands has everything needed to progress further over the larger obstacles. He's an exciting prospect.

Another who I'm excited to see jump fences is IDY WOOD. Jamie Snowden's six-year-old enjoyed a strong first half to last season, winning novices at Fontwell and Plumpton, finishing third in the Sharp Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham and narrowly losing out to future Morebattle Hurdle winner Cracking Rhapsody at Hexham.

Another third-place finish in a Grade Two followed in the Dovecote Novices' Hurdle at Kempton, before a limp handicap debut at Newbury. That performance is easily forgiven, as it came at the end of a long season for Idy Wood, and I expect this son of Coastal Path to progress quickly when switched to chasing in the coming months.

Despite his tender age of just six, IN EXCELSIS DEO has already ammassed ten starts over fences. Harry Fry's star made a winning stable debut over the larger obstacles as a four-year-old in December 2022, before going seven races without recording another victory.

Jumping mistakes cost In Excelsis Deo dearly when placing at Cheltenham's opening two meetings. Fry's five-year-old fell at the last when looking a certain winner at Sandown in February, and stayed on powerfully after getting badly hampered by a faller when finishing third in the Plate at the Cheltenham Festival.

Fry's star claimed a deserved victory in the Grade Two handicap at Cheltenham's April meeting romping to victory off a mark of 137. Fry's raider then ran no sort of race in the Galway Plate, but remains a horse to follow when he returns to Britain and the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham in November looks like an obvious target.

I included INDEEVAR BLEU in my 20 to follow last season, having been most impressed by his bumper victory at Wetherby the previous March. Olly Murphy's youngster finished fourth on his hurdles debut at Ayr last November and wasn't right after that, so Murphy decided to pull up stumps for the season and preserve his novice status.

The three horses who finished ahead of Indeevar Bleu all turned out to be decent, so that really wasn't as poor a hurdling debut as it seemed at the time. I'm confident that Indeevar Bleu will open his account over hurdles when he returns this autumn, before contesting better races later in the campaign.

I couldn't compile a list of horses to follow without including my favourite horse in training. I've been fanboying IROKO since his early hurdling days and a majestic chasing debut at Warwick last autumn had me dreaming of Grade One glory.

Iroko suffered a setback shortly after that victory and seemed set to miss the rest of the season. However, after making a remarkably recovery, Iroko took part in the Turners' Novices' Chase at Cheltenham, where he stayed on well after a sluggish first half of the contest to finish fifth.

Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero then upped their stable star to three miles for the Mildmay, where Iroko was outstayed by Kim Muir winner Inothewayurthinkin, having found his path to the post blocked at a crucial stage down the home straight.

Given the injury problems that Iroko suffered last term, his performances in those Grade One races have to be commended. The Coral Gold Cup at Newbury looks a likely target, but I'd like to see him take in an Intermediate or Graduation Chase before going into any major assignments.

I was taken by the way I'VE MADEUPMYMIND travelled on her bumper debut at Wincanton. Ben Jones' mount tanked to the front with two furlongs to travel, before being reeled in by favourite Jubilee Alpha, having pulled ten lengths clear of the chasing pack.

Ben Pauling's four-year-old was then swamped late on by more experienced rivals in the Listed Mares' Bumper at Sandown, before hanging badly when staying on into fifth at Cheltenham in April. This daughter of Blue Bresil possesses stacks of ability and, on breeding, she should take to hurdling fairly quickly.