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I’m sad to report that Alph was put to sleep after a gallops accident in mid-December.
He was a very special horse, even more so for a small yard, and did not deserve such misfortune in the twilight of his career.
RIP old fella
Oh no
I adored Alph – well, you’ve already updated the page so you know. Thank you for letting us know.Poor old boy – but love that they held a wake, he deserved to be properly sent off. If you are connected to them please let them know he brought me (and no doubt others) a great deal of joy.
That’s such sad news. He was a tough old boy, ran above himself at a high level many times. So glad that he managed to go out with a win, but it’s a shame he didn’t get a chance to enjoy a deserved retirement.
RIP Alph
I am deeply saddened to read this, Alph was a real favourite of mine. So sad that he never got to enjoy his retirement which was so richly deserved by such a trier.
Sleep well Alph – you deserve it xDeeply, deeply sad to learn of this – Alph was a favourite of mine and a cult favourite of many others besides.
An absolute behemoth of a specimen, he was five before he was broken, seven before he could set foot on a racecourse and just weeks shy of his official ninth birthday when finally landing a novice hurdle at Fakenham.
That was the first of six hurdles wins, of which the WBX.COM Hurdle (the erstwhile Captain Quist Hurdle) at Kempton in October 2007 probably rated the best, though place finishes in Listed / Graded races such as the Agfa Hurdle and Kingwell Hurdle wouldn’t have been too far off.
Despite his stature, he never took to chasing, with five attempts over the larger obstacles reaping the form figures PFPFU.
Latterly, however, the old boy had been reinvigorated by an association with hugely promising amateur Tom Cannon; and the successful slog through the mud at Lingfield last November, in what was to prove his last race, took his tally to three wins and two places from eight runs under Cannon.
As losses so far this season go, this is among those to have hit me the hardest. A freak of nature, but a very loveable one at that – thanks for the memories, Alph.
gc
Adoptive father of two. The patron saint of lower-grade fare. A gently critical friend of point-to-pointing. Kindness is a political act.
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