Tiger Roll just denied glorious swansong by stablemate Delta Work

Pulsating finish to cross-country chase will live long in the memory.

The fairytale ending was not to be. Tiger Roll could not sign off his fabulous career with victory in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at Cheltenham, yet he went out on his shield in typically, utterly valiant fashion, with a gallant second-place finish behind stablemate Delta Work.

The Gordon Elliott-trained Tiger Roll, a dual Grand National winner, was attempting to win the three-and-three-quarter-mile race for a fourth time and was sent off the 3-1 second-favourite.

Yet with the ground officially changed to heavy after the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase, the chances of emulating Quevega’s record six Cheltenham Festival victories diminished with every drop of rain.

The Aintree and Cheltenham great, who was having the 45th and final run of a career which started in 2014 and earned owner Michael O’Leary over GBP 1.4 million in prize-money, failed to read the script, however.

Davy Russell’s mount was travelling so well when taking it up at the 24th of the 32 fences and the 12-year-old former Triumph Hurdle winner looked to briefly have the 5-2 market leader in trouble jumping the second-last.

But Delta Work, on his first try over the cross-country fences, was always close enough under Jack Kennedy, and slowly, with every stride, inched closer and eventually put his head in front 200 yards from the line to go score by three-quarters of a length. Plan Of Attack was a further 21 lengths further back in third.

To an almighty cheer, both Both Delta Work and Tiger Roll were led in together.

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