'Bitterly disappointed' was the reaction of Morestead trainer Chris Gordon as he reflected on the one that got away, when Annual Invictus was cruelly beaten in the dying strides of Saturday's big race at Sandown, depriving him of the biggest success of his career since moving to the yard in 2007.
His frustration no doubt intensified as he suspects the winner Minella Cocooner ordinarily would have been reserved for the Punchestown Festival this week.
Instead, Gordon, who is far removed from being a bad loser, believes he was only entered because the brilliant Irish trainer Willy Mullins was bidding to become the first Irish trainer to win the British jump racing championship for the first time since Vincent O'Brien achieved the feat in 1974, and the issue was in doubt until the season finale on Saturday.
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Annual Invictus, who he quietly fancied and was ridden by his son Freddie, jumped brilliantly in front of the 20-strong field in the three-mile, four-furlong marathon that is the £95,000 Bet365 Gold Cup, until he was challenged on the run-in by Minella Cocooner, and though he kept on well, he lost out by inches in a pulsating finish.
Gordon said: "He jumped solid all the way round and it was a career-best for him. We lost out by a neck at Sandown but we won by a neck in the Great Yorkshire Chase at Doncaster."
Freddie thought he had won when he cleared the last in front. Gordon said: "He jumped for fun. He loved it out there and when he winged the last, I thought he had it. He kept going but the winner had a little more left in the tank.
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"We wanted to run him in the National this year but he didn't make the cut. Next year he definitely will."
With the 2023/24 season now over, Annual Invictus, like most of the string, will embark on his summer holiday. Though Aintree is on the distant horizon, he will be trained specifically for the race, with the valuable Ladbroke Trophy at Newbury in November as a probable starting off point.
"We have a few left to run in the summer," said Gordon but plans are very much dependent on the weather.
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