Ben Pauling is retaining plenty of faith in Tellherthename and is relishing the prospect of running his star novice again this season when ground conditions improve.

The five-year-old has always been the apple of the Naunton Downs handler’s eye and he advertised his star quality with two bloodless victories at Huntingdon either side of a disappointing showing in Aintree’s Formby Hurdle on Boxing Day.

That no show on Merseyside came on testing ground and connections’ wariness of slow going was shown when a wet February curtailed a Betfair Hurdle bid.

Despite the rain continuing to fall in the build up to the Cheltenham Festival, Pauling still felt it was worth chancing his talented operator on the treacherous opening day ground in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

However, having led the runners into the straight, Tellherthename was unable to quicken as he was passed by the majority of the field in the Festival’s opening event, giving his team the evidence they needed to firmly seek good ground in the future.

“I think for Tellherthename it (the Supreme) went perfectly and he travelled and he jumped brilliantly,” said Pauling.

“He looked very much in his comfort, but we now know if you ask him to quicken in that heavy ground, he just can’t do it.

“He’s definitely got another run on his agenda this season and whether that be Aintree or somewhere else I’m not sure, but he’s come out of it like a horse that hasn’t had a hard race. He’s bouncing.

“We’re looking forward to the rain stopping and the ground drying. He’s a classy individual and I just adore him but he just cannot quicken on that ground and I just think now we know that we can avoid it.

“We were confident that was the problem at Aintree (in the Formby) but it was the Festival and we wanted to roll the dice and at least it was wet ground, but he’s just a classy horse with plenty of speed and testing ground just doesn’t suit him.”

There was both joy and agony for Pauling and his team over the four days of the Festival, exemplified by the contrasting fortunes of the Harry Redknapp-owned pair Shakem Up’Arry and The Jukebox Man, with the former giving Pauling his fourth Festival victory and the latter coming desperately short in his bid to be number five.

There was also a near miss for Twig in the Ultima, but there was some mixed results as well throughout the week, with the handler regarding Handstands’ Gallagher Novices’ Hurdle disappointment as the biggest blow of the meeting.

Heading to Prestbury Park on the back of a brilliant Sidney Banks victory at Huntingdon, hopes were high he could make his mark up against Irish hotpot Ballyburn.

However, he could only finish last of the six finishers with Pauling feeling it may have been a case of one too many runs this term.

“Handstands was probably the biggest disappointment of the week and was a horse who we went into it not knowing where his limits lay,” continued Pauling.

“He fell far short of what we needed and Harry Cobden said he felt like he was never really on a going day.

“He only won his point-to-point in November and he has run three times including the Huntingdon Listed race en route, so maybe he just had one run to many.

“He’s finished for the season and is off doing dressage for a month now. He will come back as a lovely novice chaser for next season.”

Ben Pauling began training on his own in 2013 and must have thought the game was easy, as Barters Hill and then Willoughby Court scaled heights that quickly brought him plenty of attention.

It is not until this season, however, that Pauling – who counts Cheltenham as his local track – feels he is heading to the Festival with a team of horses capable of taking him back to the top table.

Barters Hill was his first Grade One winner in the 2015 Challow Hurdle, while Willoughby Court broke his Festival duck in the 2017 Neptune (now Baring Bingham) Novices’ Hurdle.

Le Breuil (National Hunt Chase) and Global Citizen (Grand Annual) have provided further Festival success, although both came away from the highest level and this year he has legitimate contenders in all three novice hurdles.

Tellherthename heads for the Supreme having got back to winning ways at Huntingdon, which was also where Baring Bingham hope Handstands won recently, while The Jukebox Man has been kept fresh for the Albert Bartlett since a fine third in the Challow Hurdle.

“I’d say this is going to be our strongest team, certainly in quality if not quite numerically,” said Pauling.

“I think we’ll send between eight and 10 this season and without doubt it is our strongest team, they’ve found their own way there without us pushing to place them, if that makes sense. Hopefully, they’ll all go there and do their best – and if their best is good enough, then fine.”

Reflecting on the early days of his career, he admits he appreciates success a lot more now.

“At the time, I realised how lucky I was to get those two so early in my career, but you can’t appreciate it as much as you should do at the time,” said Pauling.

“It was quite ridiculous with Barters, we just turned up for Grade Ones and expected to win.

“When he won his Challow Hurdle, my first Grade One, he had Politologue 18 lengths behind him absolutely legless, and he went on to win a Champion Chase. He motored through races and was just incredible.

“He’s still cruising around now as a lovely riding horse, but unfortunately his frailties behind cut his career short.

“Willoughby then quickly came along to fill the void, but sadly he passed away with blood poisoning.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve had this calibre of horse. We’ve won Festival races with Le Breuil, who you could say was a nice horse but was never a Grade One contender, and then Global Citizen, who won plenty of Grade Twos but couldn’t win a Grade One.

“We’ve had various other stars but never have we had a team like this, three very nice novices going with chances.”

As well as the three novice hurdlers, who should all have bright futures whatever they do at Cheltenham, the 40-year-old has a handful of handicappers with live chances as well.

“The races all pick them themselves really. I suppose the fact the Supreme is the first race of the meeting means Tellherthename is unlikely to get his favoured good ground, but he won on soft at Huntingdon the other day. I just don’t think he handled bottomless ground like it was at Aintree,” he said.

“What I wasn’t prepared to do at Newbury (when a non-runner) was run on bottomless ground so close to the Festival, his owners want Festival winners.

“Once the ground went so soft at Newbury (for the Betfair Hurdle), it was never a question and here we are with a horse who appears to be in very good form, he worked very well at Kempton recently.

“Handstands, I think I’ve persuaded the owners that I’m very keen to go, as they were up in the air.

“He won at Huntingdon recently. He’s a funny horse, as Harry (Cobden) came to school him before Huntingdon and jumped off saying he felt like a 105 handicapper, yet just after the race he said he’d have no idea where the bottom of him is, as he didn’t have to try very hard.

“Hopefully, he’s an improving horse. It’s whether he’s ready for a race like the Baring Bingham.

“The Jukebox Man ran well in the Challow and hasn’t run since because that probably took a lot out of him, I think three miles will be right up his street.”

He went on: “I’m hoping Bowtogreatness might get into the Kim Muir, he ran well last time out and we haven’t been overly hard on him. He is in the amateur race (National Hunt Chase) as well but I do think he’s ahead of his mark.

“Twig will definitely go in the Ultima but he needs good to soft at worse, he’s not great on anything softer than that.

“If the ground is to be on the soft side, then I suspect Shakem Up’Arry will go in the Plate, I think that’s his trip. We did his wind in the summer and while his first run back was a disaster, he needed to trust himself again.

“He was then too keen in the Coral Gold Cup and didn’t get home. It all came together on New Year’s Day, when he looked a different horse – and he finished third in the Plate last year.

“Harper’s Brook will go for the Grand Annual, we might switch the headgear to blinkers from cheekpieces. We’ve hopefully worked out the way of getting the best out of him, it might not work every time but he’s a very talented horse.

“I think Henry’s Friend will run now, too. I actually thought he’d need a rest after the Reynoldstown, but he’s come out of it bouncing. There’s more chance than not he’ll run in the National Hunt Chase.”