A Grand National hero and a two-time Cheltenham Festival winner: four of Oliver Sherwood's best horses

With Oliver Sherwood announcing that his near 40-year career is coming to an end, we have looked at four flagship horses associated with the Lambourn trainer.

Many Clouds

A proper old-fashioned staying chaser, Many Clouds arrived in the later stages of the trainer's career but he was definitely worth the wait. He reached the pinnacle of the sport by winning the Grand National in 2015 with a staggering weight-carrying performance, his 11st 9lb the heaviest carried to victory since Red Rum. The immensely popular Trevor Hemmings-owned star also won the Hennessy Gold Cup in 2014 and two runnings of Cheltenham’s Cotswold Chase. Tragically, he collapsed and died after battling back to beat Thistlecrack in the 2017 renewal. He was later rated the leading staying chaser of the 2016-17 season in the Anglo-Irish jumps classifications.

Many Clouds: 2015 Grand National heroCredit: Alan Crowhurst (Getty Images)

Large Action

The highest-rated hurdler to pass through his trainer's hands, Large Action was the Rhonehurst flagbearer until Many Clouds came along, having racked up an impressive collection of big races in the 1990s. Originally bought to be a three-mile chaser, he excelled over hurdles to win 12 times, including two Bula Hurdles, a Tote Gold Trophy, Hatton's Grace Hurdle, Ascot Hurdle, Challow Hurdle and Cleeve Hurdle. In addition, he was twice placed in the Champion Hurdle, finishing third to Flakey Dove as a novice in 1994 before chasing home Alderbrook 12 months later.

Large Action and Jamie Osborne lead over the last from winner Alderbrook in the 1995 Champion HurdleCredit: Cranhamphoto.com

Coulton

A prolific chaser who achieved the rare feat of winning at the Cheltenham Festival, Grand National meeting and Sandown's end-of-season fixture in the same season. In his heroic spring of 1995, he won the Cathcart at Cheltenham, the Aintree Chase and a Grade 2 contest at Sandown. He also won back-to-back runnings of the Grade 2 Desert Orchid Pattern Chase at Wincanton for his owner, Cheltenham chairman Martin St Quinton. Despite 15 of his 20 victories coming in chases, he was not the most natural jumper and his success was testament to the dedication and knowledge of his trainer and the input of his regular jockey Jamie Osborne.

The West Awake

A dual Cheltenham Festival winner and the only horse to complete the Sun Alliance double – the Sun Alliance (now Ballymore) Novices’ Hurdle and Sun Alliance (now Brown Advisory) Novices’ Chase in 1987 and 1988, when ridden both times by his trainer’s brother Simon. He put in one of the greatest festival performances by a novice chaser when winning the Sun Alliance Chase by eight lengths, with his jockey of the opinion he would have won that year's Gold Cup had he run in it. After his Sun Alliance Novices' Hurdle success at Cheltenham, he followed up at Aintree a month later by winning what is now the Mersey Novices' Hurdle.

Read more:

Grand National-winning trainer Oliver Sherwood to end near 40-year career and become assistant to Harry Derham 

Hats off to one of the sport's good guys, universally liked but also respected in equal measure  

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