Robert Thornton back in the groove with Medermit

Robert Thornton

It’s very hard to keep a good man down, especially a good jockey.

Even by a jump jockey's standard, Robert Thornton has had a lively season. Five months after snapping three of the four ligaments in his right knee when crashing through a wing on Hell’s Bay at Newton Abbot on July 4, Alan King’s stable jockey completed an amazing recovery and rode his first two winners since returning from that crushing injury today at Plumpton.

His second victory on the card came aboard the classy looking novice hurdler Medermit, who bounced back from refusing on his last start to win the Panbet.com Supports Vote McCoy Novices' Chase. The runner-up of the Supreme Novices Hurdle in 2009 settled much better this time around and cruised through the race under Thornton, and despite making an error down the back straight, jumped encouragingly enough to beat Tullamore Dew by three lengths.

Thornton, as ever the perfectionist, blamed himself for the horse’s solitary mistake. He told At The Races: "I got a little anxious and asked for too much. Luckily he kept head and front end up and he should hopefully learn from that. He is a serious horse. He could go for the Arkle but the new two and a half mile race might come easier - I'll leave it to the boss.”

The boss was indeed not giving much away in the aftermath, very much keeping a variety of options for the potentially top class chaser. King told At The Races: "I'm really thrilled with that - he only missed the one down the back, and Choc blames himself for that. I wouldn't be afraid of stepping him up in trip, there is a new race at Cheltenham and that might suit him better, but I'm not ruling either race out."

The pair had also teamed in the previous race as Jetnova won a potentially competitive novice hurdle race. Brackloon High and Skint went off as clear market leaders but Thornton has his mount travelling well throughout and stayed on gamely to deny Skint, whose previous form suggests that this could be a very impressive performance by the winner.

Lewis Jones - follow me on twitter

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