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To racing fans it would come as no surprise if Rachael Blackmore or Bryony Frost became the first female jockey to win the Randox Grand National on April 10th. However, Tabitha Worsley is hoping her “once in a lifetime” horse, Sub Lieutenant, can ensure it is her name which is etched in the record books at Aintree.

If one result in this year’s renewal of the world’s most famous steeplechase has the potential for a script good enough for a Hollywood blockbuster then victory for Sub Lieutenant, who is trained by Worsley’s mum Georgie Howell, is surely it.

With a string of only half a dozen horses to her name, the Tenbury Wells handler, together with her daughter, will take on the likes of Jump Racing powerhouses Willie Mullins, Paul Nicholls and Nicky Henderson in the most iconic race of them all – a true David vs Goliath clash.

Despite Sub Lieutenant being in the twilight of his career at the age of 12, the two-time Grade Two winner has shown he retains plenty of ability in both runs since joining Howell and it has given Worsley plenty of enthusiasm ahead of her career-defining first ride in the race.

Tabitha Worsley says Sub Lieutenant has schooled well over Grand National-style fences (Pic: Focusonracing)

The 26-year-old said: “It would be unbelievable if we could win it, but we were saying the other day we would celebrate if me and Sub Lieutenant could make it to the flag-fall as that in itself is so tricky. He is a little bit wild and fresh at home but that is a sign he is in good form.

“He has got some good back form as he has finished second to Un De Sceaux in a Ryanair, and was second in a Topham over the fences while he has spent most of his life running in Graded races.

“We still have just under two weeks to go but everything is going the right way at the moment. If we can get round I would be absolutely over the moon. Anything above that I don’t dare think about it!

“To get round would be unbelievable for us as you are taking on the best of the best and we are just a tiny little yard. Little stories like this is what can make the race and draws the wider public in as well.”

The four and a quarter mile trip will no doubt suit Sub Lieutenant and so will the return to the unique Aintree fences, especially after the Brian Boru gelding impressed Worsley over replica ones during a schooling session at the Jockey Club Estates training grounds at Lambourn on Sunday.

She said: “The first time he ran for us was a fact-finding mission for us as we have a string of 0-100 horses and that is all he worked with, so we didn’t know where he was at.

“Last time he was flat out the whole way but he stayed all the way to the line, which hopefully suggests that the extended four and a quarter miles at Aintree will be right up his street.

“We took him down to Lambourn on Sunday morning to school over the Aintree-style fences and I was very pleased with him over them.”

Giving Worsley further optimism are words of encouragement she has received from Sub Lieutenant’s former trainer Henry de Bromhead and Grade One winning rider Blackmore, who partnered him to finish second on his previous outing over the fences in the 2019 Randox Topham Handicap Chase.

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