Racing:Feathard Lady is set to miss the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle for a second successive year.
Colm Murphy's unbeaten mare was ruled out of the Cheltenham Festival feature last season after spraining her off-hind fetlock joint on the gallops.
The seven-year-old then suffered a further setback at the beginning of the current campaign and although she has recovered from that problem, Murphy admits she is set to bypass Cheltenham again.
He said: "It doesn't look like she will run at Cheltenham. She had a scan earlier in the week and there has been a big improvement.
"I discussed it with the owners last night and we are just a bit afraid of kicking on too quickly with her.
"The vets are extremely pleased with the progress she has made but she's not 100 per cent yet and they feel we should just keep doing what we have been doing with her.
"She canters away every day but we just hoped we would have had her more forward at this stage."
Feathard Lady had been as low as 12-1 for the Champion Hurdle despite being off the track since her impressive success in the 2005 Christmas Hurdle at Sandown.
Murphy still hopes to get her back on the track this term and is now looking towards the John Smith's Grand National meeting and beyond for the daughter of Accordion.
He added: "Aintree and Punchestown are very much possibilities now. I suppose the good thing is that she will be a fresh mare then while some of the others will have been going all season."