Shropshire’s biggest horse racing owners today denied they were at the centre of a rift with the reigning National Hunt champion trainer.Reports in today’s Racing Post suggest Cosford businessman John Hales and trainer Paul Nicholls were in dispute over whether to send Noland to the Cheltenham Festival in March.

Noland has already won at the Festival, claiming the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle in 2006, and is one of the market leaders in the ante-post betting for this year’s Irish Independent Arkle Chase.

But there is now a doubt over whether the seven-year-old – who was making his chasing debut at Folkestone this afternoon in his first run since winning at the Festival 678 days ago – will be present at the showpiece of the National Hunt season.

Team Hales have already suffered one massive blow at Cheltenham this season, when potential star chaser Granit Jack died after falling two out in the Paddy Power Gold Cup. The reports suggest that incident has played a role in the apparent thinking of Hales.

But his daughter Lisa today insisted no decision had been made over future plans for their star horse.

“My dad’s in Barbados at the moment and I suspect someone has spoken to him over there and he has said that Noland won’t go to Cheltenham without a lot of experience,” she said.

“But there has been no rift and there are no problems with Paul whatsoever.”

John Hales is quoted as saying: “I’ve lost a horse already this season and whatever he does at Folkestone or in February, you’ve got to understand I don’t want to lose another.

“Let him go to Punchestown, let him go to Aintree and do his learning on a flat track but he won’t be going to Cheltenham this year. This year is about learning.”

Nicholls reacted by saying: “This is the first I have heard of all this. It has been my understanding all season that John wanted to aim the horse at the Arkle so I have geared everything towards getting in some practice over fences before Cheltenham.”