NICKY HENDERSON is banking on Bobs Worth again winning the Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup to help fill the massive void left by a couple of his absent stablemates.

The Seven Barrows team could not have envisaged a season where Sprinter Sacre and Simonsig, both winners at the meeting last year, would only run once between them.

But the latter has not even seen a racecourse this term, while Sprinter Sacre was pulled up on his sole start at Kempton over Christmas after his heart problems first surfaced.

While Sprinter Sacre and Simonsig are flash and exuberant in how they go about their work, Bobs Worth is nothing of the sort – but Henderson would not have it any other way.

After a rare blip at Haydock on his comeback, Bobs Worth travelled to Ireland and powered home to win the Lexus Chase, leaving several of his Gold Cup rivals toiling.

‘‘You always forget that Bob is there because he’s such a reliable, lovely person and I’ve always said that,’’ said Henderson.

‘‘I bemoan that I haven’t got Sprinter Sacre or Simonsig this year but the actual star of the show, there he is, doing his own thing.

‘‘Sprinter is all flash and as good a looking horse as you’ll ever see. Bob hasn’t got his natural talent but I bet Bob has a bigger heart.

‘‘He does not know when to give up.’’ Barry Geraghty also has a soft spot for Bobs Worth. Not only has he provided the jockey with wins at three successive Festivals, Geraghty sold him to Henderson as a young horse.

The one new rival for Bobs Worth, however, is Philip Fenton’s Last Instalment, and Geraghty has huge respect for the Irish Hennessy winner.

‘‘I was fairly confident we’d see more of Bobs Worth’s old self at Leopardstown and he was good,’’ said Geraghty.

‘‘He seems well at home, he’s worked great and I’d be fairly hopeful.

‘‘He (Last Instalment) has obviously been held up with injury, but I love the horse and I’d be very fearful of him.

‘‘He jumps, he travels, and he’s a big, strong horse.

‘‘He’s a Denman/Kicking King-type model – he’s a big beast.’’ Noel Fehily rides the Paul Nicholls-trained Silviniaco Conti, a faller late on 12 months ago when still in contention.

He was a good winner of the King George VI Chase at Kempton where he outstayed Cue Card.