How Amberleigh House Gave Ginger McCain One Last Aintree Fairytale in the 2004 Grand National

The 2004 Grand National was the 157th running of the race, with 39 lining up on the day and only 11 completing the test over Aintree’s famous fences.

Four horses shared favouritism at 10/1: Clan Royal, Jurancon II, Bindaree, and Joss Naylor, while Amberleigh House was allowed to go off a 16/1 chance despite solid course form and a placed effort in the previous year’s National.

The total prize fund stood at £600,000, with £348,000 to the winner, reflecting the race’s status as the richest jump event in Britain at the time and a focal point for an estimated £200 million in public betting turnover.

Trained by Ginger McCain, already a Grand National legend thanks to Red Rum’s three wins in the 1970s, Amberleigh House brought seasoned Aintree credentials to the table.

He had previously won the Becher Chase over the National fences and twice finished runner‑up in that race, as well as running a staying‑on third behind Monty’s Pass in the 2003 Grand National.

The Winner: Amberleigh House

Amberleigh House was a 12‑year‑old gelding by Buckskin, making him one of the older modern‑era Grand National winners, so much so that he is the last 12-year-old to win the race.

Owned by Halewood International, he carried 10st 10lb under Graham Lee, whose cool, patient ride became a defining feature of the race.

McCain knew he was dealing with a professional National horse, later describing Amberleigh House as “foot perfect” and emphasising his reliability and experience around Aintree.

He first ran in the race in 2001, when he was brought down. He then returned in 2002, where he finished in 9th place, and another 12 months later, on his third attempt, finished third.

He was the seasoned campaigner, on his fourth National trip, seeking revenge over familiar rivals on his favourite stage, and went off at 16/1, a genuinely tempting each-way punt in 2004, when bookmakers were still in the early stages of offering online betting platforms and online casino slots, though most punters still placed their bets in traditional betting shops or over the phone.

The Grand National remained one of the few occasions that brought casual and serious bettors together, long before the explosion of digital gambling that would transform the industry in the years that followed.

Key Race Developments

From flagfall, Graham Lee executed a deliberately conservative strategy, keeping Amberleigh House tucked away towards the rear on the first circuit rather than mixing it with the early pace setters.

This “hunt round and creep into it” approach allowed the horse to measure the big obstacles without pressure, conserving energy for the second half of the marathon trip.

Hedgehunter, one of the main market principals, emerged as a prominent force through the middle stages and took up a long‑time leading role, jumping boldly and travelling strongly.

Clan Royal and Lord Atterbury also positioned themselves to the fore, forming an apparent three‑horse break with the rest under pressure after the second circuit.

With four fences to jump, Amberleigh House looked a forlorn hope to many viewers and punters, racing roughly 10–20 lengths adrift of the leading trio and apparently playing for minor money at best.

But as the leaders began to feel the effects of the relentless gallop and the big fences, Lee gradually wound his mount up, allowing him to close the gap without ever having to be rousted into panicked pursuit.

Drama At The Last

The defining drama came at the final fence where Hedgehunter, still right in the firing line after galloping boldly for so long, took a tired fall.

That left Clan Royal and Lord Atterbury in front, with Clan Royal in particular looking to have the measure of his rival on landing and into the long run‑in.

However, Clan Royal began to wander markedly on the run to the Elbow, drifting and losing vital momentum just when accuracy and straightness were required most.

Lord Atterbury, who had chased the pace, was also feeling the pinch, and both began to paddle while Amberleigh House, still full of run, was switched to the outside and asked for his final effort.

From the last fence to the line, Amberleigh House made up more than eight lengths, closing relentlessly and finding extra with every stride up the famous Aintree run‑in.

Lee timed his challenge perfectly, producing his mount at the Elbow to surge past a weakening Clan Royal and settle the race in the final 100 yards.

2004 Grand National Finishing Order

Amberleigh House crossed the line three lengths clear of Clan Royal, with Lord Atterbury a further two lengths back in third, giving the finish a clear shape after the late drama.

The previous year’s winner Monty’s Pass, burdened with top‑of‑the‑handicap weight and never quite able to land a serious blow on the principals, plugged on to take fourth.

Behind them, the remainder were strung out, and just 11 of the 39 starters completed the course, underlining the attritional nature of the race despite largely fair conditions.

The McCain Legacy

The victory carried huge symbolic weight because it returned Ginger McCain to the Grand National winner’s enclosure 31 years after Red Rum’s first success and 27 years after the great horse’s third.

It was McCain’s fourth and ultimately final National win, cementing his status as the trainer most closely associated with Aintree in the modern era.

For Amberleigh House, the win capped a distinguished Aintree record that included a Becher Chase victory in 2001 and multiple placed efforts over the big fences, marking him out as a genuine course specialist rather than a one‑day wonder.

He later became a popular retired figure, living out his days in the care of connections until his death in 2017 at the age of 24, after suffering complications from colic.

The race itself is remembered as one of the more dramatic modern Nationals, defined by a wide‑open betting market, a cruel late fall for Hedgehunter, and the agonising near‑miss for Clan Royal.

Many fans still regard 2004 as a year of “what might have been” for the beaten horses, but in form terms it stands as a textbook example of how course experience, economical jumping, and a patient ride can trump raw speed in the world’s most demanding steeplechase.