SUMMERVILLE Boy lunged late to claim a thrilling renewal of the Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle, the first race of the 2018 Cheltenham Festival.
The Willie Mullins-trained favourite 7-4 favourite Getabird set out to make all the running under Ruby Walsh, but he was a spent force before the home turn and Amy Murphy's Betfair Hurdle hero Kalashnikov straightened up in front.
Tom George's Summerville Boy, a 9-1 shot in the hands of Noel Fehily, was untidy at the second flight from the finish and also the last, but he devoured the hill to get up and beat Kalashnikov in the dying strides.
Mengli Khan was best of the rest in third.
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