14:20 Clonmel
This maiden hurdle over two and a half miles has quite a nice look to it with a few of the runners having potential to go onto make useful horses.
Let's High Five It almost got off the mark towards the end of last season where a mistake at the last proved costly and he had to settle for second place. More can be expected this season and with a good round of hurdling he will be a contender for the places.
Sizing Alberta for Henry De Bromhead looks to have plenty of potential having been placed on both bumper starts before finishing second behind a highly thought of Gordon Elliott runner on his hurdling debut here in November. That experience should prove valuable as it was over the same trip as today on soft ground so as long as he handles even further cut in the ground I think he will be a leading player.
Presentingoscar won a pretty poor looking bumper last time out but it was by over four lengths even though he wandered a touch when in sight of the winning post. Prior to that he was well down the field in a hurdles race and will need to improve quite a bit to figure here today. It can be hoped that the step up in trip of half a mile could help him settle but others are preferred considering he has to carry a penalty for that win.
The Willie Mullins stable is in fantastic form at present and A Toi Phil should continue that run here. His sole start to date was a listed hurdles race in Auteil where he was beaten into second place by Bosseur who has since been placed in a grade 1. The move to the Mullins stable is sure to have brought him on and this exciting looking five year old has any amount of improvement in him. He appeared to handle the heavy conditions in France without any problems and with the extra distance sure to be of benefit here, it is impossible to oppose him and therefore he looks a stand out bet.
12:50 Clonmel
Bello Conti is another Frech recruit for the Willie Mullins stable and he was third on his debut at Fountainebleu. A lot more is expected of him now and there is nothing in this field that should trouble him today if he is to go onto much better things.
Today's Selection
Double - Clonmel 14:20 A Toi Phil and 12:50 Bello Conti - 3 points @ 2.17 (Betvictor)