The big guns safely negotiated the opening day of the the J.P. McManus Irish Cup at Limerick Racecourses yesterday.

WALLACE Chief, winner of the Slievenamon Cup at the Crohane and Killenaule meeting, won a thrilling final to the Hotel Minella Tipperary Cup when defeating Ballyheigue cup winner Party Cee Jay at Clonmel yesterday.

LEGENDARY Kerry trainer Pa Fitzgerald recorded his second J.P. McManus Irish Cup win in-a-row, and his sixth in all, when last season’s Boylesport Derby runner-up, Sandy Sea, landed the €80,000 winning prize for well- known owner Patsy Byrne (Duagh and London) at a well attended and highly successful Patrickswell meeting yesterday.

FORMER Fine Gael T.D, Liam Burke and his co-owner, Mossie Barry, received a tremendous welcome when the arrived home in Cork on the Manchester flight yesterday afternoon with the Waterloo Cup, following their success in the prestigious coursing event at Altcar the previous day with their bitch Henrietta.

NORTHERN owner Brendan Matthews was out of luck when the draw for the J. P. McManus Irish Cup was made at the Bogue Inn Tralee on Sunday night.