Punchestown precipitation ensures water remains topical

Punchestown, as ever, is a microcosm of Irish society — a brash playground for the nouveau riche during the boom years and a less vulgar, more genuine celebration of all things equine during these austere times.

The first day of the 2012 Irish national hunt festival proved itself a fair barometer of the national mood with water a popular topic of conversation. However, the debate was not on water charges, but the plentiful quantity of the stuff which fell from the skies. Several downpours made the ground, which was already soft and decidedly heavy in parts. Though warnings of possible flooding failed to materialise, it made the unscientific task of picking winners all the more difficult as the turf sapped the energy of fancied runners.

Not that such consideration, like the weather, is a real deterrent, especially as yesterday’s attendance of 14,345 was up on last year’s opening-day figure.