Rivalries put aside in search of a Punchestown winner

Sporting legends from across the codes were among the crowds hoping to strike it lucky at Punchestown yesterday on the second day of the National Hunt Festival.

An unseasonable chill gave the April breeze a sharp bite but that didn’t deter the thousands who enjoyed the spectacle at the Kildare track.

Tribal divides were bridged in the parade ring as former Liverpool manager Roy Evans happily chatted to Howard Kendall, once the boss of bitter local rivals Everton, and discussed the form and the chances of the Toffees doing the Reds a favour in a gripping title race, as the Premier League enters the final furlong.