Top Strategy can confirm standing

TED WALH’S Top Strategy can stamp himself the best four-year-old timber-topper in the country by giving weight and a beating to his rivals in this afternoon’s Panoramic Restaurant Juvenile Hurdle at Punchestown, assuming the meeting passes an early morning inspection.

If the green light is given then the ability to handle the testing conditions will be vital, but that should hold no real fears for the son of Hernando.

He revelled in soft ground when getting off the mark over jumps in fine style at Leopardstown at Christmas, in the Grade Two Denny Hurdle, beating Al Eile by three and a half lengths.

It was a decent performance on the part of the selection, considering he was hampered on two occasions. He produced a real turn of foot when getting into the clear.

Top Strategy gets the nod to cut down game front-runner, and dual winner, Seaforde in the closing stages.

Euro Leader, although you would have to harbour reservations about him on the surface, gets the nod in the opening O’Briens’ Plumbing and Heating Hurdle.

Successful in two bumpers, he is certainly going forward and there was plenty to like about the way he finished when beating subsequent winner, Native Churchtown, by half a length at Cork last month over two miles.

Hard Winter may be capable of leaving a minor bout of seconditis behind in the INH Stallion Farms’ Maiden Hurdle.

He’s run two solid races of late, runner-up to Kim Fontaine at Leopardstown and Like A Bee at Navan, and this is a good opportunity.

Willie Mullins’ Homer Wells can provide the answer to the second division of the Bumper. This doesn’t appear particularly competitive and he is likely to come on plenty for his debut fourth behind the smart Ceeawayhome at Naas in November.

At Cork tomorrow the dropped-in-class Field Marshall should be hard to beat in the first section of the Kanturk Maiden Hurdle.

He hinted his turn was imminent when beaten three and a half lengths into second spot by McGruders Cross at Leopardstown last time.

McGruders Cross gave the form a decent boost, going on to land a well-contested Grade Three event at Naas subsequently.

Michael Hourigan’s Vic Ville is the choice to make a winning debut over jumps in the first division of the Millstreet Hurdle.

He stayed on dourly to land a bumper at Naas earlier in the month and the form seems reasonable, with second placed, Quarryfield Lass, scoring by ten lengths at Navan a week ago.

At Fairyhouse tomorrow Best Mate’s half-brother, Inexorable, is fancied to complete a hat-trick in the Mulhuddart Novice Hurdle.

This durable sort again showed the right qualities when getting the best of a tight finish with Moscow Court at Limerick.