Killyglen set to go one better
None of the three programmes scheduled has much to offer and betting possibilities are set to be extremely thin on the ground.
At least Killyglen is a horse heading in the right direction and should go close. He won a bumper first time out at Ayr in November and then made a good start over flights at Down Royal at Christmas, three parts of a length second behind Dan George.
It was his latest effort, however, which signalled Killyglen might be half-decent. That came at Carlisle earlier in the month when beaten a length and a half by Jaunty Jane. That mare is reportedly well-regarded in the Oliver Sherwood yard and the fact it was 26 lengths back to the third would indicate it may have been a reasonable contest.
Experienced handicap chaser Clew Bay Cove has the potential to outclass these, but Killyglen has a fighting chance in receipt of 7lbs.
Navan today is simply grim. Arthur Moore’s Takendo is a token nap choice in the Kells Handicap Hurdle.
That he’s moderate is beyond argument, but at least the six-year-old was beaten by a horse who has gone in again in the meantime in Enter The Indian at Naas.
The Grade 3 An Uaimh Chase brings together eight horses, none of them worth trusting. The nod falls on No Full, who ran badly in the Thyestes Chase at Gowran Park, but is a useful performer when on song.
And keeping with the theme of being utterly pessimistic, the Curragh tomorrow looks a real lottery. Feature event is the Group 3 Lodge Park Stud EBF Express Stakes, in which Aidan O’Brien’s Savethisdanceforme is best treated at the weights.
But there is no evidence she will handle the likely testing conditions and the mud-loving Deauville Vision is preferred. O’Brien’s Poet, third at Leopardstown in November, gets the nod in the Clere Concepts EBF Fund Maiden. Being by Pivotal, he should handle the ground.
