Waxies Dargle proves a muddy marvel in Killarney

Joint-favourite Waxies Dargle, ridden for Noel Meade by Paul Townend, ploughed through the softening ground to land the €50,000 Ladbrokes Ireland Handicap Hurdle, feature on the opening day of Killarney’s May meeting.

Torrential rain turned ground conditions to soft as the afternoon progressed. But the J P McManus-owned Waxies Dargle, unplaced at both Cheltenham and Punchestown in his most recent outings, relished conditions, travelling smoothly throughout before beating Mrs MacVeale and last year’s winner Pivot Bridge readily.

“He loves the soft and won’t run on summer ground,” stated winning trainer Meade, who added: “He was electric in a schooling hurdle in Punchestown before he went to Cheltenham, but ran badly there – I still don’t know why. He only ran okay in Punchestown, when the ground was probably too quick for him. But I’m delighted to win a good pot with him. He doesn’t have the scope to jump fences, so I suppose he’ll stay hurdling.”