Outlander To Complete Grade One Haul For Mullins

The BoyleSports Irish Grand National meeting at Fairyhouse kicks off on Sunday with an interesting card featuring two Grade Ones and if showing no ill-effects from his fall at Cheltenham last week, Outlander would look an obvious choice to win the Ryanair Gold Cup for Willie Mullins.

Last One
The Ryanair Gold Cup is the only remaining Grade One in Ireland that Mullins is yet to win and while Kylemore Lough is an obvious improver and warrants plenty of respect for Kerry Lee and Barry Geraghty, Outlander is very difficult to oppose in a race that is suffering a small bit with the close proximity of this meeting to both Cheltenham and Aintree this year.

Lady Not To Be Ruled Out
Annie Power is a previous winner of the Grade One Irish Stallion Farms Mares Novice Hurdle and I think it is safe to assume that we are unlikely to see anything of her calibre in this year’s renewal but it still looks a decent race.

Jessbers Dream is sent over by Harry Fry who won the race last year with Bitofapuzzle and the manner of her Sandown win last month is likely to have her near the head of the betting. However, she has the Taunton run behind Myska to turn around and although Myska was disappointing last time out she was reportedly found coughing so there was an excuse.

What is most interesting about this race is that Ruby Walsh has seemingly opted to ride the Mullins newcomer Asthuria in the George Creighton colours made famous by Hurricane Fly.

Unseen since finishing second in France over a year ago, the five-year-old will be having her first start since moving into Closutton but has obviously been showing some very good signs at home.

All that said, Davy Russell may have picked himself up a very good spare ride on Cashelard Lady for Shane Crawley. The filly was a winner on New Year’s Day at Fairyhouse and while that was a modest contest, she did so by an emphatic 39-lengths and her only start since was when second to Limini at the same venue.

Cashelard Lady was 11-lengths behind Limini on that occasion but pulled well clear of Whistle Dixie and at around the 8/1 mark she could certainly prove to be each-way value in the race.

Roll the Dysios
The BoyleSports Novice Handicap Chase features wide margin Naas winner Caolaneoin who needs to defy a 20lbs hike from the handicapper if he is to win again on Sunday but the stand out horse in this 10-runner race looks like being Denis Cullen’s Dysios.

A winner at Leopardstown on St Stephen’s Day, Dysios has been holding good company for a lot of his chasing career and is a second season novice who has loads of experience and actually previously ran in a Triumph Hurdle albeit without making any impression.

*Prices correct at time of publication.