All roads lead to Punchestown

A week to savour

Punting
Michael Duffy

PUNCHESTOWN serves up an end-of-season treat for punters and the renaissance of the Noel Meade stable can continue in today’s Champion Novice Hurdle with Jered.
Cheltenham Festival winners Cork All Star and Fiveforthree have the form in the book but Meade’s stable have been patient with Jered and he looked special at Fairyhouse last time out. AP McCoy gets the leg-up for his boss JP McManus and it can be a winning combination.
JP can also land the first race with Enda Bolger’s Money Point. Bolger is an old hand in these Cross Country Races and Money Point’s eye-catching run at Cork last time out had ‘Punchestown’ written all over it.
Balakan and The Duke’s Speech look like value in the competitive handicap hurdle at 4.50. The latter ran well at Aintree last time out and trainer Ferdy Murphy would love to aid former employee Davy Russell in his quest for the riders’ championship. Balakan, meanwhile, remains on a decent mark and with Michael Halford’s stable in fine form he can run well for his Galway-based owners. Twist Magic should love both ground and course, and looks much the best in the featured Champion Chase.
On Wednesday, Beef or Salmon has his swan song in the Guinness Gold Cup and while Mossbank and Neptune Collonges are bound to have their backers, Mister Top Notch can prove he is one of Ireland’s better three mile chasers and he should be each way value in an open race. Another to watch on Wednesday is Dermot Weld’s Endless Intrigue in the Champion Bumper.
On Thursday, I think Tommy Stack’s Perce Rock is one of the bets of the week in the Swordlestown Novice Chase and the drying ground should suit Aitmatov in the Ladbrokes World Hurdle.
Friday’s Champion Hurdle should be a fascinating race where Sublimity and Sizing Europe will be out to restore pride but De Valira comes into the race a fresh horse and he could take some stopping on ground he should like. Finally on Saturday, side Won in the Dark is well fancied for the four year old champion hurdle. It should be a fascinating weeks racing.

FLAT RACING
WHILE the National Hunt stars head to grass for the summer, the Flat boys and girls come out to play. But if the common perception is true, and Ladbrokes do in fact have a pair of eyes in Ballydoyle, then those who have plunged into Jupiter Pluvius for the 2,000 Guineas must be a shade worried.
Mike Dillon and Co are actively advertising the fact that they are biggest about Aidan O’Brien’s unbeaten colt and, in this column’s opinion, that does not augur well for his chances. Raven’s Pass and Twice Over met in the Craven at Newmarket and served up a thriller, with the latter just as likely to miss the Guineas as run in it, and the former set to be much better on better ground. New Approach will go straight there but there was no getting away from the impression late last season that he has his quirks. He could be much better than everything else but at 5/2 that’s a hell of a chance to take. Long-suffering readers of the column may already be on Henrythenavigator but now might not be a bad time to top up those initial investments. My Ballydoyle mole tells me that he’s working away nicely and could go straight to Newmarket with one key condition - he must have fast ground. And no prizes for guessing which bookmaking firm is shortest about Henrythenavigator …

RUGBY
MUNSTER sneaked it against the Ospreys at the weekend in the Magners League but the real stuff takes place in Coventry this weekend. With the Welsh wizards dumped out of the European Cup by Saracens earlier this month, a Heineken Cup final date between Declan Kidney’s men and Toulouse, is now only a 4/5 shot.
Saracens will be without Andy Farrell and Chris Jack at the weekend and a handicap set at six points looks well within Munster’s reach. Their most serious injury worry concerns Ronan O’Gara and although Paul Warwick kicked three penalties in Musgrave Park on Saturday night, no Munster fan wants to countenance taking the field on Sunday without the talismanic O’Gara. Kidney’s side have never looked as adventurous, and Saracens will struggle to contain Munster’s pack. That platform should open up the opportunity for the favourites to defy the handicap.