O’GRADY’S FLIES BUZZING FOR HIS CRACK AT GLORY IN NOVICE HURDLE

THE listed Madigan Group EBF Sheila Bourke Novice Hurdle features the return of Edward O’grady’s No Flies On Him, winner of a Knockanard point-to-point and impressive on his racecourse debut when making most of the running to land a maiden hurdle at Leopardstown over Christmas.

He beat the ill-fated D B Cooper, Ascending (beaten at Navan last week) and Thursday’s Clonmel winner Kings Hill and looks a potentially smart novice.

But he faces a tough task here, against the likes of Tullyhill, one of three Mullins runners, and Gordon Elliott’s (inset) Jigoro, winner of a Navan maiden and second to leading Cheltenham fancy Mystical Power in the Grade 2 Moscow Flyer over this course and distance last time.

Although beaten at 1/8 on his hurdling debut, over a longer trip at this track in November, I’ll side with Tullyhill, second to A Dream To Share in the Grade 1 bumper here last April when he had King Of Kingsfield back in third.

The grey opened his hurdling account when landing the odds at Naas five weeks ago, making all for an easy win over a couple of rivals who have been beaten since.

Willie Mullins and Paul Townend have excellent prospects with lightly-waited We’llhavewan in the featured Quinnbet Grand National Trial. Despite his inexperience (he has won one of his three chase starts), this nineyear-old, a five-time winner over hurdles – most recently off 124 at Navan last time, looks very attractively handicapped, competing off a chase mark of 115, 21lb lower than his current hurdle mark.

With Townend doing his best to do 10-0, We’llhavewan is a proven stayer and, if his jumping holds up, he should take plenty of beating.