Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
NO RESTING ON LAURELS
Cheltenham stars target Fairyhouse glory
FRESH from their Cheltenham Festival heroics the top class mares Laurina and Shattered Love could both return to the fray at Fairyhouse on Sunday.
The pair are the star names among the acceptors for the two Grade 1 contests which headline the opening day of the Fairyhouse Easter Festival.
Laurina was perhaps the most impressive winner of the week at Cheltenham when she bolted up in the mares novice hurdle.
She is one of six entries for Willie Mullins. right, in the Grade 1 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Novice Hurdle which the trainer has won three times in the last five years.
This will be a first try at Grade 1 company for the five-year-old but she is well clear of her rivals on official ratings.
Mullins will also be chasing a first success in the Grade 1 Ryanair Gold Cup Novice Chase where he supplies eight of the 15 entries.
However, standing in his way is Gordon Elliott’s Shattered Love who will be looking to build on a convincing success in the JLT Novice
Chase just under two weeks ago.
Already this season Shattered Love has notched up a pair of
Grade 1 victories against the geldings and neither trip nor ground seem to matter to her. Elliott has also indicated his challenge for the race could include another Cheltenham winner in the Festival Plate The Storyteller.
Further interest is supplied by Petit Mouchoir who moves up to two and a half miles having gone too quickly in front in the Arkle where he faded into third behind Footpad.