Iktitaf ruled out for the season

Noel Meade has ruled his Champion Hurdle hope Iktitaf out for the season after the horse suffered a nasty cut schooling yesterday.

The six-year-old was expected to make his seasonal reappearance in the Maplewood Developments Hurdle at Punchestown tomorrow.

Iktitaf won the race last year and went on to push Brave Inca all the way in the December Festival Hurdle at Leopardstown.

He was in the process of running a huge race in the Champion Hurdle last March when he fell at the third-last flight.

"Iktitaf got a cut schooling this morning," said Meade. "Paul (Carberry) came in to school him and he suffered a nasty overreach.

"It's a bad cut. We sent him off to hospital to have it stitched - it's definitely a bad cut. It's put paid to his season, I would think."

Meade, however, will launch a double assault on the Maplewood with the mercurial Harchibald and last season's Christmas Hurdle hero Jazz Messenger. With Iktitaf ruled out, Carberry will switch to ride his old favourite Harchibald.

"Paul will ride Harchibald now, and because Slippers (Niall Madden) is going to ride in England, Shay Barry will ride Jazz Messenger," Meade said.

The Supreme Novices' Hurdle scorer Ebaziyan will run for Willie Mullins after his satisfactory reappearance behind Aitmatov at Down Royal.

Farmer Brown, winner of the Galway Hurdle in August, finished just in front of Ebaziyan that day and will take him on again in the Grade One feature.

Macs Joy will try to get his season off to a flyer after a few setbacks last term, while Edward O'Grady's Clopf, a Grade One winner as a novice, has his first start in open company over timber.

John Murphy's 2006 Queen Mother Champion Chase winner Newmill adds to a stellar line-up, with Bobs Pride completing the eight-runner field.