PUNCHESTOWN may pride itself as being the current spiritual home of Irish steeple chasing but today's £60,000 Heineken Gold Cup could find itself returning to where the whole magnificent obsession originally started.
North Cork staged the first steeple to steeple race in 1752 and in Woodville Star, trained near Mallow by Liam Burke, much of the original spirit lives on. Today that spirit of spectacular jumping and relish for a battle can be tapped to allow the eight-year-old mare capture the most valuable race of the week.
Anyone who witnessed Woodville Star turn a three mile novice chase into an effortless stroll at Tipperary 24 days ago, beating today's opponent Tell The Nipper by nine lengths in the process, will have no doubts about her over the stiff Punchestown fences. She was accuracy itself that day and had Conor O'Dwyer claiming he has never sat on a better jumper.
Such claims will be put fully to the test now but circumstances look to be in Woodville Star's favour.
Amble Speedy, such an unlucky second to Mudahim in the Irish Grand National, and Papillon third in that race, are a formidable pair of horses but it wouldn't be a great surprise if both had the edge knocked off them by that competitive Fairyhouse race. The top weight Corket is seen as a potential Gold Cup contender next season by Aidan O'Brien but seems to favour softer ground than he will encounter today and the cross-channel challenge is hardly distinguished by such quality.
Of course, there are dangers aplenty lurking among the bottom weights but Woodville Star's front running style and flamboyant jumping, allied to her love of the three mile plus trip, look ideal for this contest. Prate Box might be a value bet to run into a place behind her.
On an intensely competitive card it's difficult to rush into backing horses with headstrong confidence but more than one punter will depend on Silvian Bliss to prove the exception in the Poitin Still Novice Hurdle.
Dermot Weld's charge absolutely hacked up in a maiden hurdle at the Fairyhouse meeting, beating Bridal by a very easy nine lengths, and followed up by just going down to Toast The Spreece in the Irish Lincoln.
Bukhari is a notable name in the field but ran seventh yesterday in the Champion Novice Hurdle. Even if he reappears again today however, Silvian Bliss will still attract plenty of followers, particularly as he relishes the present going.
Istabraq was thought not to like such ground before Cheltenham but still managed to land the Sun Alliance Hurdle in memorable style, despite the road like surface and boiling up in the parade ring beforehand. The O'Brien-trained potential champion should be a cooler customer today and is impossible to oppose in the Stanley Cooker Champion Novice Hurdle.
The Paddy Power Handicap Hurdle is typical of the day's competitiveness with the Champion Hurdle third Space Trucker topping the weights. That concession may prove too much of an obstacle for Jessica Harrington's horse and, at this time of the year, it may pay to follow a fresh horse in this contest.
There will be none fresher than Just Little who hasn't run since falling at Cheltenham last November. She was running a typically game race against Space Trucker and Mystical City at the time and although her long layoff since then is an obvious concern, the word from the O'Brien yard is that the diminutive mare is starting to bloom at the right time.
Arctic Weather ran a blinder behind Luna Spectrum on the flat at Tipperary six days ago and off a low weight is worth a chance against Manbatten Castle in the opening chase while Stay In Touch can beat off the English trained Mr Boston in the concluding hunters chase.
