Grand National Lucky Dip

In 2006 Numbersixvalverde won the Grand National for trainer Martin Brassil and now the County Kildare based trainer has another Aintree contender on his hands in Longhouse Poet. Longhouse Poet was good enough to defeat Monkfish in a Bumper and to contest Grade One hurdles as a novice, but it was always likely that the horse would show his true potential once he was sent over fences. Trainer Brassil took a softly softly approach with Longhouse Poet initially over the larger obstacles, running him over distances too short to play to this gelding’s strengths. Indeed, Longhouse Poet didn’t break his duck over fences until he was sent to Punchestown in December 2020 for a 3m 1f Beginners’ Chase. Longhouse Poet ran out a one and a half-length victor that day but in winning he had a subsequent Troytown Chase winner (Run Wild Fred) and a Punchestown Grand National Trial (The Big Dog) behind him that day in what was a very hot novice chase. Longhouse Poet’s season was brought to a premature end after that Punchestown victory, but he bounced back the next season with the aforementioned win in the 50k Thyestes Chase. The eight-year-old gelding was then made favourite for the Grade Two Boyne Hurdle (the race often used by Tiger Roll as a Grand National prep race) but Longhouse Poet was disappointing finishing thirty lengths behind the eventual winner, Thedevilscoachman. Brassil then sent his young horse to Aintree where he ran really well only weakening on the run in to finish sixth behind Noble Yeats. Aintree is the target again this season and the nine-year-old gelding has warmed up for the Grand National with two victories. It does appear that Longhouse Poet needs soft to heavy ground to produce his best form but both his sire and dam have decent stats when their progeny run on good or good to soft ground so perhaps we shouldn't get too fixated with ground conditions. Longhouse Poet has again been well backed for Aintree but he was beaten over thirty lengths last year so will have to have improved considerably this term to be in with a change of winning.