Grand National horses from Ireland

Anibale Fly must go down as one of the ‘nearly’ horses in recent National Hunt history with his record of finishing second and third in consecutive Cheltenham Gold Cups and fourth and fifth in the last two Grand Nationals. Tony Martin’s gelding has also won some good races including a Grade 3 Chase at Naas in 2017 and the 96k Paddy Power Handicap Chase the same year. The eleven-year-old gelding is, however, now on an eighteen-race losing streak that stretches back over four years. The upside of that lack of wins is that he is now looking extremely well handicapped. The British handicapper has given him a mark of 148 for this race which is sixteen pounds lower than his fifth-place finish at the last Grand National three years ago and eleven pounds lower than his fourth placing the year before that. He was also pulled up in last year's National from a mark of 155 (seven pounds higher.) All ground conditions seem to come alike to Anibale Fly with his four best runs on Racing Post Ratings coming on Good to Soft, Soft and Heavy so he appears versatile when it comes to whatever the ground throws up at Aintree. The problem is that despite the long losing run Anibale Fly could usually be relied upon to put in good performances in defeat, but his form has got very patchy with just a couple of placed efforts surrounded by efforts where he has hardly beat a horse home.  It could be that trainer Tony Martin has been gearing this horse up solely for the Grand National and the trainer was interviewed recently and was very positive about the horse's chance saying that this race has been the aim all season. It does though rely on taking a big leap of faith that this former good horse is going to suddenly spring back to form.

Former Irish National winner Burrows Saint was sent off the 9/1 third-favourite for last year’s Grand National and each way punters were rewarded as the Willie Mullins’ trained gelding finished fourth behind Minella Times. Finishing fourth may seem like a positive result but with three fences to go Burrows Saint’s supporters must have felt they were in with an excellent chance of a winner as their horse looked to be full of running. However, in between the third and second-last jockey Patrick Mullins went from appearing to have a horse going really well to one that was desperate to make it to the finishing line. Burrows Saint had travelled beautifully and had jumped superbly but ultimately it appeared that the gelding’s petrol ran out with two fences to go, and he finished over twenty-five lengths behind the winner. The inability to properly see out the 4m 2f distance would have been a surprise as the horse had previously won the Irish National over 3m 5f and looked one of the more likely candidates to be suited by the extreme stamina test of the Aintree Grand National. Burrows Saint line up at Aintree again but it’s difficult to see where the extra stamina is going to come from if the nine-year-old is to improve on last year’s finishing position. Burrows Saint's season started in a pipe-opening hurdle race at Clonmel and he then ran former dual Gold Cup winner Al Boum Photo to four lengths at Tramore on New Year’s Day. That run against Al Boum Photo must have been very encouraging for Burrows Saint's Grand National supporters but he took a step back on his next run when a forty-two lengths beaten favourite behind Any Second Now and Escaria Ten in the Bobbyjo at Fairyhouse. The handicapper has left Burrows Saint on the same handicap mark as last year's National and, given his inconsistent form this season, it's difficult to see Willie Mullins' gelding bettering last year's performance.

Any Second Now hails from the Ted Walsh yard, who won the Grand National in 2000 when Ted teamed up with his son Ruby to land the race with Papillon.  In last year's Grand National, Any Second Now was sent off the 15/2 second-favourite and ran really well to finish third, just over eight lengths behind the winner, Minella Times. That doesn't tell the whole story though as Any Second Now made a very bad mistake at the tenth fence where Mark Walsh did really well to stay in the saddle. Things get even worse two fences later when the horse makes a miraculous recovery after looking certain to be brought down. Even though the partnership did well to stay intact, they had lost a lot of ground going from a close-up fifth right back to the sixteenth place at the next fence. Mark Walsh took his time trying to get back into the race, but the partnership are still a distant ninth jumping the third last. The jockey managed to get Any Second Now right back into contention jumping the last, but he has had to use too much energy getting back into the race and finishes a tired third behind Minella Times. It's hard to be certain what would have happened had Any Second Now not nearly fallen at the tenth and nearly been brought down at the twelfth but they certainly can't have helped his chances. Before that race, there had been a question mark as regards the gelding’s stamina for the Grand National as in his previous victory he had shown enough speed to win a Grade Two over the minimum trip of two miles. However, the son of Oscar demonstrated that marathon distances are very much within his range at Aintree, especially as he was badly hampered by a faller at the twelfth fence. The handicapper has raised Any Second Now by seven pounds for his Aintree and he looks certain to be well supported as he tries to go two places better than last year.

Proven form at an extreme stamina test has tended to be one of the characteristics of recent Grand National winners and one of the horses in this year’s field who ticks that box is Discorama.  It’s widely accepted that the 2019 version of the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival was one of the most attritional races of recent years and Discorama was still punching at the end of that race going down by just half a length to Le Breuil in a slow-motion finish. Since that agonising defeat, Discorama has failed to get his head in front finishing second on four further occasions and also finishing third twice more. One of those third places though was in a red-hot version of the Ultima Chase at the Cheltenham Festival where Paul Nolan’s gelding lost out to The Conditional and Kildisart.  The following season Discorama was a well-fancied 16/1 shot for the 2021 Grand National but could only manage a well-beaten seventh place.  A worry for his Discorama's Aintree supporters this year could be his poor winning record which currently sits at just two victories from twenty-one career starts with those wins being achieved in a maiden hurdle and a small value novice chase. Discorama has been allocated just one pound less for the 2022 Grand National than for his forty-five length beating by Minella Times last year so, on those terms, it is difficult to see Discorama figuring any better this year.

Delta Work has leapt to the top of the market for the Grand National following his defeat at Cheltenham of stablemate and two-time Grand National winner Tiger Roll. That victory at Cheltenham was Delta Work’s first attempt at a Cross Country race, a discipline where experience of the unique obstacles is usually the key to success. Delta Work took to this new racing environment with aplomb, outbattling the mighty Tiger Roll for a hard-fought victory with over twenty lengths back to the third horse. The nine-year-old gelding was on a seven-race losing streak before that, which is most unusual for Delta Work, who has been a prolific winner at all levels. The Gordon Elliott trained gelding has been a star for his stable and is now a dual Cheltenham Festival winner after also taking the Pertemps Handicap Hurdle in 2018. Also on a star-studded CV are five Grade One victories, including the Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown. Winners of the Cross Country race at the Cheltenham Festival have an excellent record when moving on to Aintree, with Tiger Roll winning both races and Cause of Causes and Balthazar King winning at Cheltenham and finishing second in the Grand National. When making a selection for the Grand National one of the main considerations is the effectiveness of the horse in question to cope with the possible ground conditions. Delta Work has recorded victories on good ground right through to heavy so it seems that whatever the underfoot conditions at Aintree he is unlikely to be inconvenienced. Delta Work will obviously need to prove he has the stamina for the 4m 2f distance at Aintree but his sire, Network, is already responsible for Saint Are who finished second in the Grand National in 2015 and third in 2017 so it could well be that Delta Work will thrive under this extreme test of stamina.

The first thing to say about Poker Party is that he races in the Grand National eight pounds higher in the handicap than he would in a race in Ireland. That is a considerable amount and already puts the gelding at a significant disadvantage. Trained by last year’s winning trainer, Henry De Bromhead, Poker Party won three times over fences, including the 108k Kerry National, before injury intervened. The ten-year-old gelding had to have 666 days on the sidelines but his three runs since returning have been less than inspiring. He understandably found the white-hot environment of the Paddy Power chase a tough place to make his comeback and finished nearly fifty lengths behind the winner School Boy Hours. He was then given a run in a handicap hurdle where it seems little was expected of him as he went off 16/1. He was beaten over one hundred lengths there. Next up he was sent over to the Cheltenham Festival for his first attempt at Cross Country racing. This time he was pulled up but his jockey that day, Rachael Blackmore, reported that he was enjoying the new discipline but found the heavy ground against him. On his best form, Poker Party would have a definite each-way chance in the Grand National but, based on what we have seen this season, he is a long way off his best.

Minella Times bucked a recent trend for the Grand National where winners of the big race had tended to have had their stamina proven before the race. Henry de Bromhead’s gelding had run only once over three miles prior to Aintree where he finished second in the Paddy Power at Leopardstown. The lack of proven stamina did not end up being a drawback though as the gelding put in a flawless performance to win the great race by an impressive six and a half lengths from stablemate, Balko De Flos. There was plenty to admire about Minella Times’ winning performance, particularly the round of jumping he put in where he did not appear to make one semblance of a mistake throughout. The other standout point was the excellent position Rachel Blackmore had her mount in throughout. Blackmore had had only five previous races over the Grand National fences and only two previous tries at the National itself, but she always seemed to have Minella Times exactly where she wanted him. Minella Times has been asked to carry fifteen pounds more by the handicapper in 2022 and that is the joint-largest raise for any winner in the last thirty years. The other horse to be raised fifteen pounds was 2008 hero Comply Or Die who still went on to finish second in 2009. Another factor to consider with Minella Times defending his title is that the time of last year’s race was relatively slow compared to other renewals on similar ground. A number of the other horses that filled the places were not previously known as horses with stamina for long-distance races. This could suggest that the slow time may have helped these horses see out the marathon trip. If we return to the norm in 2022, where a frenetic early pace sorts out the stayers from the non-stayers, we may see Minella Times’ stamina put under a more severe test. The Grand National winner began his campaign for 2022 in a red-hot renewal of the two-mile four-furlong John Durkan at Punchestown. That top class race was won by Allaho and it was perhaps not a surprise to see Minella Times detached in last place before uncharacteristically falling at the third last. After his run at Punchestown, Minella Times headed to the 2m 5f Handicap Chase run at the Dublin Racing Festival, in which he had been second the year before. This time though there was to be no repeat of that showing and Henry De Bromhead’s gelding was pulled up before the last fence. On current form, Minella Times looks like a very doubtful Grand National winner for 2022 but the quality of his victory last year means that the gelding should not be underestimated when defending his crown.

Brahma Bull is a really likeable and consistent handicapper who always seems to give his all in his races. His one victory this season came way back on the 1st of May when he won a big three-mile handicap chase at the Punchestown Festival. He then went to the Galway Plate but found everything happening too quickly for him in that race. Normal service was resumed when the eleven-year-old finished second to Assemble in the Kerry National. Brahma Bull then ran Galvin to three lengths in receipt of eight pounds. Another excellent run followed when finishing third at 40/1 in the Ladbrokes Handicap Chase at Newbury and then running former Gold Cup winner Al Boum Photo to seven lengths at Tramore in January. Brahma Bull's two subsequent runs (Pulled Up in the Thyestes at Gowran Park and Unseating his rider in his first attempt at Cross Country races at the Cheltenham Festival) are not up to his usual high level of performance but there are reasons those efforts can be forgiven. It appears that better ground suits this son of Presenting better as he has gotten older and the going at Gowran was very soft. The unseat at Cheltenham was understandable given it was his first attempt at that discipline, so he is likely to be much more at home on decent ground at Aintree. The four-mile two-furlong distance of the Grand National could prove an issue to Brahma Bull who has only had one completed attempt at marathon races when finishing over thirty lengths behind Freewheelin Dylan in last year's Irish National. Whilst the distance is a concern, Brahma Bull has proved his effectiveness from this sort of handicap mark, and he looks an outsider to keep on side with.

Class Conti won on his debut for Willie Mullins after being switched from France but has failed to get his head in front in his twelve appearances since that win. Mullins has been pitching him at some of the most valuable Irish handicaps and the ten-year-old gelding has been placed twice in the valuable Thyestes Chase at Gowran Park. This son of Poligote ran in the Grand National last year but was sent off at 66/1 and finished last (15th) of those than finished. Class Conti has only been dropped two pounds since that run at Aintree and there has been no encouragement from his three races this season where he has been pulled up or finished well beaten. Sam Twiston-Davies is an eye-catching jockey booking for Class Conti on what will be only his second ride for Willie Mullins (his previous ride for the stable was back in 2016). Class Conti is a half-brother to dual King George VI winner Silviniaco Conti and three-time Grand National runner Ucello Conti, so there is definitely a bit of class in his pedigree, but it is very difficult to see him being competitive in the Grand National based on his recent form.

Run Wild Fred’s standout runs so far in his career have come when he has faced decent ground conditions, most notably when runner-up in last year’s Irish National and recently at Navan in the Troytown Chase where he decimated a really good field for a very easy seven and a half lengths victory. Unfortunately, the handicapper was also suitably impressed with Run Wild Fred’s performance at Navan and has put the gelding up a whopping thirteen pounds for that effort. The question must now be if that sizeable rise will negate his chance in the Aintree Grand National. The Gordon Elliott trained gelding is now on a mark of 158 which, if he runs from that level at Aintree, would mean he runs from very near the top of the weights. Only Bristol De Mai, Chris's Dream and Yala Enki were rated above 158 in last year’s National so it would be a stellar performance for this young horse to win a National from such a high rating. He does, however, have the assistance in the saddle of Davy Russell who has finished first, first and third on his last three rides in the Grand National.

The Gordon Elliott trained mare won both of her two starts this season, a Listed Mares' Chase at Clonmel and then a Grade 3 Mares' Chase at Fairyhouse. Both of those wins were at around two and a half miles so Mount Ida is definitely versatile when it comes to distance. Last season’s highlight was undoubtedly the mare’s amazing win in the Kim Muir at Cheltenham where she initially appeared to be struggling when badly jumping the right and being pushed along at the back of the field after only half a dozen fences. The in-running punters pushed Mount Ida out to 999/1 but there were undoubtedly some disappointed traders as the mare shrugged off her early issues and stormed through to win the big race by over six lengths. Some pundits will suggest that Mount Ida was so well handicapped that day that she was able to get away with jumping out to the right so badly but she now finds herself on a much-increased handicap mark after that win.  Trainer Gordon Elliott did say that Mount Ida was found to have a back problem after her win at Cheltenham which has now been cured. Being able to win a race at the Cheltenham Festival whilst carrying a back injury makes her performance there even more memorable. The Kim Muir has a rich tradition of winners who go on to run well in the Grand National with 2010 Kim Muir winner Ballabriggs winning at Aintree the following year, 2012 Kim Muir winner Sunnyhillboy getting beat a short-head in the National the following month, 2016 Kim Muir winner Cause of Causes finishing second in the Grand National of 2017 and 2019 Kim Muir winner Any Second Now finishing an unlucky looking third at Aintree last year. Mount Ida has won two shorter distance races this season that were confined to mares only. She then went to the Cheltenham Festival to run in the Grade Two Mares' Chase and was sent off the 5/2 third favourite. Unfortunately, her tendency to jump to her right on a left-handed track came up again and ultimately she was very disappointing finishing well behind the winner, Elimay.  If we could believe that Mount Ida would not jump out to her right at Aintree she would be a very interesting runner but her proclivity to not jump straight makes her a very risky bet in the Grand National.

Escaria Ten managed to win a couple of times over hurdles but he was much more likely to prove his true level when contesting fences. The Gordon Elliott trained gelding was sired by Maresca Sorrento, who was also the sire of 2014 Grand National victor, Pineau De Re. Eacaria Ten was thrown in at the deep end for his debut over fences against Monkfish at Fairyhouse in November 2020 where he finished a respectable fifth. After that run, Elliott sent the gelding to a Beginners’ Chase at Thurles where his true potential started to show as he ran out a twenty-length winner that day. Two runs later he was at the Cheltenham Festival, running in the National Hunt Chase where he was backed into favouritism, finishing a gallant three-length third to Cheltenham Gold Cup prospect, Galvin. Gordon Elliott decided to send Escaria Ten to the Irish National after Cheltenham, but the gelding failed to give his true running and was eventually pulled up. Three-time Grand National winning trainer Elliott obviously thinks Escaria Ten is favourably handicapped as he decided to limit the gelding’s racecourse appearance to just one race before the publication of the weights for the Grand National. That run was in the 50k Thyestes Chase at Gowran Park and Escaria Ten made an eye-catching return to the track, pressing the leaders at the third last before his lack of race fitness caught up with him. After the publication of the Grand National weights, Elliott sent the gelding to Fairyhouse for the renowned Aintree trial, the Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse. This time Escaria Ten obviously stripped much fitter and ran current Grand National favourite Any Second Now to a nose in receipt of eight pounds. Any Second Now will be one pound better off at Aintree but Escaria Ten could improve considerably for the increase in distance in the Grand National. After the Fairyhouse race, Escaria Ten was shortened considerably in the market for the Grand National and the eight-year-old gelding looks to have an excellent chance of providing Gordon Elliott with his fourth win in the race.

Emmet Mullins didn’t hang around getting Noble Yeats over fences with the gelding having just five runs (one point to point, three bumpers and one run over hurdles) before winning his first start over fences as a six-year-old. Mullins obviously didn’t want to waste any time with the gelding’s chasing career as he sent him into a handicap on just his third start over fences. Noble Yeats finished 6th on that handicap debut and then was pushed straight into the 100k Paddy Power Handicap Chase at Leopardstown over Xmas. Considering his inexperience, Noble Yeats ran well to finish ninth behind School Boy Hours. A couple of runs later and Mullins decided to send his charge over to England to contest the Grade Two Towton Novice Chase at Wetherby. Again, Noble Yeats put in a good effort to finish second to Lucinda Russell’s progressive young chaser, Ahoy Senor. After the run at Wetherby, the gelding was purchased by Robert Waley-Cohen to be ridden by his son, Sam, in the Grand National. The Waley-Cohen’s have a terrific record over the Aintree fences having finished second and fourth with Oscar Time (who also won a Becher Chase) and also with the likes of Warne, Libertine and Rajdhani Express. Sam Waley-Cohen’s prowess over the Aintree fences will ensure Noble Yeats will be well backed in the National but for a young horse with so little racing experience, he looks more likely to be a major player next year and in the years to come rather than in 2022. Waley-Cohen has announced he will retire from race riding after the Grand national this year.

Enjoy D’Allen has been something of a slow burner and didn’t win under Rules until his twelfth race when taking a novice chase at Fairyhouse. Later that season he went on to finish third in the Irish National at odds of 40/1. This season so far, the highlight has been finishing third behind School Boy Hours in the 100k Paddy Power Chase at Leopardstown. It was probably his performance in that race that alerted legendary owner JP McManus to the potential of Enjoy D’Allen and McManus was announced as the horse’s new owner following the horse’s next run at the Dublin Racing Festival. The purchase of Enjoy D’Allen takes McManus’ band of runners in the 2022 Grand National to half a dozen but this horse could well be the number one contender in the green and gold hoops.

In 2006 Numbersixvalverde won the Thyestes Chase and then the Grand National for trainer Martin Brassil and now the County Kildare based trainer has another Aintree contender on his hands after Longhouse Poet recently took this year’s version of the Thyestes Chase. 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 this 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. 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 looks the ideal candidate for the Grand National in that he is a young, progressive horse who has already proved his quality when winning a top handicap. He looks to be one of the horses with the most appealing profiles for Aintree.

School Boy Hours only makes it into the big race due two of the owners other horses becoming non-runners within minutes of the final cut off point for reserves to be added to the race. Conspiracy theorists will no doubt suggest that the withdrawal of Easyland and Phoenix Way was done to facilitate School Boy Hours making the final field. School Boy Hours looks likely to be one of the leading players from the JP McManus owned battalion of runners based on his victory in one of the most competitive handicaps of the season, the Paddy Power at Leopardstown. Oddly, that win at Leopardstown was the Noel Meade trained gelding’s first win over fences and only the second win of his career. Despite the lack of wins, it would appear that the stable has always thought highly of this gelding who is a half-brother to the Grade One winning hurdler and chaser, Finian’s Oscar. School Boy Hours has already come up against the likes of Asterion Forlonge, Eklat De Rire and Latest Exhibition in his previous races so perhaps his lack of victories in novice chases was understandable. The handicapper reacted to the gelding’s win in the 100k race at Leopardstown by raising him nine pounds which looks fair given the quality of the opposition he beat that day. School Boy Hours’ ability to see out the marathon distance of the Grand National must be taken on trust as three miles is the furthest distance he has raced over at the moment. He is, though, a son of Presenting who has sired a high number of marathon chase winners including Ballabriggs in the Grand National. A possible question mark about School Boy Hours is the fact that he has fallen three times (twice over hurdles and once over fences) in a relatively short career. His jumping seemed fine at Leopardstown but it is unusual for a horse with such a high falls to races ratio to go on and win a race such as the Grand National. School Boy Hours' jumping let him down on his latest start at Cheltenham where a bad mistake at the fourth last fence led to him being pulled up. Another query on his Aintree chances could be the record of horses who have previously won the Paddy Power at Leopardstown. Of the last ten winners of that race, only one has gone on to win any further race (so far) in their careers. That statistic is, perhaps, just an anomaly but it could also indicate that such a competitive race may take much more out of the winner than we might imagine. To contrast that statistic, three winners of the race at Leopardstown have gone on to be placed in the Aintree Grand National - Anibale Fly, Oscar Time and Black Apalachi. Finally, trainer Noel Meade has had eight runners in the Aintree Grand National and has yet to have a horse placed. Only three of Meade’s runners have actually completed the course so perhaps School Boy Hours is a runner to treat with caution.

Death Duty is a multiple race winner, including Grade One victories as a novice over hurdles and fences.  The gelding’s career was interrupted by a hind joint injury in 2017 which saw him off the track for over two years. On returning to the track in November 2020 the Gordon Elliott gelding appeared to have lost the form that had seen him win nine of his then fourteen races.  Eight consecutive defeats ensued which resulted in the eleven-year-old becoming very well handicapped. Death Duty finally took advantage of this drop down the weights to win the 3m 4f 45k Grand National trial at Punchestown.  Death Duty is now set to line up at Aintree and, whilst a six-pound rise back up the handicap for his Punchestown win may seem severe for a horse of his age, he must have a decent chance. Death Duty is now rated 144 but at his best, he was rated as high as 159 so, on those figures, he would definitely have a feasible chance of winning the 2022 Grand National.

Coko Beach has plenty of experience for a seven-year-old having had twenty-two races since moving from France to Gordon Elliott in December 2018. He recorded one victory over hurdles and ran in the Martin Pipe Handicap Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. However, better was to come when he was tried over fences. Coko Beach won the Thyestes Handicap Chase last season beating Run Wild Fred by four lengths. After that victory, he was tried in a Grade Two Novice Chase at Navan which he also won convincingly. Since those two victories, there hasn’t been much to enthuse about in Coko Beach’s form with a run of seven defeats. The highlight of those races was perhaps finishing fourth behind Death Duty in the twenty-eight-furlong Grand National Trial at Punchestown. All of Coko Beach’s best efforts have come on heavy ground which looks unlikely for Aintree and the fact that he is still only seven must also be seen as a negative as horses of that age have an extremely poor record in the Aintree Grand National. His supporters will point to that better run at Punchestown when running over a longer distance so it could be that Aintree’s emphasis on stamina will bring out an improvement in Coko Beach.

Samcro started his career with eight consecutive victories from a point to point through two bumpers and then four hurdle wins that culminated in him taking the Ballymore Novice Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. At that stage of his career, he looked to have the racing world at his hooves, but four consecutive defeats followed over hurdles (all of which he was favourite for), and the decision was made to switch the gelding to fences. Samcro’s career over fences got off to a good start with a seventeen length victory but then he fell in a Grade One novice chase at Fairyhouse and then was well beaten at odds on by Faugheen in another Grade One at Limerick. These were unexpected reverses and, as a result, he was allowed to go off at 4/1 third favourite for the Golden Miller Novices’ Chase at the 2020 Festival. This time however Samcro dug deep and was victorious by a nose from Melon with a further length back to his old foe, Faugheen. After his second Cheltenham Festival win, the Samcro bandwagon looked to be back in top shape and plans were made for a tilt at the Ryanair or the Gold Cup. A number of niggling injuries meant that the horse was restricted to just two outings prior to his third run at the Festival where he finished third behind Batteloverdoyen and was pulled up in the Savills Chase. The same outcome occurred in the Ryanair where his jumping seemed to unravel. This season saw Samcro get back on the winning trail with a hard-fought victory over Cilaos Emery at Killarney in May but since then he has put in five very lacklustre performances. For a career that started so well, it looks as if there is something either physically or mentally wrong with Samcro as he appears to be a shadow of his former self. Optimists will point to the fact that the horse has been rated as high as 160 over fences and gets to line up here off 152. The downside to that is Samcro has previously run in two handicaps and was beaten seventy-one lengths and sixty-nine lengths, respectively. Samcro's best days look behind him and he can surely only be backed by his most die-hard fans.

A shrewd yard who can place their runners well, they sent over thirteen-year-old Vics Canvas for the 2016 Grand National and under the guidance of Robbie Dunne managed to place in third place. This former PTP runner pulled off one of the biggest shocks in 2021 when landing the Irish Grand National at a massive 150/1! He got into the race off 10-8 and made all that day to win the race under Ricky Doyle. He has only been seen a handful of times since that win and has yet to win again, he fell in the Cross Country at the November Meeting at Cheltenham when he looked to be in with a chance and when last seen it was over hurdles which could have been to protect his mark or they were just looking to get some confidence back into him. He had some decent types behind him at the Irish National, including Run Wild Fred who was runner-up, and he went on to finish runner-up in the Challenge Cup at the Cheltenham Festival and those two were over three lengths clear of the next runner. He has struggled over hurdles and holds a 0-9 record but he really does like the larger obstacles, he is now a six-time winner over them, three miles and five furlongs on yielding ground in the Irish National showed that stamina should not be an issue and he also has three other wins over three miles and one furlong under rules to back that up. They are not the biggest of yards but they seem to place their runners well and Freewheelin Dylan will come here 10lbs higher than his Irish National win, the same mark as what he was running well off at Cheltenham before unseating his rider.

2005 was when the all-conquering Willie Mullins last won the Grand National with Hedgehunter but he has gone close in recent years with Pleasant Company who was runner-up in 2018, Rathvinden who was third in 2019 and then Burrows Saint who was fourth last year. Magic Of Light was runner-up in 2019 which showed that you cannot write off the mares in this race and this nine-year-old mare is a dual winner over fences from just fourteen starts. She has finished inside the first two on 50% of her starts over fences and over 50% for her whole career. The highlight of her career was when landing a Grade 3 mares chase at Fairyhouse last year, she and Moyhenna, a previous Grade 2 winner were well clear of the rest which was headed by Cabaret Queen, a runner who went on to finish ninth in last year's Grand National. Stamina would be her biggest concern, the furthest she has ever won over is just two miles and five furlongs, she is however a three-time runner-up over three miles or further and to her credit did complete the 2021 Irish National when finishing eleventh. She has won on ground varying from Good through to Heavy so is versatile when it comes to underfoot conditions. She is not in the greatest of form this season though snd has failed to finish in two of her four starts but was runner-up over three miles and two furlongs when last seen. The handicapper has given her a mark of 146 for the race, she has pulled up twice this season off 145 over in Ireland and her only handicap win to date came over hurdles off a mark of 111. The closest she has come over fences was off 134 when runner-up at Punchestown in the 2020 Grand National trial so this looks as though it could be a tough ask.