No sign of the Grade 1 winners this time but Open Lightweights still look poised to throw up tough competition

Handlers who had targeted this Sunday’s Open at Tinahely in the hope of coming across a slightly easier race could certainly be forgiven for letting out a sigh of frustration when the entries were published this week.

The race is the first of three Open Lightweights restricted to non-Graded winners which feature as part of the autumn programme this year and are an attempt to provide a greater set of opportunities for horses to avoid the better calibre of former track horses that dominated 12 months ago. It is an initiative that has clearly been well received, with Sunday's race attracting no fewer than 17 potential runners, likely to be one of the larger entries for an Open by the season’s end.

However, those handlers' hopes of avoiding some of the most talented new additions to the Open division look misplaced, with horses of the calibre of Ramillies, Fakir D’Alene and Freewheelin Dylan all featuring among the entries. Those three are among the most notable additions to the Open division this year.