'It would be great to get his head in front' - Midnight Our Fred bids to land big pot in Killarney National

John Flavin is optimistic Midnight Our Fred can get his day in the sun when he contests the Tote Killarney National under Phillip Enright after finishing runner-up at Cheltenham on his last three starts.

The Tramore stable showcased its ability with stayers when Street Value landed the Porterstown Handicap Chase at Fairyhouse in December and hopes will be high that Midnight Our Fred can repeat the trick in the 3m2f contest worth €50,000.

Having finished half a length behind Mole Court in an amateur jockeys' handicap chase at the October meeting at Cheltenham, the seven-year-old followed that up with another cracking effort at the course in December when just failing to fend off the challenge of Are U Wise To That by one and three-quarter lengths.

He was the bridesmaid once again in the Cotswolds last month, when he was stepped in trip but was denied by the Harry Fry-trained Hymac after the pair pulled eight lengths clear of the field.

Flavin is hopeful the consistent chaser can go one better after being allotted 10st 4lb.

"He's run very well at Cheltenham three times now and he's in off a nice weight," the trainer said. "He was meant to run a couple of times in Ireland before he went over to Cheltenham the first day but the ground was just too bad. 

"He handles yielding or soft ground, he just wouldn't want it heavy like it was over the winter. It was good ground when he won over hurdles at Wexford last year, so we know he handles it but he's run well on soft ground before.

"They were very good runs at Cheltenham and he just bumped into a few decent horses. He's still a novice, so it would be great to get his head in front."

Gordon Elliott landed this pot in 2019 with Swingbridge and saddles three, with Jumping Jet perhaps the pick. She will handle the ground as she powered home to land the Ulster National at Downpatrick two weeks ago on a similar surface and a 7lb rise seems fair.

Henry de Bromhead is responsible for two and True Faith is particularly interesting given he showed plenty of promise as a novice before spending the last 19 months on the sidelines. On his last start, he defeated subsequent Cork National winner Captain Kangaroo at Gowran and a mark of 124 could look very lenient if he is firing on all cylinders on his return.

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