'Not many could beat Hurricane Fly on home soil but Solwhit did'

Some might consider Davy Russell unlucky to be a contemporary of Paul Carberry, Ruby Walsh and Barry Geraghty but the 37-year-old has enjoyed a stellar career at a time when the Irish weighing room has been blessed with talent.

After gaining a thorough grounding in point-to-points, Russell turned professional in 2002 when joining Yorkshire-based Ferdy Murphy as stable jockey, a partnership that spawned notable success.

Russell scored his first Cheltenham Festival success in the 2006 Cross Country Chase aboard the Philip Rothwell-trained Native Jack. He was retained jockey to Michael O'Leary's powerful Gigginstown House Stud operation between 2007 and 2013 and was champion Irish jockey in 2011-12 and 2012-13.