'He'll like the ground and seems in very good form' - Irish Grand National favourite in action at Limerick

Thedevilscoachman is now favourite for the BoyleSports Irish Grand National with Paddy Power after being supported into 8-1, and Noel Meade has decided to put the finishing touches to his preparation in this Grade 3 which appears to be well within his grasp. 

The classy seven-year-old has been allocated just 10st 3lb in Ireland's richest jumps race on Easter Monday and this would look the ideal stepping stone provided it isn't too close to the Fairyhouse showpiece. 

The testing conditions at Limerick will certainly suit Thedevilscoachman. His last six wins have come on ground with either soft or heavy in the going description., including last time at Naas where he was awarded a Grade 3 in the stewards' room. 

There are mixed messages about the form of that five-runner contest as Ramillies, who was first past the post before being demoted, was pulled up in the Brown Advisory at Cheltenham. Chemical Energy, a well-beaten fourth at Naas, did go well in the National Hunt Chase, though, when he was only collared late by Gaillard Du Mesnil. 

One horse who had his form franked even more at the festival was Grandero Bello. He got within a neck of Bronn in a beginners' chase at Fairyhouse in January and his conqueror went on to touch 6-4 in-running on the exchanges in the Brown Advisory before finishing third to The Real Whacker. 

Grandero Bello, trained by the father-and-son team of Eddie and Patrick Harty, is now rated 140 and gets 6lb from Thedevilscoachman, who is only rated 5lb superior to him, so he ought to be right in the mix. 

The pair clashed in a beginners' chase at Galway in October, a race Thedevilscoachman won, but Grandero Bello is now 6lb better off for that two-and-a-quarter- length defeat. 

The ground is a big worry for Life In The Park, who has not been seen since disappointing behind Chemical Energy at Cheltenham in October. He didn't seem to enjoy soft ground when beaten 40 lengths in a Leopardstown maiden hurdle back in 2021. 

Darrens Hope chased home Lifetime Ambition in this race last year, but she's been poor of late and has questions to answer, while both Clonmeen and Seangoell would appear to have plenty on their plates. 

What they say 

Noel Meade, trainer of Thedevilscoachman 
He likes soft ground and he seems to be in very good form so we'll keep our fingers crossed that he can get the job done.

Noel Meade: "He likes soft ground and seems to be in very good form"Credit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Bob Murphy, trainer of Darrens Hope 
She seems to be back to herself now and she'll like the ground so we're hopeful of a big run from her. It looks an open enough race even though it's a smallish field.

Eddie Harty, joint-trainer of Grandero Bello 
His form is working out nicely given how well Bronn ran at Cheltenham. We were toying with the idea of going to Navan but he would have had top weight in a handicap, and another option was Sandown, but the ground was too bad there so we've re-evaluated and decided to come here instead. It looks a nice race for him and we'll be a lot wiser about where we stand with him afterwards.

Henry de Bromhead, trainer of Life In The Park 
He seems to be very well in himself but I would be worried about the ground for him. He hasn't run since October so it's nice to get him back out but the conditions would have to be a concern.

Do you want £200+ of free bets? Racing Post have got the best offers, all in one place. Visit racingpost.com/freebets to find out more.