Strong British bid to end drought in Irish Cambridgeshire

4.20 Curragh

Tote Irish Cambridgeshire | Premier Handicap | 1m | 3yo+ | ATR

This cavalry charge is one of the toughest tests for punters in the calendar, with no favourite managing the scoop the €100,000 pot since 2000 when Silverware scored under Franny Norton at 9-1.

This year’s 30-runner contest is an intriguing affair with a strong British representation at the head of the market, with Iain Jardine going for a second big handicap in as many days after Nakeeta’s Ebor success at York on Saturday. He sends out Galway runner-up Hibou, while Brian Ellison’s gallant grey Dream Walker bids to become the first British-trained winner of this premier handicap since Cherrypicker in 1929.

Galway guidance

Both the aforementioned British raiders were last seen in action at the Galway festival, and that meeting can often be the best guide to finding the winner of this, with all bar four of the winners since the turn of the century having raced at the Ballybrit summer showpiece.

Dream Walker led home a 1-2-3 for trainer Brian Ellison in the Ahonoora Handicap at GalwayCredit: Patrick McCann

Keane and Lyons eye more Gold

Having captured this prize on Sea Wolf last year, jockeys’ championship leader Colin Keane will be hoping to clinch another notable victory for Ger Lyons on one of the market leaders, Gold Spinner.

Connections will be hoping first-time cheekpieces can spark a little extra from Gold Spinner, who did not get a clear run in the Colm Quinn BMW Mile at Galway last time when finishing down the field – just as Sea Wolf did in the same contest last season.

Onlyhuman in demand

Eddie Lynam's impressive Gowran scorer Onlyhuman opened up at 25-1 earlier this week but the four-year-old was as low as 10-1 on Saturday.

Weld tops and tails the handicap

Dermot Weld went close to winning this last year with Sikandarabad, a three-year-old who had previously scored at the Galway festival, and this time he is doubly represented by the Calumet Farm-owned pair Foxtrot Charlie and So You Thought.

Pat Smullen, whose minimum riding weight in the last 12 months has been 8st 9lb, is unable to make the weight for So You Thought – a three-year-old who went agonisingly close at Ballybrit this month – but the jockey still has solid claims as he takes the mount on Weld’s 2016 Listed winner Foxtrot Charlie, who carries top weight.

Pincheck: Jessica Harrington hopes he has come on for his last outingCredit: Alain Barr

What they say

Aidan O’Brien, trainer of Auckland
We think he’s better than he’s shown so far. We’re trying first-time blinkers so hopefully that will help him concentrate.

Eddie Lynam, trainer of Onlyhuman
I think the distance will be okay. This is only his fifth run and his second in handicap company, so it’s a big ask. He’s in very good form though.

Pat Fahy, trainer of Stormy Belle
We were delighted with her at Cork, where she proved how good she is. We fancied her at Galway but she could have run better – she didn’t handle the lumpy ground and was stumbling. The handicapper has raised her 8lb – he doesn’t let you get away with much – but what can we expect when she won so easily? I can see her running a decent race even though she’d prefer a little more ease. Having Declan McDonogh aboard is a big plus.

Jessica Harrington, trainer of Pincheck
He ran a great race last time and hopefully he's come forward from there.

Iain Jardine, trainer of Hibou
He ran a great race at Galway, where he got a fair old bump from the winner. He seems to be progressing the right way. He’s drawn well enough and we thought about claiming off him, but he’s better with someone who knows him and David Nolan gets on with him very well. Soft ground is another positive . He has every chance.

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