'He'll get a tilt at a good one' - long-term Grade 1 aim for Captain Conby after successful chase debut

Captain Conby began a potential route to a Grade 1 spring target when justifying 11-8 favouritism in the 2m1f beginners' chase.

The Eamon Sheehy-trained six-year-old, last seen in the Galway Hurdle, scored by six and a half lengths on his chasing debut under Keith Donoghue. 

“I was expecting him to win and I would have been disappointed if he hadn’t,” Sheehy told Racing TV. “If you saw him schooling, it's just awesome, absolutely breathtaking."

Captain Conby demonstrated his ability when sixth in the Coral Cup at the Cheltenham Festival and Sheehy added: “He’s a class horse. I said it the day he won his maiden hurdle. His pedigree is all chasers, so I always felt he was going to make a better chaser. He has a high cruising speed and he'll stay.”

Sheehy identified the WillowWarm Gold Cup, a 2m4f Grade 1 won by Galopin Des Champs as a novice, at Fairyhouse on Easter Sunday as a potential long-term target.

He said: "I'll try to keep him in lesser company for as long as I can but he'll get a tilt at a good one.”

Ziggy hat-trick

Pertemps Final runner-up Salvador Ziggy maintained his unbeaten record over fences when completing a hat-trick in the 2m7f novice chase. 

The seven-year-old beat Toss Again in a match to complete doubles for Jack Kennedy and Gordon Elliott, who had earlier combined to take the 2m½f maiden hurdle with The Wallpark.

Tom lands feature prize

The JP McManus-owned Stealthy Tom, runner-up in Kilbeggan’s Midlands National last month, went one better to land the 2m5f Listed handicap chase under Mark McDonagh for trainer Enda Bolger.

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