Party time for Elliott and Russell as pair bag big handicap double

Sunday: Leopardstown

The handicapper allotting Party Central a mark of 121 can be compared with being given back too much change from a shopkeeper, and the mare's trainer Gordon Elliott certainly was not complaining when connections of the classy mare came home from Leopardstown €60,000 richer after she made a mockery of her rating under Davy Russell in the opener.

Punters agreed that a mark of 121 might underestimate Party Central, and she was sent off 7-4 favourite for the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Paddy Mullins Mares Handicap Hurdle, a race won by subsequent Cheltenham Festival winners Heaven Help Us and Black Tears the previous two seasons.

Cheltenham will be on the agenda now for Noel and Valerie Moran's six-year-old, according to Elliott, with 8-1 the general price on offer now for the Mares' Novice Hurdle.

Elliott said: "I'd say she's a black-type mare to be fair. We had her in a black-type race last week, but I thought, with the mark she had, she was too well handicapped not to come here.

"We said we'd keep her for this and we could always get black type somewhere else down the road. She has plenty of it already."

He added: "Davy gave her a beautiful ride and when she got there she just pulled up, she had done enough. She's a nice mare.

"Noel and Valerie like to have a few broodmares so we'll try to make her into one. They'll be going to Cheltenham for the week so if they'd like to run her she'll be on the lorry."

The celebrations did not stop there for Elliott and his long-time ally Russell, with the pair combining to take the €125,000 Liffey Handicap Hurdle with 20-1 chance Call Me Lyreen.

Call Me Lyreen (Davy Russell, 10) comes with a late burst to win the 2m handicap hurdleCredit: Patrick McCann

It was a success that seemed unlikely when Autumn Evening came cantering to the front approaching the last, but Russell knows by now not to underestimate the demands of Leopardstown and galvanised his charge to rustle up a winning surge.

Elliott said: "We said we'd ride him cold today and that's what Davy did. There's only one winning post. That's our third winner of the weekend and most of what we've run has been placed, so it's great."

Crawford clinches finale

A blanket would have separated the first five home in the Grade 2 mares' bumper, but fortune favoured Lily Du Berlais, who landed the finale for brothers Stuart and Ben Crawford.

Amateur rider Ben seemed sure that he had delivered Lily Du Berlais with a winning challenge, but the judge needed a little while before confirming they had beaten Battling Bessie a nose.

Trainer Stuart said: "Brian Hughes got off her and said to me, 'That's as good a horse as I've ever ridden for you' after she won at Perth. He rang me this morning and told me not to forget what he said."

Results, replays and analysis

Read more Sunday reports:

Bookies spared 'significant' seven-figure payout as 40-1 shot wins bumper

'I've never experienced that before' - Blackmore and Honeysuckle send crowd wild

'I would put this fella in a different league' - Chacun is Mullins' number one

For all our exclusive free bet offers and must-have daily promotions click the free bets button or go to racingpost.com/freebets