Spectacular Great Field runs away with main event

Riding Great Field has been nothing if not a thrill for Jody McGarvey, and he extended his unbeaten run to three on the French-bred novice chaser as he put up a spectacular front-running display to win the inaugural running of the Listed Pierce Molony Memorial Novice Chase.

Not only is McGarvey unbeaten on this horse, his three wins on him means that he has a 100% success rate for Willie Mullins, and indeed there were shades of his last run at Leopardstown when McGarvey went right out over the horse's neck after the last fence. It happened at the downhill second last here with the horse a mile clear and with the race in safe-keeping, he met it on a bad stride, hit it quite hard and once again McGarvey went out over his neck, but it wasn't quite as exaggerated this time and he recovered quickly.

McGarvey said: "I was only trying to fill him up coming down the hill and wanted to take him back at the fence but he hit it and sent me up his neck, but thankfully he kept going straight. It's a really trappy fence and we were so far clear that I didn't want to give him a kick, he just kept coming." He added: "I'm building up a great partnership with him, he's given me a few frights along the way but he's a real thrill to ride, he has such an engine."