Two heartwarming tales told at the Curragh on a balmy Sunday afternoon

You could compare the Curragh in its current state to a young Mo Salah dribbling on the streets of Nagrig in the late 1990s. The potential is scary and, once fully developed, we will all get to enjoy something very special indeed.

We got our first glimpse of the new grandstand this weekend with girders of steel forming the roof, but that ongoing process means that anywhere past the 50-yard pole is out of bounds for racegoers right now.

There is only one temporary grandstand and that is located 200 yards beyond the winning post and tilted at an angle so the horses are running at you head on. It holds around 600. The only other way to watch the action live is along the rails. It is fair to say that viewing is not very good.