Foxrock favoured by freshness for Navan grade two race

It is a short road trip from Road To Riches's box to Saturday's Grade Two Webster Cup at Navan but it is the relatively short 16-day gap from his Cheltenham exertions to this assignment which will occupy some punters' thoughts.

Road To Riches finished an honourable third to Vautour in the Ryanair Chase, the same race in which Smashing was pulled up before the second last.

Both return to action in Navan’s €42,500 feature and if ground conditions turn up very soft it could work in Smashing’s favour especially judged on his wide-margin Red Mills victory in February.

With Bryan Cooper ruled out due to a whip ban, Davy Russell teams up with Road To Riches for the first time since Noel Meade's star beat Foxrock in a novice chase nearly 18 months ago.

Foxrock is also in this race and the fact he missed Cheltenham and hasn’t run in almost two months could give Adrian Heskin’s mount a freshness edge which may ultimately prove crucial.

Morning Assembly

Russell’s Grand National ambitions next week are likely to centre on Morning Assembly but the best of the former champion jockey’s three Navan rides may be the impressive Fairyhouse bumper winner, Thebarrowman.

Cooper is set to return to action with two rides at Limerick on Sunday and Water Sprite, sixth to Limini at Cheltenham, is hard to oppose in the mares hurdle. Lord Scoundrel is the Gold Cup winning jockey's spin in the featured Grade Two Hugh McMahon Memorial Novice Chase but this looks a good opportunity for the Ruby Walsh ridden Avant Tout.

Christmas effort

This one was running on noticeably well at the end of the Coral Cup at Cheltenham and a repeat of his Christmas effort at Limerick when runner up to Outlander could be good enough to secure a valuable pot.

Harry Fry

was out of luck with three Fairyhouse raiders over Easter but sends the Wincanton winner Chalonnial to the listed bumper event. The cross-channel raider has a tough opponent though in Without Limites.

The value of a weight allowance to four-year-olds has been advertised recently and Edward O’Grady’s French recruit All Souls can successfully underline the point again in Limerick’s novice hurdle.