RACING: Robbie Hennessy has warned punters not to write off Sublimity's Champion Hurdle chance despite his below-par display at Leopardstown on Sunday.
The nine-year-old was sent off favourite for the Toshiba Irish Champion Hurdle but could only finish a distant fourth behind Brave Inca on testing ground. The 2007 Champion Hurdle hero also scoped dirty after the race and Hennessy is keeping his fingers crossed conditions are better at the Festival in March.
"He's fine but he did scope dirty after the race so we put him on a course of antibiotics and he will be on them for three or four days," said the trainer.
"It's not too bad but with the way the ground turned out in the end, any little thing like that is going to catch him out.
"We were going to give him a few days off after the race anyway so he'll go out to grass and get a bit of sun on his back. The sun is shining here - it's a pity it didn't shine on Sunday but there you go."
Hennessy admits he feared the worst when the heavens opened earlier on the Leopardstown card and he is just pleased his charge has returned in one piece.
"We walked the track and we were happy enough and we walked it again after the first and while it was soft, it wasn't heavy," he continued.
"Then the heavens opened and the going was changed and it really was dreadful ground, but what can you do? There was not really anywhere else for him to go so we let him take his chance and I said to Philip (Carberry) going out that if he was in trouble, don't knock him about so he wasn't too hard on him.
"He didn't jump great but that is mainly down to the ground and it was exactly the same in the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham last year as he just can't get out of that ground. If he gets his ground at Cheltenham, you couldn't discard him. We won't be writing him off just yet that's for sure."
Hardy plans put on hold
Plans for Hardy Eustace have been put on hold while connections try to discover why the dual Champion Hurdle hero has run below expectations on his last two starts.
The 12-year-old faded into fifth place behind Brave Inca in the Toshiba Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday, four weeks after finishing next to last in the December Festival Hurdle over the same course and distance.
Trainer Dessie Hughes is convinced the veteran is suffering from something and will have him thoroughly checked out. He said: "He ran below himself again, I'm afraid."
Hughes went on: "We thought he moved well enough in the early stages of the race, so you couldn't say it was the ground. There's some little thing not right with the horse.
"We'll see how he is and do a lung wash on him and check him out, there's something anyway. He's not finishing and that's always his best point.
"He'd only be getting into it at the second-last and the last twice he's run now he's got to the second-last and he's had enough, so there's something of a problem. We'll try to find out and until we get to the bottom of it, there are no plans. We'll have to wait and see."
Limerick meeting rescheduled for Wednesday
Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) today announced yesterday’s cancelled Limerick meeting due to waterlogging will now take place this Wednesday.
New declarations must be made by 10am tomorrow and the time of the first race is 1.15pm.