The Listener can count his blessings there were no mares in the big race because yesterday's other feature contests were dominated by the fairer sex with the appropriately named Cailin Alainn stretching her remarkable run of success to six in a row in the Grade One Powers Whiskey Novice Chase.

Celestial Wave later added to the girl-power atmosphere when justifying trainer Adrian Maguire's colossal faith in her with a resounding victory in the Woodies Christmas Hurdle but in terms of the Cheltenham festival, Cailin Alainn looks to have more significance.

Charles Byrnes immediately nominated the SunAlliance Chase as the ultimate target for his seven-year-old star who was adding to a Drinmore win earlier in the month. "The SunAlliance is the target and we'll run in the PJ Moriarty back here before that," said the Co Limerick trainer and that was enough for firms to go as low as 8 to 1 about the festival race in March.

There was no doubting Cailin Alainn's superiority yesterday as she beat off the challenge of Patsy Hall although the second-last fence fall of Gazza's Girl did look to remove a major player. However, Byrnes felt it was the interrupted pace of the race that stopped his star mare being even more impressive. "It was slowed right up to nothing and I didn't enjoy the way the race unfolded," he said. "If there'd been a true gallop, I think the first two would have walked away from the rest of them."

Celestial Wave didn't depend on anyone else to provide pace in her three-mile slog and she made all the running under Timmy Murphy to ease 10 lengths clear of another mare, Sweet Kiln, with Strangely Brown back in third.

That was enough for the sponsors to halve her Ladbrokes World Hurdle odds to 12 to 1 but Celestial Wave is unlikely to find herself taking on the odds-on favourite Black Jack Ketchum.

"Cheltenham is very unlikely - unless they get the diggers in and sort out the drainage system!" said Maguire who clearly thinks the world of a mare who has kick-started his fledgling training career. "If she does nothing else, she's already done enough," he beamed. "But if we can keep her healthy, there's a lot more to come. I dreamed this would happen and I'm just delighted she has shown everyone how good she is. Mares like her don't come along too often. Solerina was the last."

Celestial Wave's next target is likely to be the Galmoy Hurdle at Gowran at the end of January but Maguire's delight at yesterday's rout was infectious. "She was the one in the race who no one knew how good she might be. She was the one on the up," he said. "The ground suited her, the trip suited her and Timmy Murphy suited her. He's a genius."

The female theme continued in the bumper too as the champion amateur Nina Carberry partnered Noel Meade's French import Gem Daly to a six-length win that earned him a 14 to 1 quote from one firm for the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham. Gem Daly ran once for Alan Fleming in a point-to-point and Meade said: "I've only had him a month so he surprised me there. He looks a nice horse and he has a great French jumping pedigree. He's one to look forward to as a chaser."

View Mount Prince's big target is the more immediate Pierse Hurdle back here in a few weeks' time and the Pat Hughes-trained horse all but guaranteed himself a run by landing the two-mile novice hurdle under Philip Carberry.

Two previous wins at two and a half miles had resulted in a 22lb hike in the ratings before yesterday and Hughes said: "If he gets 7lbs for winning there, that will put him in the Pierse. A good, strong gallop in that race would probably suit him."

Hughes was out of luck in the opening maiden where Farmer Brown couldn't get a run at a critical time leaving the well-backed Candy Girl to win under Ruby Walsh.

"She has a lot of ability but is a very difficult ride because she pulls so hard," said Willie Mullins. "Now that she is sound and well in herself, we will try and win another one and she's big enough to go chasing next season."

Dessie Hughes and Roger Loughran teamed up with last season's leading juvenile hurdler First Row in the handicap and in a tight finish of necks, he got the better of Woodhouse and The Spoonplayer.