Pearly Jack stayed on dourly to gain top honours in the Tote Munster National Handicap at Limerick yesterday. Niall 'Slippers' Madden settled the eight-year-old in mid-division for much of the three-mile contest before asking his mount to take closer order as the field turned for home for the final time.

The 3 to 1 joint favourite assumed command before the second last but Ruby Walsh and Bothar Na were travelling ominously well on his heels. Willie Mullins' Kerry National winner made a bad error at that penultimate obstacle, however, which left Pearly Jack in the driving seat. Davy Fitzgerald's charge jumped the last soundly enough and responded well to his rider's urgings to hold off the strong-finishing pair of Star Clipper and Dix Villex by a length and a half and a head respectively.

"This could be a future Aintree horse - everyone who has ridden him has said that," said Fitzgerald. "He'll go for the Becher Chase (at Aintree) next but he might have a race on the Flat before then."

Talented chaser Justified made a winning reappearance in the Sherry Fitzgerald O'Malley Chase. Eamonn Sheehy's seven-year-old cut out most of the running but jumped out to his left on more than one occasion and momentarily looked in trouble after runner-up Tumbling Dice moved smoothly into contention before the second last.

The 8 to 15 favourite soon responded to that threat, however, and stretched clear to record a comfortable seven-length verdict in the hands of Tony McCoy. Sheehy said: "The horse will now probably be stepped up in trip and won't run over two miles again. He ran well but jumped to the left at times when under pressure. The King George is a possibility but I might firstly run him in the Nicholson Chase at Down Royal or the Morrison Chase at Clonmel."