Briar Hill made a welcome return to the winners’ enclosure when landing the Frank Twiss Memorial Beginners Chase at Killarney.

The Shantou gelding was one of the stars of the Closutton team until suffering a serious facial injury when falling around halfway when the 2/1 favourite for the 2014 Albert Bartlett Novice Hurdle at Cheltenham.

The eight-year-old was sent off the evens favourite for this 2m4f event having been just denied on his chasing debut at the Galway Festival.

Ruby Walsh sent him past the pace-setting Buster Dan Dan at the penultimate fence, and he was pushed out on the run-in to beat Marinero by two and three quarter lengths.

Walsh said, “He’d an awful fall in the Albert Bartlett, and it’s been a long road back. It’s great to get him back in the winners’ enclosure. It was a good gallop, and he stayed on well.”