Niall Madden dictated the pace on I Knew Well and was able to make all in the two mile novice hurdle at Tipperary. Shabra's Bertolini responded well for pressure and came through for second at the final hurdle, but the winner had enough in the tank to maintain the gallop all the way to the line.

The winning margin was recorded at two and three quarter lengths and the victor was returned the 6/4 favourite for Tom Taaffe and Niall Madden in the JP McManus colours.

Shabra's Bertolini (8/1) held on for second by a neck from 10/1 shot Mind The Pennies

JP McManus' racing manager Frank Berry said: "He jumped great. We were a bit worried about the drying ground, but he seemed to handle it well.

"We'll see how the weather goes and how he comes out of this race, but we'd be tempted to keep going for a bit longer."

I Knew Well was following up on a maiden hurdle success in Wexford on St Patrick's Day where he again made all.

Additional reporting by Alan Magee