Wood Breizh pictured on his way to victory at Tramore© Photo Healy Racing
The Supreme Horse Racing Club will aim to secure their second lucrative prize in less than a fortnight as runaway Tramore winner Wood Breizh lines up in the Ladbrokes Handicap Hurdle at Killarney.
With a total prize fund of 50,000 euro up for grabs, the two-mile-one-furlong contest is the feature event on the opening afternoon of Killarney's three-day festival and a competitive field of 16 are set to go to post.
Having shown some promise in testing ground maiden hurdles during the winter, the Willie Mullins-trained Wood Breizh displayed smart acceleration on a sounder surface in County Waterford to open his account last month in impressive fashion.
Having seen exciting newcomer Very Much So claim the 100,000 euro Goffs Land Rover Bumper at last week's Punchestown Festival, Supreme racing manager Steve Massey is hoping Wood Breizh can keep the momentum going this weekend.
Ruby Walsh partners the four-year-old grey for the first time.
"He's in grand order and Willie thinks he's improved for his last run," said Massey.
"It's all about the ground for him. We were delighted with him on the better ground at Tramore last time, he quickened up well and jumped much better than he had done in some of his earlier races.
"He gets a bit of a weight-for-age allowance in the race on Sunday, it's a big pot and hopefully he'll run a good race. The only concern is it's his first start in a handicap. He's only a four-year-old and I would imagine it will be a rough old race, so we'll have to see how he copes with it."
Charlie Swan is double-handed, saddling both Getoutwhenyoucan and The Game Changer Getoutwhenyoucan bids for a fifth consecutive victory, while The Game Changer turns out less than a fortnight after making the frame behind Cool Macavity at Punchestown.
"Any rain that falls will be a help for Getoutwhenyoucan, but the other fellow is the opposite - any rain that falls will be a hindrance. The two of them will run if it remains yielding," said Swan.
"The Game Changer is the very same as his half-brother John's Spirit in that he doesn't like being in front too long. These competitive handicaps are usually run to suit him and he'll handle the track as long as it doesn't come up too soft. He'll be fine on yielding ground. Ger (Fox) gets on well with Getoutwhenyoucan and he jumps really well for him.
"Adajal won four handicaps over fences in a row (in 2010), also for JP (McManus, owner) but I've never won five. It would be great if he can do it."
Noel Meade faces a similar ground dilemma with his two runners Benemeade and Waxies Dargle
Meade said: "Waxies Dargle ran a fair race in Punchestown, and the more rain that falls the better his chance. I think if anything the ground was a bit quick for him in Punchestown. He's a real soft ground horse.
"Benemeade is the other way around ground-wise. The question with him is the trip. Last year two and a half miles looked to be right, and we tried him over three miles in Fairyhouse and felt he didn't get it.
"We brought him back to two and a half at Punchestown and he was really travelling well when he fell (three out). He was travelling so well we thought we'd bring him back to two miles and see if there was a possibility he could run in something like the Galway Hurdle."
The Tony Mullins-trained Blue Hell and Michael Hourigan's top-weight False Economy are others to consider in a wide-open contest.
