Alcapone maintained the winning run of jockey David Casey and delighted his trainer Mouse Morris when taking the Donaghmore Beginners Chase at Fairyhouse today.
The favourite survived interference from a couple of loose horses early in the home straight to beat 10-1 chance Shiny Bay and earn a crack at the Dennys Gold Medal Chase at Leopardstown later this month.
'It was a bit eventful, but Alcapone jumped quickly and I was delighted with him,' said Morris who plans to run his stable stars at Leopardstown`s post-Christmas Festival.
'Boss Doyle, His Song, Foxchapel King and Rostropovich will all run for me during the Leopardstown meeting. I think Alcapone is worth a crack at a decent prize like the Dennys,' Morris added.
The season`s leading rider Ruby Walsh moved onto the 49-winner mark and enjoyed a clear-cut success as the French import Fruit Defendu made a highly impressive jumping debut for local trainer Noel Meade in the Kilbride 3-Y-O Maiden Hurdle.
The even-moneyfavourite went on after the second last and quickly pulled 11 lengths clear of Baby Power to give Walsh arguably one of his easiest victories of the campaign to date.
'This horse was a decent Flat handicapper in France on soft ground. He has done everything right since he joined us and will now go for the Dennys Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown,' Meade said.
The three-year-old immediately attracted interest for the Elite Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham in March and was clipped to 20-1 from 33-1 by Ladbrokes.
Wicked Crack was another wide-margin winner as she dominated the closing stages of the Warrenstown Handicap Hurdle in the hands of Conor O`Dwyer, scoring by 10 lengths.
Wicked Crack has now won three races on the track as well as a similar number of point-to-points for her Naas-based English-born trainer Eddie Hales whose small team has been doing very well in recent weeks.
The concluding bumper produced another emphatic winner when the well-touted newcomer Rathgar Beau, trained by Eamon Sheehy, scored by at lengths at odds of 4-1 under Aidan Fitzgerald.
Amateur rider Sam Curling was banned for 14 race days for making insufficient effort on the Edward O`Grady-trained Takagi, a fast-finishing third to Leaders Way in the Curragha Maiden Hurdle.
Curling told the stewards that he had 'got very tired in the home straight as he had not ridden for six weeks' before receiving the lengthy ban.
