Cheltenham plan for hunter Ryehill

Ryehill (6/1) has connections dreaming of next month’s Cheltenham festival following his success in Naas’ QuinnBet Hunters Chase today, having survived a late blunder to score for trainer Ross O’Sullivan and jockey Lee Shanahan.

Today’s race featured top hunter Its On The Line but having raced laboriously, failed to land a blow on Ryehill which survived a blunder at the third-last, before regaining momentum to score comfortably.

O’Sullivan said “the plan was to go to Cheltenham and it still is. He was a Monroe-family homebred and the lads put all their friends (Outback Syndicate & Conor Brett) into him: there are a great gang of them involved.

“He’d a nice run the last day behind Sam Curling’s nice mare Angels Dawn, and we were hoping for a good run today.

“He has taken a bit of time because he’s so big but he’s after strengthening up and seems to keep improving. He’d like the ground like that and 3m2f (at Cheltenham) will be no problem to him.”

He added “Lee (Shanahan) is a lovely horseman. The horse isn’t easy with his jumping and made a bad mistake at the third-last which could have cost him, but Lee is a tall chap who rides him with plenty of leg and knows him.

“He’s ridden a couple of winners on him and won a maiden hunter chase in Cork last year on him by 17 lengths.”

Quotes from Alan Magee