With Galopin Des Champs and Fastorslow renewing rivalry, and Gerri Colombe looking to cement his Cheltenham Gold Cup claims, this year’s Savills Chase promises to be one to savour.
In an era where blockbuster clashes are bemoaned as a disappointing rarity, the feature event on day three of the Leopardstown Christmas Festival serves up a tantalising treat, with the aforementioned trio currently occupying to the top three spots in the betting for the blue riband at Prestbury Park in March.
Add to that the defending champion Conflated, another former winner of the race and Gold Cup hero in A Plus Tard and the latter’s stablemate Envoi Allen, and you have what could be a race for the ages.
Patrick Mullins, assistant to his father Willie, summed it up perfectly when saying: “It’s probably the race of Christmas and the race of the year so far.”
The big hope for Team Mullins clan is, of course, Galopin Des Champs, who looked set to become the dominant force in the staying chase division after winning the John Durkan at Punchestown, Leopardstown’s Irish Gold Cup and the Cheltenham Gold Cup last season. But he will line up on Thursday having suffered back-to-back defeats.
Many considered his shock reverse at the hands of Martin Brassil’s Fastorslow in April’s Punchestown Gold Cup as a freak result at the end of a long season, but the latter went some way to dispelling that notion when handing the Mullins ace another short-priced beating in the John Durkan last month.
Galopin Des Champs was only third on that occasion and Patrick Mullins is hoping he can show his true colours on Thursday.
He said: “We’re looking for Galopin Des Champs to bounce back. He didn’t jump well in the John Durkan, but he’s schooled very well since.
“I think he ran very well at Punchestown considering how badly he jumped, so if he jumps better, he should be back to his best.
“Fastorslow has beaten us the last twice, so it’s for us to come and beat him, not the other way around. Fastorslow sits top of that division at the moment.
“Gerri Colombe is a hard horse to get a gauge on because he just does the bare minimum, but I’d think Leopardstown after all the rain will suit him very well.”
Galopin Des Champs is one of five declared runners for the champion trainer, with Appreciate It, I Am Maximus, Capodanno and Janidil also in the mix.
Appreciate It split Fastorslow and Galopin Des Champs in the John Durkan when ridden by Mullins junior, who feels he again warrants respect.
He added: “Appreciate It ran a cracker in the John Durkan and he’ll be better going this direction.
“It’ll be a very differently run race I’d imagine, but we’d be hoping that he can confirm that his last run is the level he’s at.”
Fastorslow is out to prove there was no fluke about his successive Grade One wins at Punchestown.
“He’s in great form and I’m delighted with him, very happy,” said Brassil.
Gerri Colombe won the Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal on his first start outside novice company and while his trainer Gordon Elliott flirted with the idea of travelling to Kempton for a tilt at the King George on Boxing Day, he instead remains on home soil.
Conflated was not beaten far when third behind his stable companion at Down Royal, and a return to a track where he won both the Savills Chase and the Irish Gold Cup last year is clearly a positive.
A Plus Tard has looked a shadow of his former self since his scintillating victory in the 2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup, while Envoi Allen cannot be discounted after pushing Gerri Colombe to a neck last month.
Trainer Henry de Bromhead said: “Both are in good form and it will be nice to get A Plus Tard out again. He seems well at home and we’re hoping for a good run.
“We’re trying to find our form with him, we didn’t really see it last year but we didn’t get much opportunity to either.
“Envoi seems in great form. He ran a great race in Down Royal and if he ran something similar to that we’d be delighted.
“We could have done without the rain for both of them I suppose, but it is what it is.”
Dinoblue led home a one-two-three for trainer Willie Mullins and owner JP McManus in the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase at Leopardstown.
A field of five runners went to post for the Grade One contest, with Henry de Bromhead’s 6-4 favourite Captain Guinness the only outlier in an otherwise Closutton dominated line-up.
It was clear from a long way out that it was going to be a clean sweep for the champion trainer, with the market leader never able to get to grips with a strong pace and eventually pulled up by Rachael Blackmore in the back straight.
Gentleman De Mee was deployed in a front-running role, but he was a sitting duck at the top of the home straight, as stablemate Dinoblue moved into his slipstream under a motionless Mark Walsh.
Once given her head, the 9-4 shot soon pulled away and safely negotiated the final fence to score by seven and a half lengths.
Saint Roi was third, with the other Mullins runner Dysart Dynamo falling at the last.
“Gentleman De Mee set a great pace in front and jumped fantastic. I wondered at one stage would she (Dinoblue) be able to stay jumping with him but she held her jumping together,” said the trainer.
“When he took a blow, she kept galloping and she is improving all the time. I’m very happy with that.”
Dinoblue is the 11-4 favourite (from 7-2) with the sponsors for the Mrs Paddy Power Mares Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Marine Nationale maintained his unbeaten record with a near foot-perfect display on his debut over fences at Leopardstown.
Owned and trained by Barry Connell, the six-year-old won each of his two bumper starts and was three from three over hurdles last season, culminating in a brilliant victory in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Encountering larger obstacles for the first time, having sidestepped a potential engagement at Navan last month on account of testing conditions, Marine Nationale was a 1-2 shot for the Paddy Power From The Horses Mouth Podcast Beginners Chase and those who took the cramped odds will have had few concerns for the duration of the two-mile-one-furlong contest.
Michael O’Sullivan’s mount raced zestfully on the front end from the drop of the flag and was particularly impressive in the jumping department.
The market leader was still hard on the bridle turning for home and another bold leap at the final obstacle put the seal on a comfortable eight-and-a-half-length victory over Firm Footings.
Paddy Power and Betfair were suitably impressed by the winner’s performance, trimming his odds for the Arkle at Cheltenham to 4-5 from 7-4, while Coral are marginally bigger at evens.
“I didn’t enjoy watching it at all. Last year we were coming in under the radar and this year we are favourite for the Arkle and expected to win,” said Connell.
“It’s a horse race and anything can go wrong, but the way he jumped today he’s vindicated what we have seen from his schooling – he’s an absolute natural.
“He’s only three-quarters fit today and Michael said he gave a little bit of a blow. He was a little gassy early on, but you couldn’t ask for any more than that.
“The ground is described as soft, but there is a bottom to it. He goes on every ground, but probably wouldn’t like heavy ground. He’s just class with a super engine.”
Marine Nationale looks set to return to Leopardstown for the Dublin Racing Festival before returning to Cheltenham in March.
Connell added: “He’ll come back here for the Irish Arkle, then the Arkle and hopefully on to Punchestown. The script writes itself this year.
“He’s the horse of a lifetime and I’m just blessed that he came into our yard. They are one in 10,000 these horses.
“He’s taken a bit longer this year to get fit than last year as he had a proper break for 10 weeks, but he’s a tall, athletic horse and comes to hand quick enough.
“If you look at the list of Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winners, there are plenty that just didn’t train on and that was an added pressure.
“He had a little wind operation before he went out at the end of last season and we put a tongue strap on him today. We just thought it might improve him a bit.”
Marine Nationale maintained his unbeaten record with a near foot-perfect display on his debut over fences at Leopardstown.
Owned and trained by Barry Connell, the six-year-old won each of his two bumper starts and was three from three over hurdles last season, culminating in a brilliant victory in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March.
Encountering larger obstacles for the first time, having sidestepped a potential engagement at Navan last month on account of testing conditions, Marine Nationale was a 1-2 shot for the Paddy Power From The Horses Mouth Podcast Beginners Chase and those who took the cramped odds will have had few concerns for the duration of the two-mile-one-furlong contest.
Michael O’Sullivan’s mount raced zestfully on the front end from the drop of the flag and was particularly impressive in the jumping department.
The market leader was still hard on the bridle turning for home and another bold leap at the final obstacle put the seal on a comfortable eight-and-a-half-length victory over Firm Footings.
Paddy Power and Betfair were suitably impressed by the winner’s performance, trimming his odds for the Arkle at Cheltenham to 4-5 from 7-4, while Coral are marginally bigger at evens.
Patrick Mullins is relishing the prospect of partnering the hugely exciting Gaelic Warrior in the Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase at Limerick.
The record-breaking amateur memorably rode Faugheen to land the Patrickswell circuit’s festive feature four years ago when getting the better of a much-anticipated clash with Samcro, and he has high hopes of repeating the feat on another Rich Ricci-owned star on Thursday.
“Winning on Faugheen was one of the highlights of my career so far, a day I’ll never forget,” said Mullins.
“I’m very excited to get back on Gaelic Warrior, I rode him last year in the Ballymore and we were second behind Impaire Et Passe.
“It looks an ideal race for him on soft ground, going right-handed over an intermediate trip.”
Gaelic Warrior won four times over hurdles, including at Grade One level, but could scale even greater heights over the larger obstacles judged on the manner of his debut at Punchestown last month.
However, with a clutch of talented rivals lying in wait – including a top-class stablemate in Il Etait Temps – Mullins is taking nothing for granted.
He added: “It’s a competitive race. American Mike beat Fact To File and has form with Facile Vega, Il Etait Temps is a Grade One winner and the other two horses (Lucid Dreams and Inothewayurthinkin) are no slouches either, so there’s no no-hoper in the race.
“Gaelic Warrior was very good in Punchestown. I think the more races he has, the less fresh he gets, but he seems to enjoy chasing, so hopefully we can have another day to remember.”
Patrick Mullins is relishing the prospect of partnering the hugely exciting Gaelic Warrior in the Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase at Limerick.
The record-breaking amateur memorably rode Faugheen to land the Patrickswell circuit’s festive feature four years ago when getting the better of a much-anticipated clash with Samcro, and he has high hopes of repeating the feat on another Rich Ricci-owned star on Thursday.
“Winning on Faugheen was one of the highlights of my career so far, a day I’ll never forget,” said Mullins.
“I’m very excited to get back on Gaelic Warrior, I rode him last year in the Ballymore and we were second behind Impaire Et Passe.
“It looks an ideal race for him on soft ground, going right-handed over an intermediate trip.”
Gaelic Warrior won four times over hurdles, including at Grade One level, but could scale even greater heights over the larger obstacles judged on the manner of his debut at Punchestown last month.
However, with a clutch of talented rivals lying in wait – including a top-class stablemate in Il Etait Temps – Mullins is taking nothing for granted.
He added: “It’s a competitive race. American Mike beat Fact To File and has form with Facile Vega, Il Etait Temps is a Grade One winner and the other two horses (Lucid Dreams and Inothewayurthinkin) are no slouches either, so there’s no no-hoper in the race.
“Gaelic Warrior was very good in Punchestown. I think the more races he has, the less fresh he gets, but he seems to enjoy chasing, so hopefully we can have another day to remember.”
Manchester United must consult with Ineos over any January transfer deals or a move to sack manager Erik ten Hag prior to the Premier League ratifying its deal to purchase 25 per cent of the club’s shares.
United announced on Christmas Eve that an agreement had been reached with Ineos and its chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe, a boyhood Red Devils fan, which will give Ineos responsibility over football operations once the regulatory approval process is complete.
That is expected to take four to six weeks and run beyond the end of the January transfer window.
However, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing related to the deal contains a provision guaranteeing that the company will be consulted on football matters in the interim.
This includes “appointing, dismissing or accepting the resignation of any director of football or first team manager of the company” as well as entering into or continuing any discussion concerning the purchase or sale of any player.
The SEC filing also contains a provision which would allow the Glazers, who still have majority control of the club, to force a full sale if they received an offer for their shares which Ratcliffe was unwilling to match. Ratcliffe has first refusal on the purchase of those shares.
Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has been dealt another injury blow after he confirmed Cristian Romero will miss the next four to five weeks with a hamstring strain.
Romero only returned from a three-match suspension at the beginning of December but is now set for another spell on the sidelines.
The Argentina international sustained the injury during last weekend’s 2-1 victory against Everton and a scan this week has revealed a hamstring strain.
Speaking ahead of Thursday’s trip to Brighton, Postecoglou said: “Not so great with Romero.
“He had a scan the other day and has got a hamstring strain. We are looking at probably four or five weeks for him.
“Disappointing to lose him, for sure. We obviously missed him with the suspension and now we’ve just got him back and he steadied things up.
“Now he will be missing again for quite a chunk of time.”
Romero’s previous absence was compounded by centre-back partner Micky van de Ven being out with a hamstring injury.
Summer signing Van de Ven sustained the issue in the 4-1 loss to Chelsea in November, but is close to a return and revealed at the PDC World Darts Championship last week that he could be back training in two weeks.
Postecoglou was cautious with a timeline, although admitted the trip to Manchester United on January 14 could be a comeback date for Van de Ven.
“He is getting closer,” Postecoglou confirmed.
“We will see him some time in January. I don’t think Burnley but Man United on the 14th potentially
“I don’t look at comeback dates until I see them training with us and he hasn’t been part of the group.
“He is not due to be part of the group this week so we’ll see how he is going at the end of this week. Once they start training with the group, that’s when we start thinking about if they are available.
“He is at the tail end of it, for sure and at some point, middle of January he could be available but how we use him after such a long absence will be depending on where he is at.”
Antoine Griezmann has said Atletico Madrid “will be almost 100 per cent” the last club he plays for in Europe.
The 32-year-old France forward, in his second spell with Los Colchoneros, is enjoying a stellar season in LaLiga, ending the year as leading scorer (21) and assist-maker (16).
He also became Atletico’s joint all-time leading scorer earlier this month when equalling Luis Aragones’ record of 173 goals in the recent 3-3 draw with Getafe.
Griezmann, who has already revealed he wants to sign a new deal with Atletico, told Spanish sports newspaper AS: “Yes, that’s what I said. I know the club is in favour of being able to make an effort and we will talk about it.
“Beyond Europe, what I would like later is the MLS (Major League Soccer), I’ve always recognised that.
“But Atletico will be almost 100 per cent my last club in Europe. It’s where I want to be, where I look the happiest and here I am at home.”
Griezmann said he only recently became aware how close he was to Aragones’ goal-scoring record.
“I haven’t been thinking about it,” he said. “In the summer, when I found out that I was 16 goals behind, maybe yes.
“I thought that if I had a good season I could do it, but I didn’t see myself getting it in December. When you have something in your head you get closer to the box, to the opponent’s goal and you want to score goals.
“I still don’t think about it much. I don’t want to spoil things either, but it will be something inexplicable about emotions and everything. I’d rather that day come and (then) enjoy it to the fullest.”
Griezmann became the sixth most expensive player in history at the time when he left Atletico to join Barcelona for £107million in 2019.
Los Colchoneros re-signed him on a contract until 2026 in October 2022, having initially returned to the Madrid club on a two-year loan deal at the start of the 2021-22 season.
Eddie Howe has warned his Newcastle players that no-one is guaranteed a place in his team as he attempts to turn around an alarming slump in form.
Boxing Day’s humbling 3-1 home defeat by Nottingham Forest was the Magpies’ sixth in seven games in all competitions, a run during which their first Champions League adventure in two decades has drawn to a close and hopes of a second successive Carabao Cup final appearance have gone up in smoke.
Head coach Howe hopes to have more of his injured troops back to assist those who have been wearied by a schedule which brought 10 games in 30 days during December and he will have no qualms about shaking things up, with the January transfer window also just days away.
He said: “I’ll be prepared to make any change that I think can benefit either the performance or the result and of course players are accountable for what they deliver.
“No amount of credit in the bank is big enough, you have to earn everything you get from the game. I’m a firm believer in that, so players know they have to perform and we have to change our short-term form for sure.”
Tuesday’s defeat, which ended a run of seven consecutive Premier League wins at St James’ Park, was all the more painful in that it arrived three days after a 1-0 reverse at Luton and courtesy of a rare hat-trick from former Newcastle striker Chris Wood.
More worryingly, it further damaged the prospects of repeating last season’s top-four Premier League finish and the rewards it would bring, and with fixtures against high-flying Liverpool, Manchester City and Aston Villa to come either side of an FA Cup trip to Sunderland, alarm bells are ringing in some quarters.
Howe, who has presided over a remarkable rise on Tyneside since taking up the reins in November 2021, remains calm and retains the support of the club’s Saudi-backed hierarchy, and his response will be to attempt to address his team’s ongoing issues on the training pitch, something for which he has had precious little time in recent weeks.
He said: “The difficulty for the players that have played the majority of the minutes in recent weeks has been they just haven’t been on the grass.
“They have been in between games, of course, resting and then building up for another game three days later, and possibly we’ve suffered from not having that training ground time.
“That’s the schedule, we knew that that was going to be the case, but I just think that our inability to rotate the team has maybe caught up with us in that respect.”
View this post on Instagram
A maiden victory for new Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo extended his record against Newcastle from his days at Wolves and Tottenham to eight games without defeat.
He said: “I didn’t realise that. But more than my individual situation, today was a huge, huge, huge moment for us because I’ve just been told at St James’ Park for the last two seasons who were the teams that achieved good results here, and there are not too many so Forest did very well.”
Erik ten Hag hopes the return of key players in the coming weeks can help Manchester United deliver consistency after Tuesday’s stunning come-from-behind 3-2 win over Aston Villa promised to kick-start a new era at Old Trafford.
All the familiar problems that had seen Ten Hag’s side go four games without a win or a goal were on show in a poor first half as Villa were too easily able to score twice in the space of six minutes through John McGinn’s unchallenged free-kick and an unmarked Leander Dendoncker.
But United rallied in the second half with Alejandro Garnacho scoring twice before Rasmus Hojlund’s long-awaited first Premier League goal delivered a victory which, for all their problems, lifted United up to sixth two days after news of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s forthcoming investment was confirmed.
It was only United’s second win in seven games during December, but they have been without a list of players including Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Mason Mount and Tyrell Malacia, all due back in January along with Victor Lindelof, and Ten Hag is looking forward to their return.
“So often we have to change the team,” he said. “You don’t get the routines. We know football is about solid performance and consistency and we know we have to make a step there, but I’m sure when we have more players available in the key positions we will get more consistency.”
Marcus Rashford made his first start since December 2, having initially lost his place to the in-form Garnacho before illness delayed his return. The England forward looked bright, forcing saves from Emi Martinez before setting up the first of Garnacho’s goals.
“I think he played very good,” Ten Hag said. “He was ill and also he had one or two games where we preferred to play Garnacho on the left side but he deserved it. There is internal competition.
“(On Tuesday) we played Alejandro on the right, that can be a solution, it can be fluid, but Rashford can also play on the right side.”
INEOS director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford was watching from the director’s box as Ratcliffe prepares to take control of footballing operations under the terms of his investment, and the win eased some of the growing pressure on Ten Hag.
Ratcliffe’s investment remains subject to Premier League ratification, but documents published by the New York Stock Exchange show INEOS’ influence will be felt immediately.
United must consult INEOS over any major sporting decision made during the ratification process, including player signings or if they wanted to dismiss figures including Ten Hag or director of football John Murtough.
Ratification is expected to take four to six weeks, a period covering most or all of the January transfer window.
United had trudged off to the sound of boos at half-time but the full-time whistle was greeted with a huge roar after a stirring second-half performance.
There were very different emotions for Villa, who were on course to end the night level on points with leaders Liverpool before it all unravelled in the second half.
Unai Emery’s side blew the chance to be top at Christmas when they were held by lowly Sheffield United on Friday, and this was another set-back as they try to cling to the momentum they have built in a superb first half of the campaign.
“Move on, be demanding,” Emery said. “I told the players that the first part of the season was fantastic but I want more. If they want more we have to work hard to get it.
“My mentality now is to focus on Saturday (at home to Burnley) and prepare the match as well as possible. We want to be better tomorrow than today.”
Anyone found guilty of racially abusing Luton’s Carlton Morris must face “the strongest possible consequences”, Kick It Out has said.
The 28-year-old striker complained about a comment made by the home crowd late on in the Hatters’ Premier League match against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.
Luton boss Rob Edwards confirmed after his side’s 3-2 win that the matter had been reported to the police.
Kick It Out issued a statement on Wednesday morning which read: “We send our full support to Carlton Morris. It’s shameful that once again a player should be subjected to alleged racism while doing their job.
“Morris should be praised for how he handled the situation, and we commend the clubs, police and officials for their swift approach. But it should never have to come to this.
“Those who think this vile behaviour towards players is acceptable need to face the strongest possible consequences.”
Officials at Wetherby have been left with no option but to abandon the second day of the track’s William Hill Yorkshire Christmas Meeting due to a waterlogged track.
The West Yorkshire circuit played host to its traditional Boxing Day fixture on Tuesday, with the Venetia Williams-trained Fontaine Collonges taking the featured Rowland Meyrick Handicap Chase.
Another seven-race card was due to take place on Wednesday, with the William Hill Castleford Chase the main event, but significant rainfall overnight has left standing water on parts of the track and clerk of the course Jonjo Sanderson has been forced to draw stumps.
He said: “The forecasters said we’d get 20 millimetres (of rain) in a 12 to 15 hour period from around 3am to 3pm or 4pm this afternoon, but when I got here just after 6am we’d had nine millimetres and that’s already doubled in the next three hours.
“It’s just the volume of rain we’ve had in that timeframe really and we’ve got another 10 millimetres still to come according to the forecast.
“There isn’t a fence down the back straight we could jump due to the ground being saturated and areas of false ground.”
Leicester’s meeting on Thursday is also under threat, with a precautionary inspection announced for 3.45pm this afternoon due to a “forecast of continuous rain on Wednesday”.
The chase races at Uttoxeter on New Year’s Eve have already been called off, meaning the Staffordshire venue will now stage an all hurdle and bumper card.
Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo is confident the forward line will step up to cover for the pending absence of Mohamed Salah.
Darwin Nunez ended a run of 12 matches without a goal, while Diogo Jota came off the bench to score after a month out injured in Tuesday’s 2-0 Premier League win over Burnley which took Jurgen Klopp’s side top of the table.
Salah has one more game – at home to Newcastle on Sunday – before he departs for the African Nations Cup with Egypt and the 16-goal winger is likely to be away for a month.
Therefore, Jota’s timely return boosts the numbers up top, while Nunez’s confidence has been lifted by his first Premier League goal since October.
Gakpo himself has seven for the season, the latest coming in last week’s Carabao Cup romp against West Ham after he was denied a goal at Turf Moor when referee Paul Tierney adjudged Nunez to have committed a foul in the build-up, and he believes they have enough firepower to see them through in Salah’s absence.
“For every attacking player who didn’t score for a few games, it’s always nice to get back on the scoresheet and Darwin did it with a very good goal,” said Gakpo.
“For Diogo as well. When you are injured and you come back and score that’s always nice and good for the confidence. So really happy.
“Mo is gone after the Newcastle game so we need the goals. Of course, I think I can contribute even more.”
Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk is also of the opinion they can handle Salah’s expected lengthy absence despite the Egypt international being their main threat for so many seasons.
“It’s always important for the guys up front to score goals. I am delighted for Darwin. Diogo, it’s the same story. It’s good to see the boys back on the scoresheet,” said the Netherlands defender.
“I also want to say that Cody was outstanding, in the first half especially. It’s good to see. Everyone has to keep pushing each other. That’s the only way we can get better.
“Others have to step up anyway. We have to deal with losing Mo and we have the players up front who can make the difference. Let’s see how we deal with it.”
Liverpool’s return to the Premier League summit probably has more significance to the outside world than it does within the squad, who are refusing to look beyond their next game.
“The table is not looking in a bad place but we have to take it one game at a time, don’t let our heads go everywhere all over the place, just stay focused and keep doing what we are doing now and even improve more,” added Gakpo, who is enjoying his first taste of the English festive programme.
“It’s the first time I played with this intensity – a lot of games in a few days – and it’s nice as if you play a good game you can play again and if you play a not-so-good game, you can make it good in the next game as it’s coming nice and quick,” he added.
“Everybody wants the three points – also the opponents – so you have to work really hard every game and you have to be able to win games different ways.”
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
