Jamie Snowden is considering adding Ga Law to the Ryanair Chase field after his taking Cheltenham success on Trials day.
The eight-year-old finished fifth in the Festival Grade One last season, his second run at the track following victory in the Paddy Power Gold Cup earlier that term.
He returned to Prestbury Park to run over the same trip in a valuable handicap on January 27, the last meeting there before the Festival, and prevailed by a length and three quarters in a pleasing performance under Gavin Sheehan.
That run has inspired connections to think about putting Ga Law forward for another run in the Ryanair Chase at the Festival, for which he will require supplementing as the entries have closed.
“I think we’ll end up supplementing him for the Ryanair,” said Snowden.
“He won the Paddy Power Gold Cup the previous year and he would have won the Sky Bet Chase at Doncaster but he had a nasty fall at the last and that kind of derailed us a bit last season.
“He still finished fifth in the Ryanair last year but he probably wasn’t in the sort of form he’s been in this time around.
“It was nice to see him back on track winning the feature handicap on Trials day and off the back of that the Ryanair looks the right race for him.
“He won the Paddy Power on the Old course but I think he ran an even better race the other day on the New course.
“The New course, which is more of a test of stamina, perhaps suits him more than the Old course, which is more of a test of speed.
“He ran well in the Ryanair last year when not in the form that he’s in now so hopefully he can go there and run a decent race.”
Snowden also provided an update on Reach For The Moon, who was bred by the late Queen and is owned by Queen Camilla and Sir Chips Keswick.
Twice placed at Royal Ascot in his days on the Flat with John and Thady Gosden, he made his hurdling debut at Sedgefield earlier this month and finished fourth when coming home lame.
Snowden said of the gelding: “He was a bit sore off the back of that first run over hurdles, we’re going to give him a moment to get over that and take him out of the Supreme Novices’.
“We’ll give him time to get over it and then come back in the spring.”
Paul O’Connell believes the legacy of influential former captain Johnny Sexton lives on among Ireland’s 2024 Guinness Six Nations squad.
The reigning Grand Slam champions have made a strong start to the post-Sexton era by bouncing back from Rugby World Cup disappointment with successive championship wins over France and Italy.
Forwards coach O’Connell admits there was a degree of trepidation about how the team would respond to the agonising quarter-final defeat to New Zealand and losing their long-serving leader.
Sexton, 38, retired immediately after the 28-24 Paris loss in October but has been credited with having a lasting impact on senior members of Andy Farrell’s squad, including new skipper Peter O’Mahony.
“I suppose you’re very hopeful that the work we’ve done with all of the players kind of comes through, but you’re a bit nervous that it might not happen as well,” O’Connell said of the new era.
“We’re only two games in so we’ve plenty of battles ahead of us.
“I think one thing that maybe Johnny has given a lot of the guys is he’s shown how much you have to care about the team and how much you have to care about how you prepare.
“He’s been a great example to some of the guys that are going to end up as leaders in the team.
“While he’s gone, his legacy from how he used to go about his business still lives on with us.
“A lot of the guys – Peter O’Mahony, Caelan Doris, James Ryan, Iain Henderson, Garry Ringrose – they’ve a few of his qualities in them that helps us arrive to a good place every Saturday when we play.”
Ireland resume their title defence at home to Wales on February 24, ahead of March appointments with England and Scotland.
Many pundits already feel it is a formality that Farrell’s men will become the first side to claim back-to-back Grand Slams in the Six Nations era.
Former Ireland captained O’Connell, who won the competition three times as a player, thinks players are adept at “ignoring the bigger picture”.
“We talk about winning, for sure, we always want to win the tournaments we’re playing in and we talk about winning them but once we’ve cleared that up, we don’t really talk about it much more,” said the 44-year-old.
“We just focus on the next game. We focus on what needs to be better for the next game and get excited about doing the things we feel might lead to a performance.
“It’s something that the players do really well. It’s a practised skill being next-game focused.
“Andy’s big into it; Joe Schmidt (former Ireland head coach) was big into it back in the day and a lot of the players are big into it because it helps them prepare properly by ignoring the bigger picture.”
Doc Rivers suggested the Milwaukee Bucks had "some guys in Cabo" as he reflected on their shock loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Despite missing several key players, including Scotty Pippen Jr – who was out with a back injury – the Grizzlies won 113-110 on Thursday.
Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 35 points and 12 assists, but his 43rd double-double of the season was not enough.
And Rivers, whose team are third in the Eastern Conference, believes some of his players were already thinking about potential trips away during the All-Star break, rather than focusing fully on the task at hand.
"We had some guys here, and some guys in Cabo," Rivers said.
"First play of the game, we gamble for the 50th time in the corner. Guy drives, we have to help, leads to a 3.
"On our set, two guys forget what we're running. Then we missed a shot and nobody gets back. That's how we start out the third quarter. That tells you all you need to know about where our heads were.
"These are tough games. Yeah, it's a panic game for coaches."
Ziaire Williams and GG Jackson scored 27 points each for the Grizzlies.
"It feels good," Williams said.
"Proud of this team. We've been fighting our tails off every game. It's good to see. One man falls down, and another one steps up. We're just having fun."
The Grizzlies, whose star player Ja Morant is out for the rest of the campaign, sit 13th in the Western Conference, with a 20-36 record.
Steve Kerr is considering how best to use Klay Thompson after the 34-year-old responded to being benched with an emphatic showing for the Golden State Warriors.
Thompson was benched for the first time since 2012 on Thursday, but responded with his best performance of the season as the Warriors beat the Utah Jazz 140-137.
The small forward finished with 35 points and six rebounds. Thompson had started 727 straight games.
Golden State's win marked Kerr's 500th victory as Warriors coach, and he believes Thompson, who is averaging 17.3 points per game this season.
"It's been a tricky season for him and for us," said Kerr.
"It's not as easy to do what Klay did five or six years ago for him.
"I think this could be a good balance to get the best out of Klay and to get the best out of our team.
"He's just such a competitor. I've watched him win championships. I've seen him hit a million big shots. I've seen him guard the toughest guys in the league.
"Klay's a champion. He's an incredible player, a great person."
Thompson has now surpassed 15,000 points, becoming the sixth Golden State player, and the 153rd player in total, to do so.
"You can do two things: You can pout or you can go out there and respond," said Thompson. "I thought I did the latter very well tonight.
"Throughout the game, when I'm running with the second unit, I realised I might be more of a focal point to the offense.
"That's a fun role to play. I just wanted to take it upon myself to prove to coach that I was going to respond like the champ I am.
"I thought about [former Spurs great] Manu Ginobli, that guy has four rings and a gold medal, and he came off the bench his whole career, and I don't think anyone looks down on his Hall of Fame candidacy.
"He's one of the greats. And I thought, I mean, I embraced it before tip, and I deserved it really."
Klay Thompson scored a season-high 35 points with seven 3-pointers in his first appearance off the bench since his rookie season in the Golden State Warriors’ 140-137 win over the Utah Jazz on Thursday.
A reserve for the first time since March 11, 2012, Thompson scored 17 points in the Warriors’ 84-point first half. He was 13 of 22 from the field and 7 of 13 from 3-point range with six rebounds in 28 minutes.
Brandon Podziemski replaced him in the starting lineup and had 13 points, eight assists and six rebounds.
Draymond Green scored a season-best 23 points, Andrew Wiggins added 19 and Stephen Curry contributed 16 points and 10 assists as Golden State won its seventh in eight games.
Collin Sexton led the Jazz with 35 points and nine assists, while Keyonte George set career highs with 33 points and nine 3s.
Wolves start fast in rout of Blazers
Anthony Edwards scored 13 of his 34 points in a dominant first quarter and the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised to a 128-91 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 23 points and Jaden McDaniels scored 17 as Minnesota opened a 44-14 lead after one quarter in its fourth straight victory.
The Wolves’ 30-point lead was the most lopsided first quarter in the NBA this season.
Jerami Grant scored 20 points for Portland, which has lost six straight.
Grizzlies hold off Bucks
Ziaire Williams and GG Jackson each scored 27 points and the Memphis Grizzlies held on for a 113-110 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Vince Williams had 18 points and 12 rebounds and Lamar Stevens added 13 points off the bench to help Memphis win its second straight following a season-high nine-game losing streak.
Giannis Antetokoumpo had his 43rd double-double of the season with 35 points and 12 assists, and Damian Lillard had 24 points and seven assists.
Milwaukee has lost its last two and five of its past seven games.
Anthony Stolarz stopped 45 shots for his first shutout of the season and the Florida Panthers extended their franchise record road winning streak to 10 games with a 4-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday.
Carter Verhaeghe scored twice for the Panthers, who became the 11th NHL team to win 10 consecutive road games. Their run is two short of matching the record held by Detroit (2005-06) and Minnesota (2014-15).
Florida improved to 19-7-2 on the road, where it hasn’t lost since a 3-1 defeat at Calgary on Dec. 18. The Panthers are 17-3-2 in their past 22 games overall and moved into a tie with Boston atop the Eastern Conference.
The Sabres failed to build off a 7-0 win over Los Angeles on Tuesday after announcing prior to the game that goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen would be out with a lower-body injury.
Eric Comrie stopped 27 shots in his place and dropped his sixth straight start.
Kreider leads Rangers to sixth win in row
Chris Kreider notched his first hat trick of the season and Adam Fox had four assists to propel the New York Rangers to their sixth consecutive victory, 7-4 over the Montreal Canadiens.
Mika Zibanejad had a goal and two assists and Artemi Panarin added three assists as the Rangers pulled within one point of Boston and Florida for the Eastern Conference lead.
Jonathan Quick, 38, stopped 31 shots for his fourth straight win. He is the oldest goaltender in Rangers history with a four-game winning streak and is three victories away from tying Ryan Miller for most among American-born goalies at 391.
Cole Caufield scored twice for Montreal, which has lost three of four.
Matthews scores 3 more in Leafs’ OT win
Auston Matthews increased his league-leading goal total to 45 with his fifth hat trick of the season and William Nylander scored in overtime to lift the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers.
Matthews completed his 12th career hat trick in a 7:49 span in the second period. He’s on a 71-goal pace through 51 games, seeking to become the first player to hit 70 since Teemu Selanne and Alexander Mogilny each had 76 in 1992-93.
Matthews tied the franchise record for hat tricks in a season, matching Reg Noble (1917-18), Babe Dye (1924-25) and Darryl Sittler (1980-81).
Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist as the Flyers battled back from a 3-1 deficit in the third period to move to 4-0-1 in their past five games.
Michael van Gerwenadmitted he was not at his best despite winning night three at the 2024 BetMGM Premier League at Glasgow’s OVO Hydro with a 6-5 final win over Luke Humphries.
The Dutchman won in Berlin last week and on a night when teenager Luke Littler disappointed a supportive crowd by checking out in the quarter-finals, he again showed his mettle in a last-leg decider against the world champion
Van Gerwen, who is three points clear of Michael Smith at the top of the table, said: “Even without my best performance I think I did a great job and sometimes that is really important.
“Double six let me down tonight but outside that my finishing and the way I played the game was a good standard.
“Of course my score could have been a lot better but sometimes that is darts. Another win, it is good.
“I always believe in my ability and I think I did the right things at the right moments.
“I have put so much pressure on myself. No targets. I’d say I’m at 90 per cent of my game.”
Humphries led 1-0 and 4-2 and perhaps should have made it 5-2 but the Dutchman came back to 4-4 and a 180 in the ninth leg helped him forge ahead 5-4 only to see Humphries respond to level and take it into the final leg when another 180 gave Van Gerwen the advantage and he clinched victory with double top.
In his first season in the competition Humphries said: “It was important to play well.
“I was proud of the way I played and I am where I want to be, in the top four.
“It is my first year in it and I am going to enjoy it.”
Littler made an early exit after a thrilling battle with Gerwyn Price.
The 17-year-old was given a great reception by the crowd but the Welshman stood strong.
The 2021 world champion just missed double 12 for a nine darter at 3-2 down – Nathan Aspinall also came agonisingly close to a perfect nine-dart leg during his defeat by Humphries – but came back to level at 3-3.
Littler went 4-3 up but again Price came back to win the next two legs before the young Englishman levelled at 5-5 but Price triumphed 6-5 in a tense last-leg decider.
Peter Wright was left frustrated after coming up well short against Van Gerwen.
Wright was cheered to the rafters when he returned to home soil with a highly-anticipated quarter-final clash but was sent packing with a 6-2 defeat.
The Scotsman said: “I was just thinking Michael is not even on it and I couldn’t even punish him. It is one of those games. Annoying.
“You see them on TV and you see the players and think, ‘oh he’s playing rubbish’ and you step up but it couldn’t find anything. It wouldn’t go in.
“I don’t know, maybe I have too much respect for Michael, I don’t know.
“But the crowd was fantastic. It was nice to see a full house and I really appreciate that and I hope they enjoy the rest of the night.
“I was gutted I let them down.
“Even at 5-1 down I was thinking, Michael is not on it, still I could win this game.
“I know what my game is and I was ready but Michael probably would have stepped up if I started hitting something.”
Tiger Woods revealed a back spasm had caused him to shank the final hole of his return to a first PGA Tour event of 2024 at the Genesis Invitational in California.
Woods, 48, is still adapting to ankle fusion surgery, having undergone treatment in April last year after withdrawing from the Masters during the third round and he did not compete again until the Hero World Challenge in December.
The 15-time major champion finished Thursday’s opening round at the Riviera Country Club on one-over par after shanking his second shot on the 18th from the fairway over into the trees on the right.
Woods eventually sunk a two-putt bogey to make a five, and afterwards revealed he would need some treatment to get himself back out on the course again on Friday.
“My back spasmed on it,” Woods said in his post-round interview to the Golf Channel when asked about the shank on the 18th hole.
“It’s been spasming the last three holes, and it just locked up on me. Didn’t move, didn’t rotate, and present hosel first.”
Woods, who previously said he expects to participate in one event per month this year, added: “We have got some treatment ahead of us and some work to do, to be ready for tomorrow.
“But that’s just part of the deal, and (I) look forward to the challenge.”
Former world number one Woods hit eight fairways, 10 of 18 greens, and took 30 putts in the opening round.
“My round was good and a little bit indifferent,” said Woods, who had opened with an up-and-down birdie on the par-five first.
“I struggled with the speed of the greens, even though I made a few.. and was stressing out on the short game, I had maybe like five pars today.”
Patrick Cantlay was the early leader with his round of 64, one shot ahead of Australians Cameron Davis and Jason Day, alongside Luke List. Jordan Spieth was among the group two adrift at five-under.
Franklin Pele and Ligi Sao were both sent off as Hull FC’s hopes of kicking off the new Betfred Super League season with a win over their derby rivals Hull KR unravelled in spectacular fashion at the MKM Stadium.
New boy Niall Evalds led from the front with two tries as Rovers cruised to a 22-0 win which was helped by their opponents’ indiscipline after debutant Pele was red-carded for a needless swing at debutant Eliot Minchella on the stroke of half-time.
With the game long gone Tony Smith’s men suffered the indignity of finishing the game with 11 players after Sao was also red-carded for retaliation after kicking out following foul play by Matt Parcell.
If it was not as emphatic as the 40-0 thrashing inflicted by Rovers last April, it strongly suggested two sides with contrasting seasons in store, with Willie Peters’ new recruits easily outshining their largely anonymous FC counterparts.
Smith’s men might have feared it was not going to be their night when Liam Sutcliffe withdrew after the warm-up due to illness, then Joe Cator was also forced to limp off early.
But for all their ill luck, the black-and-whites were emphatically also the architects of their own demise, as a series of errors and rushes of blood to the head left them 14 points adrift at the interval.
Evalds needed seven minutes to mark his Rovers debut with the opener as he took a pass from Tom Opacic on the right and stepped inside to put the first points of the season on the board.
Mikey Lewis sent Kelepi Tanginoa through a gap for the second in a move that began with an error from Morgan Smith who needlessly kicked into touch on the full.
Hull responded with an overdue spell of pressure, Jack Walker’s high kick forcing an error from Rovers full-back Peta Hiku, who was perhaps the only visiting new boy not to excel.
But errors from Jayden Okunbor and Jack Ashworth sapped most of the momentum the home side could build, and the Hull defence stood off again as the superb Lewis skipped through again to take Rovers’ lead to 12.
Hiku nailed his first and only conversion of the night before the first period ended on a desperate note for the hosts, as Pele followed up a tackle on Minchella with a needless swing towards his opponent on the ground, prompting a mass confrontation and a red card.
Cam Scott spurned a chance to reduce the deficit for Hull early in the second half after another spill from Hiku, before Rovers camped on the hosts’ try-line and after Jai Whitbread and Ryan Hall were both held up, Parcell found the inevitable gap on the last to nail Rovers’ fourth try.
Tension boiled over in the last 10 minutes as Parcell was sin-binned for elbowing Sao in the ruck, only for Sao to see red after retaliating with a kick to the head.
Evalds completed the scoring in the final minute as he raced over on the right flank to the delight of the estimated 8,000 Rovers fans in the 20,014 opening night crowd.
Laura Stephens claimed Britain’s first global title in a women’s individual event since Rebecca Adlington at the World Swimming Championships in Doha.
Stephens led from start to finish in the 200 metres butterfly, holding off Denmark’s Helena Bach by less than a tenth of a second.
The 24-year-old follows in the footsteps of double Olympic champion Adlington, who won 800m freestyle gold in 2011.
She said: “I came into this meet hoping for three solid swims, to learn through the process and to come away on top of the podium is kind of crazy.
“It’s a great way to start off the long-course season and hopefully I can just get faster and faster. This definitely gives me a lot of confidence towards Paris.”
Britain claimed a second medal later in the evening with silver in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay.
The quartet of Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Lucy Hope and Medi Harris finished behind China to improve on their fourth place from a year ago.
Lauren Cox and Matt Richards just missed out on medals in the women’s 50m backstroke and men’s 100m freestyle respectively, while Duncan Scott was sixth in the men’s 200m individual medley and Anna Hopkin qualified third fastest for the women’s 100m freestyle final.
Naomi Osaka’s run at the Qatar Open ended in the quarter-finals with a narrow defeat by Karolina Pliskova.
The former world number one was through to the last eight at a tournament for the first time in nearly two years following her maternity break but she could not capitalise on good starts in both sets.
Instead it was Pliskova, champion at the Transylvania Open last week, who continued her winning run by triumphing in two tie-breaks for a 7-6 (6) 7-6 (5) victory.
The Czech moves on to face top seed and two-time defending champion Iga Swiatek, who remained unstoppable in Doha, defeating Victoria Azarenka 6-4 6-0.
Having trailed 4-3 in the opening set, world number one Swiatek raced through nine games in a row to stay on course for a third straight title.
The other semi-final will be between in-form third seed Elena Rybakina and unseeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Pavlyuchenkova matched her best run at a WTA 1000 with a 7-5 6-4 win over Danielle Collins while Rybakina came from 4-1 down in the first set to defeat Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-2.
A defiant Christian Horner said he will not be forced out of Red Bull – and vowed to be in his post as team principal for the first Formula One race of the season.
Horner broke his silence on Thursday after an investigation was launched into an allegation of “inappropriate behaviour” against him by a female colleague.
The 50-year-old, speaking at Red Bull’s car launch in Milton Keynes, revealed he had been “overwhelmed” by messages of goodwill from within the sport, and said his wife, former Spice Girls singer Geri Halliwell, has been “very supportive”.
He also continued to emphatically deny the allegations made against him.
Asked if he will be in Bahrain for the first round of Max Verstappen’s championship defence on March 2, Horner replied: “Yes. I will be in Bahrain.
“The process has been going on in the background. Obviously, there’s been a day job to be getting on with, which is gearing up for the season ahead of us.
“I have a hugely supportive family, a very supportive wife. I have felt the support from within the business and our partners, and the support from within the industry has been overwhelming, too.
“I am confident in the process, which I have fully complied with and will continue to do so, and absolutely deny any of the allegations that have been made against me.
“For me, it is business as normal. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be here.”
Direct questions relating to the internal investigation launched by Red Bull Racing’s parent company Red Bull GmBH – which leaves Horner’s career in the balance – were strictly off-limits.
Horner has been in charge of the F1 team for two decades, but he insisted the investigation has not forced him to ponder resigning.
“Not at all, absolutely not,” said Horner when asked if he had considered his role as team principal and chief executive of the racing team.
“I am fully committed. I built this team. I convinced people to come and work here.
“I’ve been here since the beginning. There have been highs and lows along the way. We have won 113 races. We have won seven drivers’ world championships. We’ve won six constructors’ world championships in 19 seasons, and that’s in the history books.
“But it’s about what lies ahead, because that’s what’s important. So my focus is on the future.”
There had been a strong desire for Horner’s future to be concluded before Thursday’s presentation which marked the 20th anniversary of Red Bull’s involvement as a constructor in the sport.
Horner, who was quizzed by a lawyer for eight hours last Friday, said he did not know when the probe will be concluded.
There will be three days of testing, starting next Wednesday, in Bahrain ahead of the first race, also in the Gulf kingdom. And sources have indicated Horner could face further rounds of questioning as he bids to prove his innocence.
The investigation against Horner has undoubtedly overshadowed the world champions’ preparations for the forthcoming campaign.
Last year, Red Bull won all but one of the 22 races, with Verstappen taking his third world title in as many years.
But the Dutch driver, 26, said: “I don’t feel it (the investigation) has been a distraction.
“Everyone is very focused and very motivated. The spirit in the team has been fantastic. It’s been honestly better than ever.”
Pressed on his relationship with Horner, the triple world champion added: “It is very good.
“We’ve seen each other quite a few times. We’ve achieved a lot of things together so that doesn’t change suddenly.
“My contact with Christian has been the same as on the first day. It’s been like normal.”
Max Verstappen believes Lewis Hamilton’s swansong season with Mercedes will be “awkward” following his rival’s 2025 transfer to Ferrari.
Hamilton stunned the sporting world by ditching Mercedes – the constructor which has carried him to six of his record-equalling seven world championships – in favour of a move to Ferrari next year.
On Wednesday, the 39-year-old Briton made his first public appearance since news of his shock transfer broke. Hamilton said he is determined to fire Mercedes back to former glories before he trades silver for red.
But speaking at Red Bull’s car launch on Thursday, reigning world champion Verstappen believes Mercedes will be forced to omit Hamilton from some meetings during the forthcoming 24-round campaign.
“For the rest of the year, I would say it’s a little bit awkward,” said Verstappen.
“It’s not like they are suddenly enemies. He has achieved so many great things with them. They are still behind him, and for sure he has a great relationship with everyone, especially (Mercedes team principal) Toto (Wolff).
“But he knows at one point, and Toto for sure will tell him: ‘Look, I know we’ve had all this success, but you can’t be part of certain meetings any more’.
“That is normal in F1. It’s probably a bit weird. But you are professional enough to deal with that. And once he’s sitting in the car, they will of course go flat out for him.”
Verstappen, who last year claimed 19 victories from 22 rounds as he secured his third successive title, also believes Hamilton and Ferrari were forced to reveal the tie-up sooner than they would have wished.
The Red Bull star added: “It must have been leaked to announce something that big that early in the season.
“Him going to Ferrari is not really shocking. It’s not a surprise they were talking. I just think the announcement was a bit rushed.”
Verstappen, who gets his first taste of this season’s Red Bull when testing begins in Bahrain next Wednesday, opens his bid to become a four-time world champion at the first race, also in the Gulf kingdom, on March 2.
Ireland forwards coach Paul O’Connell believes being without star full-back Hugo Keenan against Wales could be a blessing in disguise.
Keenan suffered a knee issue during Sunday’s 36-0 Guinness Six Nations win over Italy and did not take part in physical training on Thursday.
The influential 27-year-old, who is yet to be ruled out of the round-three clash with Warren Gatland’s men on February 24 in Dublin, has been virtually ever-present in the number 15 jersey during the past three years.
Aside from Keenan, only the injured Jimmy O’Brien and out of favour Michael Lowry have started at full-back for Ireland since the end of 2020.
“He didn’t train today but he hasn’t been ruled out for the Welsh game yet,” O’Connell said of Keenan.
“He’s progressing with his rehabilitation. He was there at training today and he took part in all the organisational bits.
“He plays a big role. He’s obviously injury-free for a very long time, he’s an excellent player.
“It’s probably good for us in some ways because it makes us play someone else there if he doesn’t make it.
“But I’m not sure yet where he’s at. He was around training today so we’d be hopeful.”
Fly-half Jack Crowley filled in for Keenan in the closing stages against the Azzurri, while Ciaran Frawley is another potential replacement.
Current squad members Jordan Larmour and Jacob Stockdale were given opportunities at 15 early in Andy Farrell’s reign but have barely featured in selections since.
“At full-back, you’re covering the back field defensively and he (Keenan) has a lot of work to do in attack as well,” said O’Connell.
“There’s a lot of IP (intellectual property) that we might miss out on if he wasn’t playing.
“He also plays a big leadership role for us. He’s a very smart guy, he’s a problem-solver within the group, he’s highly regarded within the group.
“Whether he’s there or not, he’ll continue to play that role.”
Reigning champions Ireland top the table following back-to-back bonus-point wins over France and Italy.
Keenan was the only member of Farrell’s squad to sit out Thursday’s session.
Captain Peter O’Mahony, prop Tadhg Furlong and centres Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose each featured following their respective injury issues.
Former Ireland skipper O’Connell believes Ringrose, who is yet to feature in this year’s tournament due to a shoulder problem, is on track to return against Wales.
“It looks like it, he trained today, we didn’t do a massive session,” he said. “He’s in good shape.”
Cheltenham Festival-winning jockey Jamie Moore has announced his retirement from the saddle on medical advice following a fall last year.
Moore, 39, is the son of trainer Gary and the brother of Josh, Ryan and Hayley – all of whom are well-known faces in the racing industry.
After starting out in 2001, Moore was the champion conditional rider at the end of the 2003-04 season when based in Somerset with Martin Pipe, for whom he rode his first significant winners in graded events.
Naturally much of his riding was on behalf of his father and it was the popular chestnut Sire De Grugy who became the horse of a lifetime for both when winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2014 – one of 17 victories, with Moore in the saddle each time.
Moore rode 968 winners across his career and took the 2014 Scottish Grand National on Al Co for trainer Peter Bowen in the same season that Sire De Grugy was on the Grade One-winning streak that saw him named British Jumps Horse of the Year.
A heavy fall at Lingfield in late November last year left the rider with a fractured vertebra as well as broken ribs and a broken nose, with doctors advising him not return to the saddle as a result of the injuries he sustained.
In a statement issued via the Professional Jockeys Association, he said: “It is with huge regret that, following my last fall in November 2023, I will not be returning to race riding.
“After being checked by top neurologists and spinal specialists, and taking advice from Dr Jerry Hill and the doctors who’ve seen me the most in my career – Dr Rizwan Ghani and Dr Lucy Free – I have been medically advised not to race ride again.
“I would like to thank everyone who has stuck by me and supported me throughout my 22-year career. Obviously I have been very lucky to have such a good trainer in my father Gary, who’s always supported me, along with his brilliant, faithful owners. My mother Jayne and my wife Lucie have also always been there for me.
“Back to the start and my first boss, Mr Pipe, who helped me become champion conditional. To every other trainer and every owner I’ve ridden for; my agent Dave Roberts; my sponsors; all the brilliant stable staff and the PJA and the Injured Jockeys Fund, who have always been so supportive.
“Finally, to the best place you could wish to work – the weighing room. To all the physios, tea boys and ladies, nurses and weighing room staff who have made each day of going to work much more enjoyable.
“And to all the brilliant jockeys and valets past and present who I’ve made lifelong friends with. I will hugely miss the weighing room. There have been some ups and plenty of downs but everyone is always there for you. You’ve all been top class.
“It’s impossible to put into words how thankful I am to each and every one of you.”
Dale Gibson, executive director of the PJA, added: “Jamie unfortunately suffered more than his fair share of long-term injuries and missed the equivalent of four years race riding during his career as a result, but his remarkable fortitude and appetite for race riding shone like a beacon throughout his career.
“Jamie was and will remain universally popular within the weighing room and wider racing industry. His down to earth, no-nonsense approach alongside his genuine love of the horse (should) be wholeheartedly applauded.
“He also served his colleagues and the PJA exceptionally well as southern-based National Hunt safety officer since December 2019, as well as being a dependable source for general advice to the PJA and younger jockeys both on and off the racecourse.
“Jamie has been a pleasure to represent and will be sorely missed in the weighing room. We wish him, his wife Lucie and their family all the very best and we look forward to seeing him on a racecourse soon in his second career.”
Moore’s father expects his son to become an even more integral part of the family stable and said to Racing TV: “I’m very proud of him, you’re proud of your children anyway, aren’t you? But he’s done really, really.
“He was champion conditional one year, thanks to Martin Pipe. He always wanted to do it from the age of 14 and he’s done remarkably well.
“It’s a shame he didn’t quite make the thousand (winners), but at least he’s come out in one piece.”
Of Sire De Grugy the trainer added: “He was just an unbelievable horse who was Jamie’s best mate really, it wasn’t just the Champion Chase, it was the Celebration here (at Sandown) and the Clarence House. What he did that season was unbelievable.
“I can’t go on forever and him and Josh work very well together. He was in Newmarket last week doing his (training) modules so something will happen in the new future hopefully.”
Fergal O’Brien’s Springtime Promise continued on an upward trajectory with an impressive victory in the Jane Seymour Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at Sandown.
An experienced point-to-pointer with two victories in that discipline for Gary McGill on her CV, the bay changed hands to join O’Brien ahead of the current season.
She made her debut for new connections with a two-length win at Huntingdon in January before going on to land another novice event at Sedgefield later the same month.
At Sandown she stepped steeply up to Grade Two company for the Weatherbys Cheltenham Festival Betting Guide-sponsored Jane Seymour, starting at 11-1 under regular jockey Connor Brace.
In a field of seven she ran a pleasing race and jumped neatly throughout to pull away on the approach to the line and secure a three-length victory, extending her winning streak to five consecutive races both under rules and otherwise.
“It was a very good run, her form really stacked up from Huntingdon,” O’Brien said.
“It was hard work for her at Sedgefield, but Connor always thought she’d be better in a better run race.
“She jumped and travelled really well. She didn’t pull, she was a bit too keen in her other races, but today was perfect for her and she saw it out very well – we’re over the moon with her.
“She’s very straightforward, very honest, she’s a good ride at home and she’s very easy to do so she’s got loads of potential.”
Springtime Promise is entered for the Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and was cut from 50-1 to 33-1 with Betfair for that race, which has been won for the past two years by winners of the Jane Seymour.
O’Brien added: “I’m delighted for the Keeping The Dream Alive syndicate, we’ll have a look and see what the ground comes up like at Cheltenham and see where we can go next.”
Elsewhere on the card Dan Skelton’s Etalon caught the eye in the Team Forces “Ubique” Handicap Chase, a race he won under Harry Skelton by nine lengths as the 4-6 favourite.
The success is the latest instalment in the gelding’s chasing career, which started with a win on debut at Newbury and continued when he was triumphant in a Warwick novice in January.
Skelton said: “We didn’t really have a hold-up in the autumn, but he was a bit slow to come to hand. He’s got his act together now and was always going to be a chaser and saw it out well today.
“I do think for now he is a two-miler and on balance he’s going to miss Cheltenham and go to Aintree, we will run him in the Grade One novice chase there (Maghull Novices’ Chase).
“We would like to aim high and see if we can create something and with the greatest of respect, if he can’t win a Grade One he will get another chance to run in the Grand Annual in the future.”
The Castel Royal Artillery Gold Cup went the way of Major Will Kellard, who rode Jamie Snowden’s Farceur Du Large to a six-and-a-half-length victory as the 13-8 favourite.
The winning horse was one of a trio in contention over the last fence, where Fil D’Ariane fell and hampered Broken Halo, leaving the grey to gallop home and add this prize to his Grand Military Gold Cup title.
Search For Glory collected his third win of the season when taking the Surehaul Mercedes-Benz Novice Hurdle at Clonmel.
The Gordon Elliott-trained gelding was already a Grade Three winner coming into the race having taken the Singletons Supervalu Stayers Novice Hurdle at Cork in December.
He was not the favourite for this Grade Three, however, and started at 5-4 under Jack Kennedy as Eddie and Patrick Harty’s Harvard Guy was at the head of the market at 8-11 in a field of three.
The early stages of the race were run at a canter and the contest eventually developed into a sprint, with Search For Glory easily able to pull away and triumph by four and a quarter lengths after showing some reluctance when making the running.
“He actually did it well in the end and just didn’t like being in front,” Kennedy said.
“Once he got to the top of the hill he didn’t mind coming back around this way, but going away from the bend had been tricky.
“I wouldn’t even say he is better going left-handed, he just didn’t enjoy making the running.
“It worked out OK as he was always going to pick up and he actually showed more gears today than he ever did.”
Paul Nicholls is relishing the prospect of taking on Cheltenham Gold Cup fancy L’Homme Presse with course regular Pic D’Orhy in the Betfair Ascot Chase.
The nine-year-old Grade One winner won the Noel Novices’ Chase at the Berkshire track in 2021 and was also the beneficiary of Shishkin refusing to start when claiming the 1965 Chase earlier in the season.
Second to a resurgent Shishkin in this Grade One event 12 months ago, Pic D’Orhy will now attempt to deal a blow to the Cheltenham Festival ambitions of not only L’Homme Presse, but also Ahoy Senor, who along with Dan Skelton’s Sail Away makes up the select quartet heading to post.
The champion trainer is full of respect for Venetia Williams’ Gold Cup hopeful and the way he has returned him from a long setback. But Nicholls believes there is still enough in Pic D’Orhy’s favour to be confident of a bold bid.
“It’s a good race with L’Homme Presse in the race and it will be interesting,” said Nicholls.
“He is a good horse and ran very well the other day at Lingfield off the back of a setback and they will be hoping he will carry on forward again. He’s a smart horse.
“However, he did only beat Protektorat and Protektorat couldn’t beat Hitman the other day in the Denman Chase so you could look at the form and think maybe he was flattered a bit at Lingfield.”
He went on: “It was an impressive performance from Venetia to get him back fit and well first time out and he did look very good, so we just have to hope we can find the chink in his armour.
“L’Homme Presse is obviously a smart horse and they are on the way to the Gold Cup. We’re doing a different route, but hopefully Pic D’Orhy will run a good race and hopefully he will run very well.”
Helping fuel Nicholls’ positivity is Pic D’Orhy’s performances this term, in particular his narrow second in the Silviniaco Conti Chase at Kempton, where he bumped into on-song Irish raider Banbridge.
The Ditcheat handler regards that Kempton display as one of his charge’s best-ever performances and he will now head to Ascot bidding to give Nicholls a record fifth win in a race he has won with the likes of Kauto Star and Cyrname in the past.
“It’s a good race and good horses win it and Pic D’Orhy is right up with those,” said Nicholls when comparing Pic D’Orhy to his previous champions.
“It would be nice to win it again, of course it would, and it would set him on his way to Aintree.
“He ran at Kempton sort of 35/36 days ago which is the same as last year and since then everything has gone good and he worked this morning and I was very happy with him.
“He’s produced two good runs (this season), he won at Ascot first time when he probably wasn’t at his best then and I would say it was nearly a career best last time giving nearly 3lb to Banbridge – that was a good run. He’s in good form and always runs to a really consistent level.”
Pic D’Orhy runs in the colours of one of Nicholls’ biggest backers, owner Johnny de la Hay, who as well as enjoying a plethora of proven stars, saw one of his brightest new recruits Teeshan excel on rules debut at Exeter recently.
The wide-margin point winner soared seven-lengths clear of the opposition, with that taking performance enough to see him cut to single-figure odds for the Champion Bumper with most firms, currently as low as 5-1 with Boylesports.
However, Nicholls is yet to commit to the Cheltenham Festival, and although Teeshan is poised to be given an entry for Prestbury Park, his trainer would have no issue with waiting an extra month for Aintree.
He said: “He won nicely, what sort of race it was I don’t know, but he cantered round and won nicely.
“I’ve won two other bumpers there this year season with Quebecois and Joyau Allen and I would argue they were just as impressive as he was.
“He had quite a reputation because he won his Irish point-to-point very well, but he couldn’t have made a better start than what he did the other day and I was very happy with him.”
Nicholls went on: “He will have an entry (for Cheltenham) and we ran Captain Teague in it last year. We will just see how he is.
“He took time to acclimatise and come right from when he came over from Ireland in the autumn and I just want to make sure he’s all right. If he doesn’t go to Cheltenham he will undoubtedly go to Aintree.”
Paul Nicholls praised the generosity of the racing community after the fundraising page set up in memory of Keagan Kirkby reached a figure in excess of £54,000.
Kirkby, 25, a point-to-point rider and popular member of Nicholls’ Ditcheat team, tragically died in an accident while riding at Charing point-to-point in Kent on February 4.
A JustGiving page was set up to help raise funds for Kirkby’s funeral and a memorial in his name, with an initial target of £5,000.
Thanks to the overwhelming support of those inside the racing industry and the wider racing public, the target has been widely exceeded, with whatever funds remain after the funeral set to be donated to charity.
“There is over £54,000 raised now for Keagan, which shows what high esteem he was held in,” said Nicholls.
“It shows how racing can pull together and everybody has supported it from all walks of life and it is just fantastic. It is fantastic what racing has done and it helps us get through what has been a difficult time.
“We can now give him a great send-off and I think his mum’s intention is that any money left over will go to any charities he felt close to.”
One significant donation came from Ditcheat owner Michael Geoghegan, who contributed the prize-money from his horse Fire Flyer’s recent Taunton success to the fund.
Fire Flyer was a horse ridden by Kirkby on a daily basis on the gallops, and the champion trainer pointed to that as a special moment as his team attempt to navigate a difficult time.
“It’s obviously a tragic time, but all the winners help in this situation, I think especially when Fire Flyer won at Taunton,” continued Nicholls.
“Keagan rode that horse every single day and for him to win down there was very poignant. It was a tribute to Keegan, and the whole team were on a high because that horse won for him really. Winners count and it makes life just a little bit easier.”
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