D'Angelo Russell earned the plaudits of coach Darvin Ham after he tied Nick Van Exel's franchise record for 3s in a single season for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Russell went 6-for-10 from the 3-point line in a 136-105 demolition job of the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

The 28-year-old finish with 27 points and 10 assists as the Lakers bounced back from successive defeats.

Russell has now shot 183 3-pointers this season, tying Van Exel's all-time single-season Lakers record, which was set in 1994-95. To get there, Russell had to surpass the late Kobe Bryant, who sunk 180 3s in the 2005-06 campaign.

It left Ham to laud the star guard, with the Lakers coach saying: "He has a green room. Not a green light [to shoot]. A green room.

"His prowess from the 3-point line, you know, it's really, really elite. And we need every bit of it."

Russell added: "It's really cool, honestly, just to know that, to get credit for it.

"It's just really cool. I said I don't want to underdo it, understate it, overdo it. I just feel like it's really cool to just be a part of something like that.

"I think I did something like that in Brooklyn, as well. Just to get credit for your game and what you work through and showcase it every night."

Indeed, Russell set the Nets' record for 3s in a season, with 234 in the 2018-19 campaign.

Russell's teammate Anthony Davis looks forward to a new franchise record being set when the Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.

"He's able to get going and fill up the stat sheet with his scoring, and it's a big thing for him, big thing for us as a team," Davis said Russell.

"Obviously, there's been a lot going on around D-Lo, and just to be able to do that and us embrace him and he sees that, feels the love, that's good for him."

David Menuisier is keen to plunder more cross-Channel prize money with star three-year-old colts Sunway and Devil’s Point this spring.

The former signed off his juvenile campaign with a valuable Group One triumph in the Criterium International over a mile at Saint-Cloud.

Devil’s Point, meanwhile, warmed up for his Futurity second at Doncaster behind Ancient Wisdom by finishing a fair fourth in Group Three company at the same French track.

Both are entered in the Qipco 2000 Guineas and Menuisier insists he would not be scared of taking on City Of Troy at Newmarket, declaring: “He’s only made of flesh and bones like all the rest.”

However, the West Sussex-based handler is currently exploring other options in his native country.

Menuisier said: “Sunway could well start in the Prix Fontainebleau on April 14 at Longchamp, but he will also be entered in the La Force, which is over nine furlongs on April 7.

“That’s because a lot of the big guns are going to meet on the 14th in the Fontainebleau and I always like to think outside of the box.

“So, the La Force could be a good alternative, because I think the horse will stay really well and his main target in the first half of the season will be the Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby).

“It’s early days, but to me that’s his first big target, whether we run in the Poule (d’Essai des Poulains, French 2000 Guineas) before that, we could – I’m still open minded on which way we go.”

Devil’s Point was prominent throughout the Futurity before being outstayed by Ancient Wisdom at Doncaster on heavy going.

On his plans, Menuisier added: “Devil’s Point is likely to run in the Prix Djebel in France at Deauville on April 9, which is a Group Three over seven furlongs and should suit him really well.

“He’s entered in the 2000 Guineas, he’s entered in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains and he’s entered also in the German Guineas, but it will all depend on his first run and I’ll take it from there.

“We’ve been discussing it with the owners for the best part of six months and we are not completely convinced that he stays a mile very well.

“Even in the Futurity, he came to win his race and I thought then he wasn’t really seeing out the trip.

“So, that’s why I want to start over seven first of all and then after that there’s a chance that we might even drop in trip.”

Former World Series champion Chase Utley has promised a “fantastic experience” when Major League Baseball returns to London this summer.

The 2024 MLB season officially gets under way on Wednesday with a two-game series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres in Seoul before the regular season begins on March 28.

This summer, on the weekend of June 8-9, the latest MLB London series will take place when the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies go head-to-head in England’s capital.

London Stadium will host two matches between the sides in what will be the third time the sport has been taken to Britain after previous series in 2019 and last year.

Utley, who helped Philadelphia claim 2008 World Series success, said: “You’ll have the Phillies and Mets, two fantastic teams, two rivals in the same division.

“They’ve been rivals for around like 70 years and you’ll see some of the best players in the world.

“You’ll see fireworks, activities on the field in between innings, live music, you’ll have American-standard baseball food, which consists of hotdogs, nachos and burgers!

“Overall, it’s just a fantastic experience.”

Utley was in Brent Cross last week at The 108, a state-of-the-art dedicated indoor baseball facility, and put England white-ball captain Jos Buttler through his paces before he learned some of the key principles of cricket.

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The sporting crossover occurred due to cricket heading across the pond this summer when the T20 World Cup is hosted in America and West Indies during the same time of the latest MLB London series.

Former second baseman Utley retired in 2018 and splits his time between the United States and his new London home as part of his ambassador role for MLB Europe.

The 45-year-old feels cricket is slowly starting to break through in the USA, adding: “It’s probably as much as baseball penetrates here in the UK, so a bit, yes.

“Here, obviously football, from what I’ve seen in a short amount of time, is the sport that for sure everyone watches and then cricket is second place to that.

“In America, you have American Football and then you have basketball or you have baseball that are kind of bounced back and forth.

“It’s exciting to see that cricket is going to the United States to play because I’ve seen some amateurs playing in the park. You’re starting to see it more and more over the last few years that I was there.”

The next goal for Utley is to actually watch a cricket match live after brushing up his knowledge with Buttler last Wednesday when the meaning of ‘Bazball’ alongside the difference between Test and white-ball cricket was discussed.

“I’ve watched a fair share but I still haven’t seen it in person,” Utley said.

“At some point I need to see it in person. I’ve watched it on TV and it took me a little while, but I imagine it’s the same for watching baseball.

“It takes you a while to understand the nuances, the terminology and actually what is going on in the moment, but once you can wrap your head around it and make some sense, it’s very entertaining.”

New York Mets will play Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB World Tour: London Series 2024 on June 8-9 at London Stadium. Tickets are on sale now at ticketmaster.co.uk/MLB

Emma Raducanu has suffered another injury setback after withdrawing from the Miami Open ahead of her first-round match.

The 21-year-old, who was given a wild card, was set to play China’s Wang Xiyu on Tuesday but has been forced to pull out of the tournament due to a low back injury, the WTA has announced.

It is another blow for Raducanu in her attempts to establish herself as a consistent presence on the WTA Tour.

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The former US Open champion spent the second half of last year recovering from ankle and wrist surgery that saw her sidelined from May, the latest in a long line of injury problems since winning at Flushing Meadows in 2021.

She made her return at the start of this year and showed promising signs by making the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells before losing to Aryna Sabalenka.

Raducanu’s withdrawal in Miami casts doubt over her availability for Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup tie with France on April 12-13.

Emma Raducanu has suffered another injury setback after withdrawing from the Miami Open ahead of her first-round match.

The 21-year-old, who was given a wild card, was set to play China’s Wang Xiyu on Tuesday but has pulled out of the tournament amid reports of a lower back injury.

It is another blow for Raducanu in her attempts to establish herself as a consistent presence on the WTA Tour.

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The former US Open champion spent the second half of last year recovering from ankle and wrist surgery that saw her sidelined from May, the latest in a long line of injury problems since winning at Flushing Meadows in 2021.

She made her return at the start of this year and showed promising signs by making the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells before losing to Aryna Sabalenka.

Raducanu’s withdrawal in Miami casts doubt over her availability for Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup tie with France on April 12-13.

Alex Ovechkin scored twice to reach the 20-goal mark for the 19th time in his career and help the resurgent Washington Capitals earn an important 5-2 victory over the Calgary Flames on Monday.

Ovechkin's 20th and 21st goals of the season, both of which came on power plays in the second period, sparked the Capitals' third straight win. Washington is now 10-4-1 since Feb. 17 and one point ahead of the slumping Detroit Red Wings in the race for the Eastern Conference's final wild-card spot.

Dylan Strome and Tom Wilson each contributed a goal and an assist to the victory, with Strome recording the lone goal of a first period in which Washington goaltender Charlie Lindgren made 12 of his 34 saves.

Ovechkin's goals came 3:18 apart in the second period and pushed the Capitals' lead to 3-0. The future Hall of Famer became the sixth player in NHL history with 19 seasons of 20 or more goals.

Kevin Rooney put Calgary on the board with 9:19 remaining in the second before Hendrix Lapierre restored Washington's three-goal advantage with 5:38 left in the period.

The Flames fought back by recording 13 third-period shots and pulled to within 4-2 when MacKenzie Weegar rocketed the puck past Lindgren 7:13 into the frame.

Lindgren stood tall the rest of the way, however, before Wilson put the game out of reach with an empty-net goal with 2:29 left.

Dustin Wolf stopped 28 of 32 shots for Calgary, which had a two-game winning streak halted. 

Skinner's hat trick helps Sabres rout Kraken

Jeff Skinner recorded a hat trick and helped the Buffalo Sabres to a fast start which carried them to a 6-2 drubbing of the Seattle Kraken.

Skinner, Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch all had goals in the first 5:41 of the game to spark Buffalo's fourth win in its last five outings. The surge has moved the Sabres within four points of a play-off spot in the Eastern Conference.

Thompson and Tuch added assists during Buffalo's early barrage, which came after Jordan Eberle gave Seattle a quick 1–0 lead just 24 seconds into the contest.

Thompson tied the game a mere 25 seconds later, however, and Skinner and Tuch soon followed with goals as the Sabres scored on three of their first four shots to prompt the Kraken to pull goaltender Joey Daccord less than six minutes in.

Seattle got one goal back before the conclusion of the period when Matty Berniers converted a power play, but failed to solve Buffalo's Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen the rest of the way.

Luukkonen stopped 32 shots, including all 18 he faced in the third period.

After Owen Power's goal midway through the second period put Buffalo up 4-2, Skinner fired a shot past Seattle replacement netminder Philipp Grubauer just 42 seconds later.

Skinner completed his first hat trick of the season by beating Grubauer on a rush with 1:59 left to play.

Grubauer finished with 23 saves in Seattle's fifth consecutive loss (0-4-1).

Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, Miles McBride added a career-high 29, and the New York Knicks ran their winning streak to four games with Monday's 119-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

McBride, who entered the contest averaging just 6.5 points per game, buried 6 of 9 attempts from 3-point range and totalled 11 first-quarter points in a game the Knicks never trailed. New York also received a 10-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple-double from Josh Hart to extend their lead on fifth-place Orlando in the Eastern Conference to one game.

The Knicks opened the game on an 18-4 run and led by as many as 15 points in the first half, though Golden State closed out the second quarter on a 12-3 spurt to cut its deficit to 62-56 at the break.

Despite 15 second-half points from Klay Thompson, the Warriors never got closer than four points behind over the final two quarters as the Knicks continued to keep them at arm's length mainly due to the shot-making of Brunson, who recorded 20 points in the second half.

Golden State lost for the fourth time in six games despite 27 points from Stephen Curry and 18 from Thompson, who added a team-high eight assists. Rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis finished 9 of 9 from the field while compiling 19 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Warriors. 

76ers fend off Heat to gain ground in standings

Tyrese Maxey tallied 30 points and 10 assists to lead the way as the Philadelphia 76ers earned an important win by holding off the Miami Heat for a 98-91 victory.

The 76ers' second straight win, coupled with Indiana's loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, moved Philadelphia a half game ahead of the Pacers for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The top six teams in both conferences are guaranteed to avoid the play-in round and are assured of a quarterfinals series.

Kelly Oubre Jr. also posted a double-double for Philadelphia with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Kyle Lowry chipped in 16 points in his first meeting with the Heat since being traded by his former team in January.

The Heat took the court again without injured stars Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro but kept the game close until the Sixers began to pull away over the final seven minutes.

Buddy Hield's 3-pointer with 6:34 left snapped an 85-85 tie and ignited an 8-2 Philadelphia run that Oubre finished with a layup to give his team a 93-87 edge with 2:28 remaining.

The Heat missed nine of their final 10 field goal attempts and had their two-game winning streak snapped when the 76ers made three free throws in the final 18.3 seconds.

Philadelphia was clinging to a 53-51 lead early in the second half before ripping off 15 consecutive points - seven of which came courtesy of Maxey - to go up by double digits. 

Miami responded in the fourth, however, by outscoring the Sixers by a 17-4 margin over a 3 1/2-minute stretch. Terry Rozier had eight points during the run along with a steal that led to Caleb Martin's dunk that tied the game at 85-85 with 6:54 left.

Rozier and Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 20 points each, with Adebayo adding 13 rebounds and six assists and Rozier recording eight rebounds.

Resilient Cavaliers pin key loss on Pacers

The Indiana Pacers were leap-frogged by the 76ers in the standings after being dealt a 108-103 loss by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who received big performances from Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen to overcome the absence of several missing pivotal players.

LeVert compiled 23 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds and Allen also had 23 points along with nine rebounds as Cleveland prevailed despite again playing without All-Star Donovan Mitchell and fellow starters Evan Mobley and Max Strus.

Indiana received 19 points and 12 rebounds from Pascal Siakam but had an off-shooting night as a team, as it connected on just 9 of 38 tries (23.7 per cent) from 3-point range.

Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers' top scorer this season, was held to 14 points on 4-of-14 shooting but did hand out 12 assists.

Indiana did shoot nearly 61 per cent from the field while building a 34-25 lead after one quarter, and was up by 15 points nearing the midway stage of the second before the Cavaliers roared back. 

Cleveland outscored the Pacers by a 22-7 count over the remainder of the first half to tie the game at 54-54 at intermission, and later took a 72-62 advantage in the third quarter behind an 18-6 run.

Indiana rallied in the fourth quarter to knot the score at 103-103 on Haliburton's floater with 2:05 left, but LeVert put the Cavs back ahead with a basket on the ensuing possession. 

The Pacers failed to score the rest of the way, and Isaac Okoro put Cleveland up by two possessions with a layup off a feed from Allen with 26.1 seconds remaining.

The San Francisco Giants and reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell have agreed to a two-year contract worth $62million, multiple media outlets reported Monday.

Snell will reportedly have the ability to opt out of the deal after one season and become a free agent again.

The left-hander won his second career Cy Young last season with the San Diego Padres after going 14-9 with a league-leading 2.25 ERA.

Snell, 31, won the AL Cy Young in 2018 after going 21-5 with a 1.89 ERA for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Singing Snell is the latest move in a busy offseason for the Giants as they try to catch up with their biggest rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers, in the NL West.

Earlier this offseason, the Giants spent over $250million in free agency to acquire South Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, third baseman Matt Chapman, right-hander Jordan Hicks and slugging outfielder Jorge Soler.

In January, San Francisco traded for left-handed starter Robbie Ray, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery and could pitch later in 2024.

In 191 career starts, Snell is 71-55 with a 3.20 ERA and has 1,223 strikeouts in 992.2 innings pitched.

Dame Laura Kenny admitted a lack of hunger to pursue an unprecedented sixth Olympic gold medal contributed to her decision to announce her retirement from cycling at the age of 31.

Kenny, Britain’s most decorated female Olympian, faced an improbable task to reach a fourth Games in Paris this summer having not returned to training after giving birth to her second child.

Realistically, she required an extraordinary performance at next month’s Track Nations Cup in Canada to stand any chance of making the squad, and for Kenny it ultimately came down to a question of priorities.

“Going on to win another gold medal, as much as I would love to do that, it wasn’t giving me the energy I wanted anymore, it just wasn’t,” Kenny told BBC Breakfast.

“I wasn’t thinking, ‘I really want to go on and win one’. I was thinking, ‘I really want to stay at home with the children’.”

Kenny and her husband, Sir Jason Kenny – Britain’s most decorated Olympian – last year welcomed a second son to their family and she said spending time at home was proving increasingly alluring to her.

She added: “I always knew deep down I would know when was the right time. I have had an absolute blast but now is the time for me to hang that bike up.

“It’s been in my head a little while, the sacrifices of leaving the children and your family at home is really quite big and it really is a big decision to make.

“More and more, I was struggling to do that. More people asking me what races was I doing, what training camps was I going on – I didn’t want to go ultimately and that’s what it came down to.

“I knew the minute I was getting those feelings. Once I said to Jase, ‘I don’t think I want to ride a bike anymore’, I started to feel relief.”

Kenny won team pursuit and omnium gold at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games and madison gold at the 2020 Olympics, where she also won a silver medal in the team pursuit.

She is a seven-time world champion and 14-time European champion, won two Commonwealth Games titles and was British National Road Race champion in 2014.

Kenny said the “absolute highlight” of her career was the 2012 Games in London, during which her relationship with Jason also became public.

“I never thought I would go to a home Games, let alone go on to win two gold medals,” she said.

“When I look back, I’m like ‘wow, those two weeks did really change my life’.”

Tributes poured in following Kenny’s announcement, with former Olympic heptathlon champion Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill writing on Instagram: “Laura what an incredible career you have had!

“You are such a legend, always will be and you will continue inspiring! Enjoy this next chapter.”

Sprint great Mark Cavendish described Kenny as an “absolute legend”, while British Olympic Association chairman Sir Hugh Robertson wrote: “Dame Laura Kenny has been our greatest ever female Olympian and a huge part of cycling and Team GB’s success at London, Rio and Tokyo.

“However, as well as being an outstanding athlete, she has also been a wonderful personality. We will all miss her enormously and wish her, and her family, all the very best for the future.”

Kenny, made a Dame in the 2021 New Year’s Honours, hopes to be at this summer’s Paris Olympics “in some capacity” and wants to stay involved with the GB cycling team.

“There’s nothing set in stone but there are things I’m so interested in doing,” she added.

“Something to help the younger generation, whether that could be some kind of academy.

“I could never be a coach because that’s just too much pressure for me, but maybe something in the background that would help the youngsters have the opportunities I had.”

Great Britain team performance director Stephen Park paid tribute to Kenny, saying: “Laura hangs up her wheels as not just one of the sport’s greatest riders, but as one of the greatest sporting talents our country has ever produced.”

Park added: “Just as impressive, however, is the impact which Laura has had on her fellow riders on the GB cycling team and the next generation of Olympic hopefuls.

“She has been a beacon of inspiration for so many, young and old, and I’m sure that the entire British cycling community will join me in wishing her the very best in the next chapter of her life.”

Fozzy Stack’s Chazzesmee justified his status as the favourite to land the Nua Healthcare Irish Lincolnshire at the Curragh.

The six-year-old was second over course and distance when last seen in July and also has heavy ground form from a previous Naas success.

He is lightly raced with only nine runs to his name due to a previous injury and came into the race off the back of a 260-day break, though that proved no hindrance to him as he made his seasonal debut.

Under Joey Sheridan he travelled in the latter half of the field and began to make progress in the final two furlongs, joining the front runners in the last half furlong and eventually prevailing by a length on the line.

The run could now lead him to the Lincoln at Doncaster on Saturday should he come out of it well, and he has been halved from 20-1 to 10-1 for the contest with Paddy Power.

Stack said: “He did it well off a lay-off. We’ll see how he is during the week and he’s in the English Lincoln on Saturday. A 5lb penalty would get him into it.

“He’s never been short of ability, and we ironed out a few kinks in him.

“We brought him over to Saratoga last year and he got a stone bruise and couldn’t run on the day.

“Then when he was coming back he got stuck in some airport in Holland or Belgium for four days as a vet was giving out about some paperwork.

“We just ran out of time to run him. He broke his pelvis in Dundalk as a three-year-old so that’s why he was off for a year.”

Aidan O’Brien has cast serious doubt on leading Classic contender Opera Singer’s participation in the Qipco 1000 Guineas.

The daughter of Justify announced herself as a major player for the first fillies’ Classic of the campaign when following up a wide-margin victory in a Curragh Group Three with a devastating display at ParisLongchamp in the Prix Marcel Boussac, storming to a five-length success.

However, speaking at the Curragh on Monday, the master of Ballydoyle explained she may debut for the season on home soil rather than Newmarket having met with a setback.

“Opera Singer is a little bit behind them (the colts) and might not make the English Guineas,” he told Racing TV.

“She had a little setback and had to have two weeks easy. When you have two weeks easy, it is just difficult enough to get to the English Guineas.

“It’s possible but more unlikely than likely and she could end up starting here in the Curragh rather than starting in England. We won’t force her, she’s a beautiful big filly and everyone’s very happy with her.

“She had a couple of easy weeks and when that happens you have to be wary of it.”

In contrast, it appears all systems go for the odds-on Qipco 2000 Guineas favourite City Of Troy who has been pleasing his handler in the early days of his three-year-old season.

O’Brien continued: “Everything has gone very well with him. He’s matured lovely, he’s moving well, he’s going through all his work very well – he’s floating through the work, that he’s doing.

“Even though our ground is bad, he’s finding it very easy, so he’s very exciting. It’s day by day at the moment but we couldn’t be happier with him at the moment.”

Although City Of Troy often left people astonished with the manner of his victories during his flawless two-year-old campaign, it was dual-Derby hero Auguste Rodin who was undoubtedly Ballydoyle’s top performer in 2023.

He signed off his Classic season with a scintillating success at the Breeders’ Cup in Santa Anita and is close to his eagerly-awaited return, where the son of Deep Impact will seek further international riches in the Dubai Sheema Classic.

“He’ll work this week and then he’ll go off to Dubai,” said O’Brien.

“He’s in a lovely place. He was in Dundalk a few weeks ago and everything went lovely, so we couldn’t be happier with him and we’re looking forward to it.

“It’s a big week for him before he travels so hopefully everything goes well.”

O’Brien has also left the door open for Seamie Heffernan after the Ballydoyle stalwart left his full-time role with the powerhouse operation.

The 51-year-old has been part of the Ballydoyle furniture for nearly 30 years and a vital member of O’Brien’s team, winning the Derby aboard Anthony Van Dyk in 2019 and partnering the winner of the Irish equivalent on four occasions for his long-time boss.

But Heffernan has revealed he has chosen to ride freelance this season, with O’Brien fully understanding of the decision.

He said: “I was reading in the papers that Seamus has been riding for us for 25 to 30 years and at the start of every year I never know when Seamus is coming back.

“Obviously himself and Rochelle had a chat and he was always with us six mornings a week and they obviously felt he would like to give the outside world a bit of a chance.

“There are a lot of other people he has ridden for and lots of other people he will now be able to ride for and we totally appreciate it and understand that and respect it in every way. I think Seamus is 51 or 52 now and if he is going to do it now is the time to do it and there will be plenty of times he can fall in for us – he’s got plenty of experience and is a great fella.

“I totally understand it 100 per cent and everyone needs to do what they think is right. There is no point riding for us every day and their heart being somewhere else or thinking he should be somewhere else.

“He has to try things and I definitely couldn’t say it will be the wrong thing. Seamus will ride a lot of good horses, for different people in good races, he has plenty of experience and hopefully there will be plenty of times he will ride for us again as well.”

Fozzy Stack’s Chazzesmee justified his status as the favourite to land the Nua Healthcare Irish Lincolnshire at the Curragh.

The six-year-old was second over course and distance when last seen in July and also has heavy ground form from a previous Naas success.

He is lightly raced with only nine runs to his name due to a previous injury and came into the race off the back of a 260-day break, though that proved no hindrance to him as he made his seasonal debut.

Under Joey Sheridan he travelled in the latter half of the field and began to make progress in the final two furlongs, joining the front runners in the last half furlong and eventually prevailing by a length on the line.

The run could now lead him to the Lincoln at Doncaster on Saturday should he come out of it well, and he has been halved from 20-1 to 10-1 for the contest with Paddy Power.

Stack said: “He did it well off a lay-off. We’ll see how he is during the week and he’s in the English Lincoln on Saturday. A 5lb penalty would get him into it.

“He’s never been short of ability, and we ironed out a few kinks in him.

“We brought him over to Saratoga last year and he got a stone bruise and couldn’t run on the day.

“Then when he was coming back he got stuck in some airport in Holland or Belgium for four days as a vet was giving out about some paperwork.

“We just ran out of time to run him. He broke his pelvis in Dundalk as a three-year-old so that’s why he was off for a year.”

Guineas hope Brilliant put her best foot forward to take the Lodge Park Stud Irish EBF Park Express Stakes on her seasonal debut at the Curragh.

Aidan O’Brien’s three-year-old was placed at both Listed and Group Three level last term though only came away from her juvenile season with one win to her name in nine starts.

Under Declan McDonogh she started at 7-2 for her first run of this year and on heavy ground she travelled well before taking up the lead at the furlong pole.

From there she had to hold off a rival on either side but did so to claim a half-length success at Group Three level and book her place in the Guineas either on home turf or at Newmarket.

O’Brien said of the run: “I’m delighted with her and he gave her a very good ride.

“I think she probably had the best form in the race and, on her first run of the year, I’m delighted with her.

“She’d been working nicely and is a hardy filly. It’s a big call for three-year-olds against older horses on that ground at this time of the year.

“She’ll step up and a mile is good for her. That will be her trial and she’ll go into one of the Guineas now after that. She might end up going to Newmarket and back here.

“She doesn’t really want that ground but she went in it. A mile is probably her trip and she’s a sister to Alcohol Free.”