RACING:PUNCHESTOWN authorities appear resigned to losing Sunday's Grade One John Durkan Memorial Chase card to the weather, and plans are already in place to reschedule the card to the following Thursday.

A foot-and-a-half of snow covered the Co Kildare course yesterday, and manager Richie Galway said: “We would have to be very pessimistic. We could make a decision to reschedule tomorrow and if we do we will move to Thursday.”

He added: “I’ve never seen snow like it here. We could set up a ski-slope.”

A number of cross-sea trained horses had been targeting the Durkan, especially the former winner The Listener and Paul Nicholls’ The Nightingale. It remains to be seen if they will still travel if the meeting is moved to next week.

Navan could also make a call today about their card scheduled for Saturday after up to five inches of snow fell on Tuesday night.

“The track got hammered with snow and between four and five inches settled,” said a spokesman.