Gavin Cromwell expects the step up in trip to be in Inothewayurthinkin’s favour in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown, but he has warned that the ground needs to be soft enough for him to run.
An easy winner at the Cheltenham Festival in March when turning the Kim Muir into something of a procession, he then handled a rise to Grade One company with aplomb at Aintree.
Inothewayurthinkin began this campaign over two and a half miles in the John Durkan but finished well beaten behind Fact To File and is on course to meet the same rival over Christmas, although Cromwell has warned that quick ground would rule him out.
“The plan is to run in the Savills. I thought he ran okay in Punchestown, he jumped really well. When they turned in, the front ones quickened away from him but he stayed going all the way to the line,” said Cromwell.
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“He got a little bit tired but two and a half miles would be his minimum and the step up to three miles will be a big help.
“The ground is a concern with the forecast. He’ll definitely want an ease in it and he potentially might not run.”
In an update on Tuesday, clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer described the chase course as good to yielding, yielding in places.
Cromwell expects to be busy over the four-day meeting and went on to pick out some of his more noteworthy runners on a press morning at his yard.
“Perceval Legallois is in the Paddy Power,” said the trainer. “He’s been a very frustrating horse. He’s gone up to a mark that hopefully he could win one of those big ones.
“He needs everything to fall his way. He’s had plenty of hard luck stories along the way and he’s crept up the handicap without winning, but hopefully he’ll have his day. If the ground is on the better side, it won’t be a problem to him.
“If You Let Me is a horse that is starting to go the right way and will run in the two-mile handicap. He’d love a bit of nice ground and we’re happy with him.
“Visionairian will go for the Grade One [Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase]. Obviously, on ratings he’s a little bit behind but hopefully he’d have a place chance.”
Cromwell did highlight the claims of Hello Neighbour, who is now going juvenile hurdling after being unbeaten in two runs on the Flat.
“Hello Neighbour is an interesting three-year-old that we are excited about,” he said. “He will have an entry in the three-year-old maiden hurdle and he’ll also have an entry in the Grade Two and we’ll have a look and see.
“Often, the maiden can nearly be as good as the Grade Two. I suppose he’s the one we’re most looking forward to at Christmas, even though he’s never run before.”
Meanwhile, Daryl Jacob has been given the green light by the medics to resume the final season of his career at Exeter on Thursday.
Having missed several months when breaking his collarbone in March, the Wexford jockey returned in early October and went on to ride his 1,000th winner at the start of last month.
Unfortunately, just days later, he suffered another collarbone injury in a freak accident when schooling at Henry de Bromhead’s yard in Ireland.
He has now, though, been passed fit to return as the curtain begins to fall on his career at the end of the campaign.
Jacob rides Issam for Tom Symonds in the Southwest Rail Solutions Handicap Hurdle.
“I’m delighted to be returning to action at Exeter on Thursday,” Jacob told www.sportinglife.com. “When I first suffered my broken collarbone, I was determined to try and get back into action before Christmas and it’s a big relief to receive the all-clear having passed the medical tests on Tuesday.
“I’d like to thank Dr Jerry Hill and Angus Robertson, my surgeon, plus the team at Oaksey House for all the tireless hours of rehab they put into me.
“Obviously, it was frustrating to spend another spell on the sidelines but I’m just focusing on the season ahead now and can’t wait to get back into the swing of things.
“I have some lovely rides to look forward to on both sides of the Irish Sea over the festive period and I can’t wait to be back among the winners, hopefully starting with Issam at Exeter.
“There’s so much good racing coming up thick and fast in the next few days, so the timing of the return is perfect. I just hope for a bit of luck and a clear run through to the end of the campaign now.”
