Jane Mangan’s William Hill Blog: The Banks are Coko Beach’s Destiny

We’ve already seen some top class racing at the Punchestown Festival, and Day Three promises much of the same.

The Grade One Barberstown Castle Novice Chase (5.25pm) has only four runners, which is a disappointing quantity, but the quality is there with the first and third home in the Arkle; Gaelic Warrior and Il Etait Temps, who later won at Aintree. I think this is a race where, if you want to play it, you play it an exacta; Gaelic Warrior to beat Il Etait Temps, Hercule De Seuil and Mount Frisco in that order. Gaelic Warrior is by far and way the best two-mile chaser in the novice division this year and he’s hugely exciting for next term, so I expect him to be dominant in this race.

The Champion Stayers Hurdle (6.00pm) is a race that is going to be very important for Jack Kennedy because it is his best chance of winning a Grade One this week on Teahupoo. He went to Cheltenham with very lofty expectations on his shoulders and he didn’t disappoint. I think he can win this and confirm that he is the Champion of the stayers at the moment, and I think he can beat Buddy One, who ran a huge race at Aintree and could come out second best here. Teahupoo, though, is – in my opinion – the best staying hurdler around this season.

The 6.35pm is a very open race, but I like the recent Fairyhouse winner Captain Cody for Willie Mullins and Paul Townend. I think he’s a horse who’s just short of Grade One level and his mark of 138 is extremely workable, given how well he won at Fairyhouse in March, clearing away from the field by over six lengths.

While it’s usually a minefield and not one I tend to be interested in, the La Touche Cross Country Chase (4.50pm), this year I think Coko Beach has really adapted to this discipline extremely well and will take an awful lot of beating here, even though he has to shoulder 12st 7lbs. Last time over the banks here in February, he showed he has a real appetite for this game and Jack Kennedy said afterwards it was one of the greatest thrills he’s had riding a racehorse. I think Coko Beach sets the standard.

It’s interesting that Blood Destiny is in the 4.15pm handicap chase after being touted as a possible Grade One candidate in the WillowWarm at Fairyhouse, where Willie Mullins thought he would be very hard to beat. He remains on a mark of 150, so he has plenty of weight to carry, but I think this race could be made for him because he’s no longer against Grade One horses and these are much calmer waters. He’s not far off running at Grade One level, yet he’s running in a handicap, and that’ll be good enough for me here.