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Racing News |
Boylesports.com Gold Cup On Agenda For Kill Devil Hill
23/11/06
Irish trainer Paul Nolan revealed today that the £150,000 Boylesports.com Gold Cup is under consideration for Grade One winning chaser Kill Devil Hill.
The prestigious two mile, five furlong handicap chase takes place on day two of Cheltenham's mouth-watering Boylesports International, Saturday, December 9.
The Boylesports.com Gold Cup has received a £40,000 prize money
boost thanks to the generous support of Boylesports, Ireland's fastest
growing independent bookmaker.
Kill Devil Hill won the Grade One Pierse Group Drinmore Novice Chase
at Fairyhouse in December, 2005, and made a pleasing return to action
this term when a short-head second to last season's Boylesports.com Gold
Cup victor Sir Oj in the Grade Two Clonmel Oil Chase over two and a half
miles at Clonmel on November 16.
The six-year-old runs under the same Gigginstown House Stud ownership
as totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup hero War Of Attrition, who is trained
by Mouse Morris.
Nolan revealed today: "The Boylesports.com Gold Cup is under consideration. At the moment, we're looking at where War Of Attrition goes. Mouse may run him in the John Durkan Memorial Chase and we'll enter Kill Devil Hill in that too.
"We'll know where we go when Mouse makes his mind up whether he
goes for the John Durkan - and I think he'll probably go for that - so
at this stage the Boylespots.com Gold Cup is an option.
"Chasing this year is very competitive. There are so many good
horses both in Ireland and England so we'll be looking to try to win
a good race with him. Hopefully, we'll pick the right one and he'll get
his lucky day.
"He ran a cracker at Clonmel and came out of the race very well. Hopefully, we can keep him healthy and go one better next time."
Kill Devil Hill took high rank among Ireland's novice chasers last term
following his Pierse Group Drinmore Novice Chase triumph but failed to
fire in three subsequent outings last season, prior to his excellent
Clonmel effort.
Nolan explained: "He's only six years of age and is basically a big baby. He's a very big horse - going on for 17 hands - and last year he just went downhill after he won the Pierse Group Drinmore Novice Chase.
He ran respectably but didn't recapture his Drinmore form at all. He wouldn't scope 100 per cent clean, then he would be fine and then he'd go wrong on us. His immune system wasn't up to scratch and we're hoping this year that he'll be stronger and healthier, and will be able to fight these bugs a bit better."
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The superb seven-race card on Saturday, December 9 also features the £200,000
Boylesports.com
International over two miles and a furlong, which was
won last year by the brilliant Noel Meade-trained Harchibald, who could
return this year, with Greatwood Hurdle victor Detroit City set to be
one of his top-class rivals.
The Grade Two Boylesports.com International is one of the season's premier
races for Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle candidates. Boylesports has transformed
the prize money and is also offering a huge £200,000 bonus (£180,000
to the owner, £10,000 to the trainer & £10,000 to the
yard's stable staff) to any horse that can win the Boylesports.com International
and the Smurfit Kappa Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham on March 13.
The feature race of the high-quality seven-race programme on Friday,
December 8, is the Boylepoker.com
Chase over three miles, one and a half
furlongs, which carries tremendous doubled prize money of £100,000.
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The race was won last year by the Paul Nicholls-trained Royal Auclair,
runner-up in the 2005 John Smith's Grand National.
The Boylesports International stages two days of fantastic racing on Friday, December 8, and Saturday, December 9. All races will take place on Cheltenham's New Course, which has not been used since May.
