Katchit's credentials as the principal British hope for landing the Champion Hurdle in March will face an acid test at Newcastle on Saturday when the Triumph winner is set to tackle a quartet of Grade One winning Irish horses in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle, including Edward O'Grady's highly-rated Clopf.
Along with Al Eile and the Noel Meade pair of Harchibald and Jazz Messenger, Clopf will form a significant Irish attack although unlike Katchit's team, O'Grady believes his horse's acid test will come after the weekend.
The Punchestown champion novice winner remains as low as 16 to 1 in some lists for the Cheltenham festival despite a comparatively lacklustre start to the season that hasn't surprised his experienced trainer at all.
"He got very gross on his rest when he was recovering from a stress fracture to his shoulder but in a normal year he would have been ready much earlier. However, we then got the driest autumn on record which slowed us right down and as a result I've given him time and not gone against the grain, so to speak," the Co Tipperary-based trainer said yesterday.
"He is in very good fettle right now but I do think there will be further improvement in him after Saturday. Having said that I think, and certainly hope, he will run very well. Andrew McNamara will ride," he added.
Tony Dobbin will team up with Al Eile in the Fighting Fifth due to the lengthy suspension of regular rider Timmy Murphy and race sharpness won't be an issue for John Queally's star after an admirable campaign on the flat.
"He had a good summer without winning and we were very pleased with his run in the Cesarewitch when he was drawn in another county in stall one and then got a rough passage. He also ran an equally good race in the Northumberland Plate," said Queally yesterday.
"I think he will give a huge account of himself. He's got a good old swagger about him," he added. "Katchit is a bonny little horse and Harchibald ran a good race on the all-weather last time and Noel is bullish enough about him. Blythe Knight must have a big chance too."
Andrew McNamara will also be on board Sky's The Limit when the former Coral Cup attempts to complete a possible O'Grady Grade One double in Sunday's Ballymore Properties Drinmore Chase at Fairyhouse's winter festival. "He's working well and won well at Cork even though I thought the opposition was slightly over-rated on the day and we were getting 6lb," O'Grady reported.
"Last season was unusual for him in that he disimproved in the sort of increments you would normally expect him to improve. We never found a reason, although I suppose he did have a harder race than ideal when he ran against Schindlers Hunt."
The former champion two mile chaser Newmill will take his chance in Sunday's Hatton's Grace Hurdle at Fairyhouse and will then be aimed at the King George VI Chase at Kempton on St Stephen's Day.
"It does look like he will run in the Hatton's Grace - ground permitting," his trainer John Murphy said yesterday.
"He ran a good race in the Morgiana on ground that he would hate but we had to get a run into him. I'm very happy with him at this stage of the season and these races have a habit of cutting up and providing good prizemoney."
Murphy added: "Plan A this season is the King George. Hopefully we can get him to settle and get the trip. He's got a Gold Cup winner, The Dikler, in his pedigree so I'm hopeful he will get three miles. If he does, we'll probably keep him at it."
Meanwhile, the Turf Club's senior medical officer, Dr Walter Halley, is stepping down on New Year's Eve and the post will be filled by Dr Adrian McGoldrick.
McGoldrick has been the medical officer at the Curragh since 1985 and has also been the Curragh's training ground doctor for the last seven years. He is also the joint secretary of the Racecourse Medical Officers Association as well as being a co-ordinator on the Turf Club's research programme on jockeys' lifestyles since 2004.
