Big guns of Irish racing help secure Cheltenham ‘Greenwash’

Racing doesn't lend itself easily to flag-waving but with Irish-trained horses having beaten their home counterparts by a stunning 19-9 winner tally, talk of a St Patrick's Day 'Greenwash' was perhaps inevitable after Ireland's most successful ever Cheltenham festival.

The previous day, Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary had dismissed the Anglo-Irish element as a “f**ing load of nonsense.” And from an ownership point of view it’s hard to argue with the view that a winner is a winner wherever it’s trained.

But it’s easier to be dismissive when surfing success and if Irish racing is often quick to wrap the flag around itself then it’s just as easy to picture some serious navel-gazing occurring across the Irish Sea on the back of this unprecedented level of success for the visitors.

It took a failed dope test six months after the event to eventually bring the Irish tally in 2016 to 15.

Sizing John emerges from Douvan shadow to bask in Cheltenham’s golden glow

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Sizing John completes dream Gold Cup debut for Jessica Harrington

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Arctic Fire and Penhill help Willie Mullins make it a super six

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Defi Du Seuil strikes back for Britain on St Patrick’s Day

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Perhaps their first focus will be on the reality of top talent being concentrated among a powerful clique of owners and trainers, the evidence of which was stamped all over Friday’s final day haul of five winners.

As well as her Gold Cup hero Sizing John, Jessica Harrington also won the Grand Annual with Rock The World. Willie Mullins brought his tally for the week to six with Penhill in the Albert Bartlett and the topweight Arctic Fire's remarkable County Hurdle success, his first run in 14 months.

O’Leary wound up the week with four winners, enough to land the inaugural Leading Owner award, after the 12-1 Champagne Classic – “probably the worst horse I own!” – stayed on to win the Martin Pipe Conditional Handicap Hurdle.

That was a sixth victory for Gordon Elliott who edged out his great rival Mullins on placed efforts to become the festival's Leading Trainer for the first time. Ruby Walsh was top jockey for the 11th time with Thursday's historic four-timer.

If winter months in Ireland are often filled with grumbling about how many others are left with the crumbs from the elite’s table then Cheltenham has become the pay-off, although never so overwhelmingly as this. And sentiment can still arise too.

Elliott was delighted to seal his award in the race named after his former mentor, Pipe, and said: “If I couldn’t win the Gold Cup this was the race I most wanted to win. I would have been happy with one winner this week. Six is unbelievable.”

Especially perhaps since his best fancied hope, Death Duty, was well beaten by the time he came down at the last in the Albert Bartlett.

The favourite had been hampered by eventual runner-up Monalee at the second flight but the 16-1 winner Penhill had come widest of all at the same point and still managed to come through to win in some style.

He completed a quick 356-1 double for Paul Townend whose job as No 2 jockey to Ruby Walsh at the Mullins yard also paid off in the preceding County Hurdle aboard Arctic Fire.

The Grade One winner had topweight and hadn’t run since chasing home Faugheen in the 2016 Irish Champion Hurdle. However he had been dropped in the ratings by the under fire BHA handicapper and secured a dream run up the rail to win by a neck .

“Even though he was topweight the handicapper probably gave him a fighting chance putting him 6lbs below his top rating,” Mullins said.

Mullins is thinking Nashville in the summer with Thursday’s Stayers’ Hurdle hero Nichols Canyon and he is pondering even further afield and November’s Melbourne Cup for Penhill.

“Ascot and then maybe Australia,” he said.

CHELTENHAM – ALL THE WEEK'S WINNERS
(Irish-trained in bold)

TUESDAY
Supreme Novices' Hurdle: Labaik (25-1) G Elliott, J Kennedy
Arkle Challenge Trophy: Altior (1-4 favourite) N J Henderson, N de Boinville
Ultima Handicap Chase: Un Temps Pour Tout (9-1) D Pipe, T Scudamore
Champion Hurdle: Buveur D'Air (5-1) N J Henderson, N Fehily
OLBG Mares' Hurdle: Apple's Jade (7-2) G Elliott, B J Cooper
National Hunt Chase: Tiger Roll (16-1) G Elliott, Ms L O'Neill
Close Brothers Novices' Handicap Chase: Tully East (8-1) A Fleming, D O'Regan

WEDNESDAY
Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle: Willoughby Court (14-1) B Pauling, D Bass
RSA Chase: Might Bite (7-2 favourite) N J Henderson, N de Boinville
Coral Cup: Supasundae (16-1) Jessica Harrington, R Power
Queen Mother Champion Chase: Special Tiara (11-1) H de Bromhead, N Fehily
Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase: Cause Of Causes (4-1) G Elliott, Mr J J Codd
Fred Winter Juvenile Handicap Hurdle: Flying Tiger (33-1) R Johnson, N Williams
Weatherbys Champion Bumper: Fayonagh (7-1) G Elliott, Mr J J Codd

THURSDAY
JLT Novices' Chase: Yorkhill (6-4 favourite) W P Mullins, R Walsh
Pertemps Network Final: Presenting Percy (11-1) P Kelly, D N Russell
Ryanair Chase: Un De Sceaux (7-4 favourite) W P Mullins, R Walsh
Sun Bets Stayers' Hurdle: Nichols Canyon (10-1 favourite) W P Mullins, R Walsh
Brown Advisory & Merriebelle Stable Plate:Road To Respect (14-1) N Meade, B J Cooper
Trull House Stud Mares' Novices' Hurdle: Let's Dance (11-8 favourite) W P Mullins, R Walsh
Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir: Domesday Book (40-1) S Edmunds, Miss G Andrews

FRIDAY
Triumph Hurdle: Defi Du Seuil (5-2 favourite) P Hobbs, R Johnson
County Hurdle: Arctic Fire (20-1) W P Mullins, P Townend
Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle: Penhill (16-1) W P Mullins, P Townend
Gold Cup: Sizing John (7-1) Jessica Harrington, R Power
Foxhunter Chase: Pacha Du Polder (16-1) P F Nicholls, Miss B Frost
Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys' Handicap Hurdle: Champagne Classic (12-1) G Elliott, JJ Slevin
Grand Annual: Rock The World (10-1) Jessica Harrington, R Power