Space Trucker booked his ticket for Punchestown and Winter Garden sauntered home from Royal Signature in the Grade Three Hurdle but Tom Taaffe will remember the last day of the 1999 Easter festival better than anyone after scoring his first ever treble as a trainer.
The 233 to 1 treble, started with Dazzling Guest who thrived on the better ground to easily win the Beginners Chase, was added to when Pinkpinkfizz took advantage of Oneofourown's last fence exit in the handicap chase and ended with promise for the future when Champagne Native justified favouritism in the bumper.
"I love this horse and I think he could be a good one," said Taaffe after Champagne Native got home by half a length under a cool ride from 23-year-old Clane rider Jeremy Cash who was scoring just his second winner.
Jason Titley, who reportedly could come in for the ride on Suny Bay in the Grand National if Graham Bradley doesn't regain fitness in time, was on board Taaffe's other winners and shone particularly on Pinkpinkfizz.
Admittedly Oneofourown looked to have his measure when unseating Kieran Gaule at the last but Titley's efforts on the winner deserved to be rewarded.
"That was a brilliant ride," said Taaffe. "This is a character of a horse who needs a lot of pushing but he had his share of luck too."
Paul Hourigan had a much less happy experience in the race when taking a heavy fall off Chatterbuck and faces up to four weeks on the sidelines with a dislocated right shoulder.
Ironically Hourigan only came in for the Chatterbuck ride after the horse's original partner, Tom Treacy, was forced to cry off after a bad fall from Legal Storm in the Beginners Chase. Treacy was left with a fractured left shoulder blade which could keep him out of action for three weeks.
Another jockey in the wars was Ruby Walsh who was shaken from a fall from Kings Return and missed out on a winner with SiteLeader who easily took the Mares Championship Final under Charlie Swan.
"Charlie says this could go right to the top, maybe even the Stayers' Hurdle, and he is a great man to go by," said Site-Leader's trainer Paul Nolan. "She will go to Punchestown but only if everything is OK because she is worth minding."
Space Trucker will also go to Punchestown and possibly attempt an ambitious double in the BMW Chase and the Shell Champion Hurdle after getting up to beat Manhattan Castle in the Oliver Freany & Co Dan Moore Handicap Chase.
"They didn't go quickly enough for him today and he is happier on the fast going. He could run in both races at Punchestown because he didn't over-exert himself there!" said trainer Jessica Harrington.
Another rider on the double was Paul Carberry who won the opener on Strong Run and then had an armchair ride on Winter Garden who overcame rather slow jumping to win easily.
Meanwhile, the Cheltenham winner Deejaydee had to be put down yesterday morning after incurring a fractured knee at Fairyhouse on Monday.
The Michael Hourigan-trained gelding was a brave winner of the four mile National Hunt Chase at the festival and Hourigan said: "It's a terrible shame because he was a horse you could do anything with."
Another fatality from Fairyhouse was the Noel Meade-trained Walk On Mix who fractured a pedal bone when racing at the Meath track on Tuesday.
