Uncertainty about riding arrangements for this bright young star of Croom surfaced last month when the Edward O’Grady-trained Catch Me thrust himself into the Champion Hurdle picture with a smooth victory in the Red Mills Trial at Gowran Park.  As O’Grady’s first-season stable jockey, McNamara could have been claimed to ride Catch Me at the festival but has been allowed instead to take the mount of Sizing Europe.

At the packed Cheltenham Preview Night at the Dunraven Arms Hotel in Adare (in aid of the Injured Jockeys Fund), leading pilot David Casey gave Henry de Bromhead’s star the thumbs up to deliver the goods.  “He has a serious, serious engine and is certainly the one they all have to beat,” Casey stated.  “In my view, he is unquestionably the one to be on in the Champion Hurdle.”

Jonjo O’Neill runs Straw Bear, in the colours of JP McManus, in the day one highlight and represents decent each-way value at a general 25/1.  Also in there is champion Sublimity and the exceptionally useful Osana, not to mention Noel Meade’s Harchibald.

Limerick punters will be hoping the JP McManus-owned Captain Cee Bee can oblige in the opening Anglo Irish Supreme Novices Hurdle.

The general view of the panelists in Adare, however, was that he needs good ground to triumph.   “He hasn’t done anything wrong, but it’s obvious that he needs better ground and only time will tell on that front,” commented Casey.  “Here at home, the ground has dried out immensely, as was evident at Leopardstown today (Sunday).”

“There’s around 29 to 30 milimetres of rain forecast for the Cheltenham area between now and the festival,” Killarney trainer Tom Cooper informed attendees.  “I reckon the ground will be on the soft side of good, which is good genuine ground in my opinion.”