The Acropolis and Thunder Eclipse are the two runners which catch the eye in this maiden contest, with the latter the one who should be taken to prevail. Thunder Eclipse finished ahead of The Acropolis on their latest appearance, crossing the line second of nine at the Curragh. If he wasn't short for room in the closing stages of that race, he may not be a maiden now. Further improvement can be expected from this Holy Roman Emperor colt on the third start of his career.
Provocateuse came close to her opening win last season in all three of her runs. She was a little disappointing on her first start of 2021 at Navan where she did not seem to like the heavy ground. Conditions won't be anywhere near as testing this time for Jessica Harrington's runner and based on what she showed last season as a two-year-old, she is very capable, especially over this extended 6f trip. Even Flow is the obvious danger but she is exposed now.
After three disappointing appearances earlier in the year, Tall Story was much better on his handicap debut at Roscommon (7f), finishing third of 12 runners. He hit the frame despite finding trouble in that race on more than one occasion. The three-year-old has gone up 3lb for that run but he joins this field right at the bottom of the weights. Trainer Joe Murphy is in excellent form at the moment and it would be no surprise if this horse gave the Fethard yard another success.
This is quite a drop down in class for Emporio who featured in the Group One Irish 2000 Guineas on his last appearance. He was a big outsider for that race at the Curragh but he did not disgrace himself. He finished fifth of 11, ahead of the likes of Wembley, La Barrosa and Monaasib. This son of Zoffany is a well-bred horse and he will be expected to break his maiden this time. The opposition looks quite weak to Donnacha O'Brien's colt so he should claim this race in easy fashion.
Listowel’s fixtures may be split into just two festivals, but what they lack in quantity, they make up in quality.
The venue’s seven day Harvest Festival features competitive action both on the flat and over jumps, with the attendance of the meeting beaten only by the Galway Festival in Ireland. The Kerry Grand National is the highlight of the week-long festival, with future Aintree Grand National winners occasionally making an appearance.
