Slip Of The Tongue

Slip Of The Tongue battled on well to win the listed two-mile novices’ hurdle at Punchestown on Sunday, and there is every reason to believe that he can step forward again from this. Settled back in the field early on by Mark Walsh, fifth of the six runners, Padraig Roche’s horse made ground up on the outside of Largy Debut when Deploy The Getaway moved on in front, up on the outside of Au Fleuron. He was a little slow over the third last flight but, when his rider gave him a squeeze after that, he made his ground quite quickly to move in behind the front two. He moved up on the outside of Au Fleuron and into second place behind Deploy The Getaway, and he challenged on the far side of the leader on the run to the final flight, where he led. But he got in tight to the obstacle and jumped to his left, with his rider doing well to remain on board and to get Slip Of The Tongue going again. Deploy The Getaway rallied too, and it looked like he might go past, but Slip Of The Tongue picked up again when his rival got close, and he was always holding him on the run to the line.

A 33/1 winner of his maiden hurdle on his racecourse debut at Tipperary last May, JP McManus’ horse finished a close-up second behind the well-regarded Saint Felicien at Gowran Park in November, and he only finished six lengths behind Teahupoo and Quilixios in the Grade 2 four-year-olds’ hurdle at Limerick over Christmas. This was a nice step forward from that, and it is a performance on which he should be able to build now. He is out of a half-sister to top two-mile chaser Direct Route, Tingle Creek Chase winner and Champion Chase runner-up and dual Melling Chase winner, and to top two-mile novice hurdler Joe Mac, and he should improve as he introduces more sharpness to his jumping, or he could go up in trip. Either way, he is only five and he has raced just four times over hurdles so far, so he will be of interest wherever he goes next.
Punchestown, 13^th February 2022