Patrick Mullins is hoping the Cloustton team are going to click into top gear across the Christmas period.
By their own very high standards, the yard have been quiet over the last couple of weeks but the assistant trainer told Sporting Life: “I don't think it's unusual that we get a bit of a lull before the bigger meetings, but I do think a lot of our younger horses have been a bit behind compared to other years.
“We had a slow November at home, we had a lot of rain and a lot of the older horses that have a couple of years training under their belt seem to have got away with it. The beginners chasers, open horses like Gaelic Warrior, have come out and won.
“But the bumper horses and the maiden hurdlers have struggled a bit, and I just think it's down to fitness rather than anything else. I think they're good and healthy and now we've got back to normal through December, I'd be hoping that we'll be hitting Christmas on the front foot.”
