RACING: Limestone Lad worked so well yesterday he may skip the traditional pre-Cheltenham warm-up after racing at Leopardstown on Sunday.

Michael Bowe took the Stayers' Hurdle second favourite on a private gallop yesterday and Limestone Lad indicated he is well over the cough that threatened his Cheltenham hopes two weeks ago.

"He did a good piece of work, had a good blow and was clean as a whistle afterwards. He felt very strong and if anything the break might have done him the good," said Bowe.

The gallop took place at a location that Bowe described as "a friend's place that has plastic railing and a grandstand!" But wherever it took place it was enough to convince the trainer that his previously declared deadline for establishing festival fitness may be redundant.

"He came back home, had a roll around and stuck his head straight into the feed pot. I couldn't be happier with him.

"I have to decide now if he needs to go to Leopardstown and be put under the spotlight like that. It struck me today he might not need a lot more and the one thing I don't want to do is over-cook him. If he does go there it will be just for a day out and so he can enjoy himself. Hopefully if he does go, we come back in the same mood we did today."

Timmy Murphy hopes for good ground at Cheltenham to help the chances of his mount, the Michael Hourigan-trained Beef Or Salmon, in the Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup: "He's been running on ground he doesn't really handle. I've always said from riding work at home that he's a good-ground horse, so the question is if he can take that form to good ground and improve on it."