Should Tralee pass a 7.0 inspection this morning it would be hard to overestimate the importance of the ground and even more so a horse's ability to act on it. In the rain sodden circumstances then, Zacopani is taken to win the Paddy Kearns Handicap Hurdle.

A beaten favourite behind Vintners Venture at Gowran he may be but of more relevance could be his previous effort at Cork when he hammered Vintners Venture by eight lengths on similar gluelike conditions to today.

That was over three miles and today's trip may be short of ideal for Willie Mullins' horse but if stamina will ever be at a premium it will be here and Zacopani can last out this test better than Lishillaun.

Mullins can also provide the solution to the Brownes Handicap Hurdle. He runs both Magical Fun and Lady De Hatton against Wednesday's flat winner New Legislation, who had a hard race beating Key To The City by a neck, and although he hasn't run since early December, Magical Fun is preferred.

Richard Dunwoody returns to Tralee to take the mount on Quinze in the Barrys Bakery Novices Hurdle and although this classy sort will hardly be suited by the ground, he has at least won on a yielding surface and should be up to beating Ithastobesaid.

Idiots Venture tops the weights in the Paget Cup but seemed to find it difficult to handle the testing conditions when finishing fourth to Merry People yesterday and may not be asked to run in them again so quickly.

It should not affect where the prize ends up, however, as Aidan O'Brien's other entry, Beat The Second, a Naas winner last winter, is put forward as a likely alternative.

Red Square is no world beater but has run reasonably well in testing conditions in the past and the McGiff Plumbing-Slieve Mish Bar Maiden Hurdle is not exactly a world beating type of contest.

The same comment also applies to Maggie Maccloone in the bumper, judged on a good second to Bill Bishop at Thurles in February.