YOU’D forgive someone less versed with racing knowledge on this morning’s flight from Cork to Heathrow, for presuming they were accompanied by a posse of travelling supporters of a football or rugby team.

However it won’t be the red of Munster or green of Ireland on display, it’ll be the blue and orange synonymous with Un De Sceaux, as a reportedly 34-strong O’Connell party head for Berkshire.

It’s a trip these loyal supporters have made twice before and on both occasions the flight back has been a happier one. The son of Denham Red will aim to make it a hat-trick of wins at Ascot and four wins in all in the Clarence House Chase (2017 renewal was run at Cheltenham) today (3:35).

To do that, he will have to be at his very best at the age of 12 to reverse form with young pretender Defi Du Seuil, who already has a verdict over him after his cling-on win in the Tingle Creek.

Common racing consensus would strongly suggest siding with Defi Du Seuil, who is more likely to be progressing against Un De Sceaux who is more likely to be regressing. But Un De Sceaux is no normal 12-year-old and with heavy ground to race on today, there is every reason to believe he can make it Grade 1 win number 11.

Bookmakers make it a match race and that’s how it should play out on the track with Un De Sceaux and Paul Townend likely to make the running and Defi Du Seuil and Barry Geraghty to sit in behind in a high stakes game of cat and mouse.

Common racing consensus also says it’s better to have something to aim at as a jockey but Geraghty will have to be careful.

Defi Du Seuil is good to produce one big run but as we saw at Sandown, he was nearly caught by an amazing rally by Un De Sceaux. On today’s ground, that sort of move from Defi Du Seuil could be more costly.

It should be a cracker.

“YOU are entitled to look beyond the obvious,” was the advice of Donn McClean in his column today (pg 18) with regard to this year’s Champion Hurdle market. That appears to be what punters have done this week and many feel Darasso could emerge as a springer in the betting after today’s The New One Unibet Hurdle at Haydock (3:15)

Ruby Walsh has also given Darasso a positive reference and in an open year, you can see why people are latching onto this French import.

Racing over a range of trips on his four runs last season, he seemed more at home at two miles when scooting away from Forge Meadow in the Red Mills Hurdle at Gowran Park and then proving too strong for Cadmium in the Grade 2 Webster Cup over fences at Navan, a scalp that became more notable when Cadmium went on to win the Topham Chase impressively.

Darasso is having his first run of the season today but, if he is to be a Champion Hurdle horse, he should go close to winning this. Triumph Hurdle winner Pentland Hills will bid to get his Champion Hurdle bid back on track after a slightly disappointing debut in the International Hurdle while the revitalised Ballyandy and Buveur D’Air’s conqueror Cornerstone Lad make up just a four-runner field.

Hurling and horses at Thurles

THURLES has been a little unlucky this season, losing a fixture to thick fog just before Christmas and having their biggest day of the year tomorrow clash with Tipperary club Borris-Ileigh’s meeting with Ballyhale Shamrocks in the All Ireland Club Hurling Final.

That will likely draw a few away from attending tomorrow but the track are embracing the game and have pledged to provide good viewing of it around the course.

The Grade 2 Horse & Jockey Hotel Chase (2:45), previously well known as the Kinloch Brae, takes central billing inside the white rails. Sizing John and Don Cossack took this race en route to Gold Cup glory in recent years and while that is unlikely with tomorrow’s field, Footpad is still a star turn and he could yet emerge as a big Cheltenham Festival contender, possibly for the Ryanair Chase.

Indo out in Navan

Speaking of Cheltenham Festival contenders, Minella Indo, prominent in the betting for the RSA Chase, will try to get off the mark in a beginners chase at Navan today (3:05). Henry de Bromhead had jokingly claimed he hoped to make Minella Indo possibly the first ever horse to break his maiden over hurdles and fences in Grade 1 races but the seven-year-old was a late scratch in the Neville Hotels Novice Chase at Leopardstown over Christmas due to drying ground.

That is again becoming a growing concern ahead of the Dublin Racing Festival, so Barry Maloney’s chaser heads for Co Meath today, where he’ll get soft ground.