IT certainly isn’t his fault by any means, but it feels as though nearly every conversation in National Hunt racing right now somehow links back to Willie Mullins.

From the fallout after his stunning clean sweep of the eight Grade 1 races at the Dublin Racing Festival, to debates over the overall health of jumps racing - and the fact he is only an even-money chance with the Betfair Sportsbook to train more winners than all British trainers combined at the Cheltenham Festival - it’s probably fair to say there is no figure more spoken about in the sport at present than the 17-time champion trainer. Crucially, his horses are certainly doing the talking for him when it matters most too.

Such a high level of interest in Mullins’ spectacular string and overall dominance in the game is perhaps one of the factors behind why another operator’s quietly brilliant season has arguably gone slightly under the radar in 2023/24. It might be slightly lost in the overall conversation of the season as to just how impressive the current campaign has been for the black, white and pink silks of Robcour.

Standings

A glance at the current standings in the Irish National Hunt owners’ championship gives an indication of the sort of spell Brian Acheson’s ownership vehicle has enjoyed. With over €820,000 earned in prize money, Robcour sits second behind only J.P. McManus, and ahead of top owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede, Gigginstown House Stud, Joe and Marie Donnelly and Bective Stud.

We have only passed the halfway mark of February with major spring festivals to come, and Robcour has already achieved its highest prize money for any campaign to date (up from a previous record of over €700,000 for the entirety of last season). It really has been a season to remember.

What makes those returns even more eyecatching is that the Acheson team has been represented by just 32 different horses in the current campaign, with 19 of them having won already (59%). That squad size is considerably lower than the other top four owners in the championship standings.

A superb 26% strike rate reads extremely well for the season in Ireland too. Last term, when operating at a very healthy 21%, was the first campaign in which Robcour posted a winning record of higher than 18%, and backing each of the operation’s runners blindly in Ireland this season would see you in profit by more than eight points.

Quality

It is very much a case of quality over quantity, with only 83 runners in Ireland this term – less than half the total of Robcour’s record campaign of 32 winners three years ago (180 runners during that whole season).

What’s more, the operation’s select raids to Britain this season have been well worth paying attention to.

It was a cracking piece of placing, and training, when Gentlemansgame became the first Irish-trained winner of the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby since Francis Crowley sent out Sackville to land the same prize in 2001. That Grade 2 had only four runners, the same field size as the Dornan Engineering Relkeel Hurdle of the same grade that Bob Olinger ran away with at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day. Again, it was a fine opportunity identified by connections for the dual Cheltenham Festival winner to build confidence and collect his share of the £70,000 on offer.

Sizzling strike rate

Robcour has only had three other runners in Britain this season: Bodhisattva, who won a three-runner novice chase worth £12,000 at Perth in May, Indiana Jones, not beaten far when fourth in the Grade 2 Haldon Gold Cup (a six-runner handicap chase worth £80,000) and Absolute Notions, who looked a massive contender for the Pertemps Final but sadly suffered a fatal injury when attempting to qualify for the race at Musselburgh earlier this month.

All in all, especially given one of their runners failed to complete, a 60% strike rate in Britain this term is nothing to be sniffed at by any means.

When it comes to big-race success in Ireland, there has been the most to celebrate, however.

Gerri Colombe mustered up an immense finishing effort to overhaul Envoi Allen in the Grade 1 Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal early in the campaign, before finishing closest to an unstoppable Galopin Des Champs in the Savills Chase at Leopardstown.

Bob Olinger had started his season with a bang in the Grade 2 Railway Bar Lismullen Hurdle prior to scoring at Cheltenham, while Teahupoo lowered the colours of Impaire Et Passe and Ashroe Diamond in the Grade 1 Bar One Racing Hatton’s Grace Hurdle.

Irish Point, who started his season with a win in the Grade 3 Bottlegreen Hurdle at Down Royal, went down as one of the most visually impressive winners of the festive period when capturing the Grade 1 Jack de Bromhead Christmas Hurdle. At the same meeting, talented French recruit Kala Conti captured the Grade 2 Mercedes-Benz South Dublin Juvenile Hurdle in fine style.

Ain’t That A Shame finally got his big day in the sun when plundering the €100,000 Goffs Thyestes Handicap Chase shortly before the Dublin Racing Festival, where Heart Wood bolted up in the Grade 3 O’Driscolls Irish Whiskey Leopardstown Handicap Chase worth €150,000. On the same card, Slade Steel (winner of the Grade 2 Tote Navan Novice Hurdle in December) finished a cracking Grade 1 second to Ballyburn, and Bob Olinger posted one of his best ever efforts when runner-up to State Man in the Irish Champion Hurdle.

Shrewd placing

A season that began with a lucrative win on American Grand National day at Far Hills with Say Goodbye kept rolling last weekend at Navan when Hiddenvalley Lake posted an impressive performance to capture the Grade 2 William Hill Boyne Hurdle.

Such a lengthy list of big-race success in the space of just 16 weeks is a massive achievement for all involved with the training, pre-training, race planning, riding and recruiting of these horses. Vitally, it is also a deserving reward for the sustained strong level of investment that Acheson has put into the sport over a number of years. That was evidenced again last week when Robcour signed for Fil Dor and Doctor Bravo for €620,000 and €155,000 at the Andy and Gemma Brown Dispersal.

A theme of Robcour’s success has been the light campaigns some of their key flagbearers have had during the season. Could that leave the door open for a potentially massive spring-festival period in Britain and Ireland?

Teahupoo has been seen just once this term and has the Stayers’ Hurdle in his sights, Gold Cup-bound Gerri Colombe and Gentlemansgame have run just twice, as have Irish Point and Hiddenvalley Lake.

The likes of Slade Steel and Heart Wood appear open to further improvement as unexposed novices with three runs apiece this term, while Samyr, a wide-margin bumper winner on debut for Joseph O’Brien on Thyestes day at Gowran, rates another highly-promising youngster coming through the Robcour ranks.

The influence of Willie Mullins on this season has been undeniable, but Acheson and his team have been doing plenty to keep the champion trainer honest. A campaign to remember and the best might still be to come this spring.