AS the build-up to the Randox Grand National gathers pace, there must be a real hope now that Any Second Now can do a L’Escargot, and build on his second and third place finishes in the race, and now land the great prize.

He showed his wellbeing at Navan when capturing the Grade 2 Webster Cup Chase for the second time.

It is hard to believe that Any Second Now won on his racecourse debut at 66/1, but he showed that it was no fluke as he overturned an odds-on Willie Mullins runner to take the honours in the Grade 2 Sky Bet Moscow Flyer Novice Hurdle at Punchestown a month later.

He has proven to be a better chaser, winning five times, and four of these victories have been in graded races.

Bred by Noreen McManus and racing in the colours of her husband JP, Any Second Now is an 11-year-old son of Oscar (Sadler’s Wells), and he is the first gelding and first winner for his Topanoora (Ahonoora) dam Pretty Neat.

She was obviously useful but, having finished runner-up on her debut in a bumper, she was pulled-up by AP McCoy on her only other outing over hurdles and retired to stud.

Ted Walsh

Born a year after Any Second Now, Pretty Neat foaled his full-brother Roxboro Road (Oscar), and he won three times over hurdles for Ted Walsh before moving to join Ben Haslam, for whom he has added three more successes, this time over fences. Soon after the birth of both her winners, JP and Noreen sold Pretty Neat to Manister House Stud for just €8,000. This was something of a surprise, given that she is from a family that McManus team has had a long association.

Pretty Neat is a half-sister to three winners, the best of which was Rate Of Knots (Saddlers’ Hall), a hurdle and dual chase winner who was second in a listed mares’ chase, and is now a successful broodmare. Pretty Neat is out of Fast Time (Be My Native), an unraced full-sister to Aunt Aggie (Be My Native) who carried JP’s colours to success in the Grade 3 For Auction Novice Hurdle.

Overshadowed

Her record was overshadowed however by that of her half-brother Time For A Run (Deep Run), he being being one of 72 Cheltenham Festival winners for McManus when he landed the Grade 3 Coral Cup for trainer Edward O’Grady and jockey Charlie Swan.

Over fences he won the Grade 2 Leopardstown Chase and he was Grade 1-placed over hurdles and fences. Aunt Aggie’s and Time For A Run’s once-raced half-sister Overtime (Executive Perk) also clicked with Topanoora and that mating produced the Grade 3-winning chaser Adarma.

Time For A Run is out of the bumper and hurdle winner Hourly Rate (Menelek) and her siblings include Hi’ Upham (Deep Run), the dam of the brilliant Native Upmanship (Be My Native), a multiple Grade 1 winner including the Punchestown Chase and the Melling Chase at Aintree twice. Hi’ Upham is also the grandam of Enda Bolger’s Grade 1 winning chaser Gilgamboa (Westerner).

This is a female line that is having a great season, and has also produced the current favourite for the Randox Grand National, the recent Grade 3 Cheltenham winner Corach Rambler (Jeremy).

Also from this dam line is Champ Kiely (Ocovango), successful in the Grade 1 Lawlor’s of Naas Slaney Hurdle this year and placed at the same level in Cheltenham.