English on the mark with Thedeviluno Tipperary hurling great Nicky English was on hand to welcome in his Gowran winner Thedeviluno (4/1 — 9s) today, having landed the Proficient Engineering Irish EBF Maiden Hurdle for trainer Paul Nolan and jockey Sean O’Keeffe. Runner-up three times in bumpers including to Willie Mullins’ promising Doctor Du Mesnil last April, owner English handed over ‘the keys’ to the Youoktodrive Syndicate for today’s race, with the six-year-old dropping down to a two-mile trip. Racing behind the leaders, Thedeviluno eventually quickened well to lead on the run-in and beat Skylight Hustle by 2.25 lengths. Nolan said “it’s great for the lads (Youoktodrive Syndicate) as this was a while coming and he bumped into some very decent horses in his bumpers. He worked well on heavy ground before but that’s the first time he got it as soft as that in a race. His jumping was good at home. “I loved the way he passed the other two fairly quickly and he won snug enough at the line. This looked a fairly decent race on paper and it’s great that he’s got his win in the bag and we’ll make a plan now.” Quotes from Alan Magee
