Luker's Tipple 'has definitely turned the corner' Luker's Tipple was a long-standing maiden before obliging in Downpatrick and showed that he has got a taste for winning when he followed up in the Kilcawley Construction Rated Novice Hurdle in Sligo. Plenty of late money saw him go off the 6/4 favourite and Keith Donoghue, in the Gavin Cromwell Racing Limited colours, was content to track the leader Crystabel throughout. The jolly came through to lead two out but was swiftly followed by hat-trick-seeking Manoir De Mirande. Try as the pursuer did, he couldn't get on terms with Luker's Tipple who stuck to his task and kept on well to see it out by two and three quarter lengths from the 3/1 runner-up. Donoghue said: "He has definitely turned the corner. I was a bit negative about him after Downpatrick, because he had taken so long to win, but he came out of that run absolutely bouncing. "He likes nice ground and small fields seem to suit. "He's been in great form at home, at a time when a lot of ours have been below-par. "There's a couple of things that we're working on at home, and hopefully that will sort things out and we'll get them running better before long." Additional reporting by Mark Nunan
