Murphy aims high with dynamic duo The Beresford Stakes at the Curragh and Doncaster's Racing Post Trophy are among a host of options under consideration for stablemates Vert De Grece and Shepherd's Purse. Leopardstown winner Vert De Grece enhanced his reputation when only narrowly denied by Gleneagles in the Futurity Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday, while Shepherd's Purse made an impressive victorious debut at the same track a day earlier. Joe Murphy's exciting juveniles appear unlikely to lock horns in the coming months, with connections expecting both horses to make their mark in top company before the season is out. "Vert De Grece is a nice horse and we were quite happy with the run," said Joe Murphy jnr, the trainer's son and assistant. "We could look to step him up to a mile now. "He's in the Beresford Stakes, but we could think about supplementing him for the National Stakes at the Curragh. It might be one or the other of those. "He's also in the Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster and we'll put him in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere on Arc day at Longchamp. I think he might have two runs before the end of the season. He's a talented horse with a great attitude and he only does enough. "We always thought Shepherd's Purse wanted seven furlongs and would get a mile, so we expected the six furlongs to be the bare minimum for him on Saturday, but he was quite impressive. "We'll think about putting him in the Round Tower Stakes this coming Sunday at the Curragh and he'll also be entered in the Beresford, the Racing Post Trophy and the Lagardere, so we'll see. "He's a big horse at nearly 17 hands, but he's obviously got a big engine as well. "I don't think it will be that difficult to keep him and the other horse apart. "We wouldn't supplement Shepherd's Purse for the National Stakes off the back of one run, but he might go for the Beresford and then one could go for the Racing Post Trophy and the other could go for the Lagardere."
