Meriden makes light of 7lb penalty to land Curragh opener

That was brilliant, you are always taking a chance when you go back quick. She was so well on Monday morning I said to Patrick (O’Brien) that we had to run her, that she’d love the Curragh and she’d probably sharpen up for the run again. She looks an improver. She was well bought by Patrick, he picked her out himself at the July Sale last year. She has a lovely pedigree, so will do two jobs. We got held up a little bit with her at the start and had to wait to January to start training her. She ran a lovely race first time here in a maiden and she’s just found her feet now. She’s obviously come up through the handicap well. There is a lovely race for her here on Derby weekend, a fillies’ only seven-furlong handicap. It looks made for her so I’d say that will be her next stop.

Locals in clover as The Piper's Call scores at the Curragh

I walked the track at 3pm and if it was any slower I would probably have taken him out,. Scott said it was a touch slow for him. He said he took a blow about half-a-furlong from home but he said his class just dug him out. He’s a horse that we always thought a lot of. He’s a very laidback horse but he actually looked like he was taking a bit of a grip going down to the start, which is unlike him. In the race he jumped and was on the front foot. He probably raced a little bit in Scott’s hands, which wouldn’t have helped. He’s probably only 90 percent fit. He’s a big horse and he’s like a child’s pony at home. You can see him there he’s trying to pick grass!. He’s a gentleman of a horse to do anything with. He’s the sort of horse that will only get fit when he starts racing. He’ll improve a lot from that. We’ve be minding him, like you have to do with the better ones, and hopefully that’s only the start. With the lack of racing everything is probably coming a bit quick now. He was in at Cork twice and the ground went heavy on him. I was hoping to get him out then and then maybe get another run into him in a rated race on good ground. I always thought he could be a Jersey horse but it’s probably going to come a bit quick now. We’ll look after him and see how he pulls out of it, get him home and make a plan then.

Wayne Lordan on the mark as Aix La Chapelle scores on debut for Aidan O'Brien at the Curragh