Dream Alliance searching for Hollywood ending in Grand National

There was no action on the track here at Chepstow yesterday but the roar from one of the grandstand boxes would have graced any race day. On a television in the newly christened Dream Alliance Suite the horse after whom the room is named had just taken the lead with three to jump in a re-run of the Welsh National and his 22 owners were enjoying the moment again.

It was a neat piece of timing by the racecourse to honour the horse, a local hero, in this way, four days before he is due to line up for the Grand National Festival. Some members of the Alliance Partnership came here from their homes in Cefn Fforest, 17 miles north of Cardiff, and will go straight on to Liverpool, where they plan to make a big week of it.

Vokes got the idea while running a social club, where she overheard one of her customers bemoaning the large sums of money he had lost from a venture into ownership many years before. Howard Davies, a tax advisor relaxing after a game of squash, was stunned to find himself being pumped for information that would help Vokes achieve her latest ambition.

"So I said, 'You need two things: a field and a mare.' She said, 'I've got a field, I need to get the mare.' So I said, 'Get a copy of the Turf Directory and then we go from there,' thinking she'd go away. The following Thursday the Turf Directory landed on the bar. 'Now what do we do?'"

Vokes seems quiet and reserved as she deals with the media attention that Dream Alliance has brought her but Davies immediately realised she was "fairly resolute". With regret he was persuaded to abandon the promise he had made his wife that he would never again get involved with racehorses.

The syndicate members a disparate band, including a painter and decorator, a car washer, a former Provident collector and several tax workers – thoroughly deserved their moment of glory when the chestnut won the Welsh National here in December, even though they came close to saddling him with the name Lost Youth. Some two years ago, when he sustained a tendon injury at Aintree, there had been unanimous agreement that every effort must be made to help him recover, regardless of cost.

They may be the best-behaved owners in racing, having abided by an agreement not to pester their trainer, Philip Hobbs, for the past two weeks with inquiries about Dream Alliance's wellbeing. Until the final entries are made on Thursday, Hobbs will call Davies only if he has to pass on bad news.

"Every time my mobile goes I'm worried but as long as 'Philip Hobbs' doesn't come up on the screen, I'm delighted," Davies says. "If the Dream Alliance that turned up here for the Welsh National turns up at Aintree, in the same frame of mind, he's probably got a top-five chance. I think he'll relish the fences.

"He seems to rise to the crowds. He loves attention but in a sort of laid-back way. Everybody's affected by him, when they see him, especially kids. They can walk underneath him, you can touch his head, you can do anything with him and he doesn't move, he's a gentleman.

"When you go to see him after a race, if he's run well, he knows. Here at the Welsh, the runners were coming out for the next race and he was still having his photo taken."

Davies has struck a deal with a firm of Hollywood producers, who may now make a film of the Dream Alliance story.All that is required from the National is a happy ending.

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Jadanli sets out stall as National contender - Grand National Festival

Not content to emerge from the fields of Athenry to provide an act of outrageous giantkilling at the Grand National Festival, Paul Gilligan drew his newly honed sword to the same effect on home soil yesterday.

In five years the Co Galway trainer has notched just 34 victories, but more than half have come this season and the tally now includes two at the highest level after Jadanli followed Berties Dream into a Grade One winner's circle.

Neither was fancied, at least not by those outside their stables at Cahercrin. Berties Dream was 33-1 when he won last month's Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle and Jadanli 25-1 as he upstaged contenders from some of Ireland's major yards in yesterday's Powers Gold Cup at Fairyhouse. But the eight-year-old is held in enough regard at home to have been considered for this afternoon's Irish Grand National Festival, even though he had contested only three chases before yesterday and notched his first victory over fences just six weeks ago.

"He won well the last day," Gilligan said, "and we thought about the National but as he's a novice we decided to leave it this time. It will be the long-term plan for next year, though."

The gelding, one of 25 under Gilligan's care and nursed back after an injury-induced two-year absence, was ridden, like Berties Dream, by Andrew Lynch. Both horses now have the allegedly bigger guns in their sights again, at Punchestown later in the month.

Yesterday's was not a pretty victory. In gruellingly testing conditions at the Co Meath track just two of the 10 who set out completed the two and a half miles; Jadanli came in 23 lengths ahead of another outsider, Deal Done. Behind them Shakervilz was remounted for third after a slow, tired lurch over the last fence ejected Ruby Walsh. At the same obstacle Roberto Goldback fell and lay exhausted and winded for some minutes before regaining his breath and feet, and after blazing the trail Let Yourself Go was too leg-weary to be asked to jump it.

So the faint of heart should not tune in to today's climax at the Fairyhouse festival, the 139th running of Ireland's richest chase. Due to be contested by 30 runners over three miles, five furlongs and 22 fences, the marathon will be a proper war of attrition for man and, particularly, beast. A couple of long-priced mudlark lightweights, Will Jamie Run and Stewarts House, are suggested as a sporting interest.

The race's roll of honour is embellished by some of the greatest names of Irish racing, including Prince Regent, Fortria, Arkle, Flyingbolt and the sole triple winner, Brown Lad. The performances of Arkle and Flyingbolt bear close inspection; in 1964 Arkle carried 12st to a length and a quarter victory over Height O'Fashion, who was in receipt of 30lb and two years later his younger Tom Dreaper stablemate shouldered 12st 7lb and beat the same good mare two lengths, giving her 40lb.

The focus on the Irish National with the real thing in mind has sharpened since Bobbyjo and Numbersixvalverde followed up at Aintree the following year and, indeed, Niche Market is towards the head of the betting for Saturday's extravaganza, for which one man's hopes were extinguished yesterday. No sooner had amateur Liam Codd been booked to partner Character Building than came the news that the John Quinn-trained grey, a 20-1 shot, had been bought by David and Patricia Thompson. The owners of Cheveley Park Stud, who bought Party Politics shortly before his 1992 National victory, intend to have their new horse professionally ridden.

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