The National Hunt sector, so often regarded as one in which the smaller operator had a genuine chance of hitting the big time, has become very polarised. The likes of Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott, along with the major owner super powers such as Gigginstown House Stud, Susannah Ricci and JP McManus have been carrying all before them.

There is a perception that one now needs major resources to compete over jumps. However, this is not to say that smaller operations can’t make their mark on the big stage. Young Meath trainer Shane Crawley (23) will be hoping to do just that at Fairyhouse over Easter.

In his third season with a training licence, Crawley has been making a name for himself and has unearthed a real talent in stable star Cashelard Lady, who will line up in the €100,000 Irish Stallion Farms E.B.F. Mares Novice Hurdle Championship Final on Easter Sunday.

The six-year-old daughter of Key of Luck, who appropriately gave Crawley his first winner at Wexford in October, has gone from strength to strength in recent months. At Fairyhouse on New Year’s Day, she annihilated her rivals by some 39 lengths in a maiden hurdle. Either side of that run, she posted honourable runner-up efforts against a pair of top drawer Willie Mullins mares in Augusta Kate and Limini.

“We are delighted with how she’s done. When you start out training, you don’t have too many people knocking on the door. She’s just what we needed to help put us on the map,” says Crawley, who spent time with Tony Martin and a year with Welsh trainer Evan Williams, before striking out on his own.

“At home, we breed a few mares and we tend to sell the colts and keep the fillies to race. Fillies wouldn’t be the most popular at the sales and a lot of the time they won’t cover the service fee, so we decided to try train them ourselves.”

With Fairyhouse looming large on the horizon, Crawley’s stable star has a live chance of picking up the most precious commodity for a prospective broodmare – a first-three finish in a Grade 1 contest.

Last time out, Cashelard Lady had to settle for second behind Cheltenham hotpot Limini, but that one’s participation across the Irish Sea later this month means that she is unlikely to be lying in wait at Fairyhouse.

Cashelard Lady herself would have been more than entitled to line up in the new mares novice hurdle at Cheltenham, but Crawley’s decision to stay at home could prove an excellent one on behalf of both his charge and his training career.

Another clash with racing’s elite beckons for Crawley and his stable star at the end of the month, but don’t be at all surprised if the pair pull off what would truly be a fairytale result and expect to hear plenty more about this young trainer in the coming seasons.