They might not be coming over in their tens of thousands but Cheltenham will be greener than it has ever been.
‘It will be a landslide,” laughs Ruby Walsh, who knows all about Irish success at the Festival. “Buy yourself a green shirt.”
In the battle between Great Britain and Ireland, the invaders have had the upper hand in recent years.
But although the British have not won the Prestbury Cup - awarded for the most winners trained - since 2015, the respective tallies have been quite tight.
This year, though, the Irish contingent has never looked stronger and it would be a major shock if trainer Willie Mullins and his number one jockey Paul Townend did not sweep up the individual titles.
But if Walsh, eleven times the leading rider at the Festival, had to pick someone who could challenge Townend, he would go for Rachael Blackmore.
The 31-year-old from County Tipperary is a well-established star of Irish racing and already has three Festival race wins to her name.
But Walsh and so many of his countrymen believe Blackmore would deserve more exposure, perhaps the sort of exposure enjoyed by English-based flat jockey, Hollie Doyle.
“Rachael is phenomenal,” declares Walsh. “I think she should be second favourite for the jockeys title at the Festival.
“She is brilliant. Tactically, she is vey, very good. Horses run for her.
“And for a jump jockey, she is able to do one of the most important things - and that is to take a fall.
“Physically, she can take a fall and get back on her feet. No … she actually bounces back to her feet. Every. Single. Time.
“Her physical make-up, her strength, her core fitness, are incredible.
“It is falls that effect jockeys but they do not effect her. She can get three falls in one day and she is exactly the same jockey in the fourth race.
“Now, that is not just physical strength, it is strength of mind and strength of character.
“If a rugby player misses the first penalty, misses the second penalty, it takes fair character to knock over the third one. Rachael has that character.”
Walsh’s total of 59 Festival winners is unlikely to be beaten for a long time but his retirement in 2019 - along with the retirements of AP McCoy and Barry Geraghty - left National Hunt racing with a lack of star quality.
“It is not so much that,” says Walsh. “There are plenty of brilliant jockeys around but they are following a generation - me, AP, Barry, Davy Russell, Paul Carberry, Richard Johnson - that stifled a generation.
“They will now grow and flourish but no-one becomes a star overnight.”
Which is true. But success in one of Cheltenham’s blue riband events would help - and Blackmore rides the favourite, Honeysuckle, in the centrepiece of the opening day, the Champion Hurdle.
And Walsh is convinced Henry de Bromhead’s mare can give Blackmore the biggest success of her career.
He says: “After what happened last year (he unseated rider Jamie Moore when a distance clear at the last obstacle in the Triumph Hurdle), Goshen would be the fairytale.
“But the reality is the two mares, Epatante and Honeysuckle, are very, very good.
“I would just side with Honeysuckle. She is a better mare than she was 12 months ago - she will need to be because this is a red-hot Champion Hurdle - but the pace of the race will suit and her stamina will see her hold off Epatante.”
Blackmore could have a choice of rides in the Festival’s crown jewel on Friday and is likely to plump for A Plus Tard.
But Walsh cannot see Mullins’s Al Boum Photo being denied a hat-trick of Gold Cup successes.
He explains: “I think this year’s race will actually suit him better than past year’s race. He is an incredibly strong stayer. There was a pack of pace in last year’s race but there won’t be in this year’s race and that will suit him.”
That means if Walsh’s fancies for the two premier races oblige, that would be a double for the Irish.
But their success will not stop there.
They might not be taking over the Guinness village … but the Irish will still be making Cheltenham greener than ever.
RUBY WALSH’S FESTIVAL FANCIES
Bankers: Monkfish (Festival Novices’ Chase, Wednesday), Chacun Pour Soi (Champion Chase, Wednesday)
Best value: Galopin Des Champs (Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys Handicap Hurdle, Friday)
Big race winners: Al Boum Photo (Gold Cup), Honeysuckle (Champion Hurdle)
