Bowe makes move
O’Neill also edges closer to honours
COLIN BOWE and Barry O’Neill made major moves last weekend towards retaining their national trainer’s and rider’s titles with five winners each, and both are now in pole positions with just a couple of weekends to go.
Bowe leapfrogged his neighbour, Donnchadh Doyle, to lead by two (28-26), while O’Neill is eight ahead of many times champion, Derek O’Connor, 54-46. Rob James also kept up his good run with four winners.
Action began with a two-day meeting at Necarne, Co. Fermanagh, on Friday.
Bowe sent a big team and he and James both had trebles even though he missed out on the four-year-old mares’ maiden, with Subtle Quest under James Kenny and Don’t Dismiss Me under Barry O’Neill filling second and third.
James was in contention on Robin Des Sivola when coming down at the last.
James got quick compensation in Division 2 when winning well on Pat Doyle’s (Nenagh) Miss Batten, ahead of O’Neill on Bowe’s Quivvy.
His other two winners were for Bowe - on Morraman (by Gold Well) in the five-year-old geldings’ maiden, and cosily in the older mares’ maiden on Cushinstown Finest (out of Trans Island).
Barry O’Neill did get his winner to keep his rider’s title bid on track in the five-year-old mares’ maiden on the Bowe-trained Do You Know What (by Dubai Destination), left clear at the last by the fall of favourite, Oscar Light.
The fields were small on the Saturday, and O’Neill and Derek O’Connor had a winner each to leave the Wexford champion seven ahead going into Sunday. O’Neill’s win was a snug one in the Open race aboard David Christie’s Vinnie Luck.
The competitive opening fouryear-old geldings’ maiden turned into a Wexford benefit, filling the first four places.
Victory went to Harley Dunne on James W. Doyle’s impressive Howling Milan (out of Milan), owned by Jason Higgins, from Luke Murphy on Denis Murphy’s Our Bubba, Barry O’Neill on Colin Bowe’s Dalkinstown, and Shane Fitzgerald on Michael Goff’s Pre- senting Dancer.
The main Wexford concentration was on Oldcastle, Co. Meath, on Sunday, and Barry O’Neill’s winning treble, two of them for Colin Bowe, kept him in the championship driving seat while Jimmy O’Rourke also rode a double. There was a huge entry and a nine-race card.
O’Neill and Bowe took Division 1 of the four-year-old maiden with Easyrun De Vassy by a head in a battling finish, pipping Luke Murphy on Denis Murphy’s Young Lieutenant.
Division 2 went to Shane Fitzgerald on Michael Goff’s Cenotice, ahead of Rob James on Donnchadh Doyle’s Keep Wondering. Fitzgerald is two behind Seán O’Keeffe in the novice riders’ title race (11-9).
The five- and six-year-old mares’ maiden was also divided and both came to Wexford.
Jimmy O’Rourke (Glenville) took Division 1 on his father Pat’s Illuminated Beauty after some lastbend drama, and Barry O’Neill was an all the way winner of Division 2 on Seán Thomas Doyle’s Asking A Lot.
Both five- and six-years-old geldings’ maidens also came to Wexford - Jimmy O’Rourke completed his double on Sad Eyed Dylan for Shane Donohoe (Cavan), and O’Neill and Bowe struck again in Division 2 with Pogue, an impressive son of Stowaway.
Rob James got on the board by a short head in a driving finish in the mares’ winner of one on Piece A Cake for Kevin Heffernan (Galway).
The Wexford youngsters just missed out in the novice riders’ race, with Kevin Corrigan on John Paul Brennan’s Ask Harry, ‘Paddy’ Scallan and James Kenny filling the minor places.
There was only minor Wexford involvement in the nine-race card at Dromahane in Cork, with the best run being second in the four-year-old maiden by James Walsh on Donnchadh Doyle’s Buck’s Bin’s.
On Saturday they race at Tralee and Portrush in the far north, and on Sunday at Inchdoney, Co. Cork. The season ends on Bank Holiday weekend with racing at Kinsale on June 2 and 3, and at Ballingarry on June 3 and 4.