Slevin savours big priced double
OVER THE jumps in Ireland, J.J. Slevin had a 94/1 double for his cousin, Joseph O’Brien, at Cork on Friday, with Howth Summit at a tasty 20/1 and Glocca Mora (7/2) by a neck from Paul Nolan’s Shetland Bus (7/1), under Bryan Cooper.
The Wexford trainer and Cooper also got second with Dia Del Sol (20/1) in a handicap hurdle.
Slevin had a third winner of the week for O’Brien at Sligo on Sunday with Cheap and Cheerful (8/15f), his only ride of the day, coming home well clear in the J.P. McManus colours, ahead of Seán Flanagan on Go Complain (25/1) for Eoin Griffin.
Jonathan Moore had an easy 14-length winner at Downpatrick on Friday afternoon with Tara Mia (12/1) for Tom Gibney, where seconds were recorded by Colin Bowe with Inishbel (7/1), beaten just half a length, and Paul Nolan with Lady of the Sea (9/2), Mark Walsh being the pilot on both.
It was a quiet week over the jumps in Britain as is to be expected at this time of the year. Daryl Jacob had a couple of rides at Southwell on Sunday and scored on the Nigel Twiston-Davis trained El Terremoto (5/4jf) by a short head in a driving finish with Richard Johnson on Gustave Mahler, the other joint favourite.
There was some sad news last week. Finian’s Oscar, a three-time Grade 1 National Hunt winner with very strong Wexford connections, has died at the young age of six. He was on his summer break when he fell ill with a rare form of colic, trainer Colin Tizzard reported.
The horse was bred at Newtown, Taghmon, by Richard and Martin O’Keeffe, out of Trinity Alley. (There used to be a handball alley at Trinity village, in the parish of Taghmon, which explains that name.)
Denis Murphy, Ballyboy, The Ballagh, had the horse for just four months for the Logans from Kildare when he sent him out to win his point-to-point under Jamie Codd in Portrush, Co. Antrim, in October, 2016. He was so impressive that he fetched £250,000 very soon after at the Cheltenham Sales, going to the late Alan Potts to be trained by Tizzard.
The price looked reasonable when within two months Finian’s Oscar had won his first hurdle at Hereford and followed up by taking the Grade 1 Tolworth Hurdle. In total, the horse won seven races under rules, including those three Grade 1s, and over £220,000 in prize money.
On the flat in Britain, P.J. McDonald’s big win of the week was in the £50,000 Bunbury Cup at Newmarket on Friday aboard Zap (7/1) for Richard Fahey, holding off Silvestre De Sousa by a head on Swift Approval (4/1).
The Taghmon man got his week off to a good start with a double at Pontefract on Tuesday, on hot-shot Octave (8/13) for Mark Johnston and Ower Fly (10/1) for Ruth Carr by a cosy three lengths. He had another double at Catterick on Wednesday with Artarmon (6/4f) for Michael Bell and Airton (14/1) for Jim Bethell.
Jimmy Quinn had three rides at Wolverhampton and scored on Art Echo (10/1) for Jim Mackie on Tuesday and followed up with a winner from just two rides at Yarmouth next day, on Percy Toplis at a massive 25/1 for Mrs. Dunnett.
Pat Dobbs was on the mark with Boitron (6/1) for Richard Hannon at Newbury on Thursday.
He was first home by a short head at Ascot on Friday with Dirty Rascal (1/1f) for Hannon but was moved back to second by the stewards for veering off line in a tight finish.