Wexford success
Hickey and O’Keeffe win at Fairyhouse
THERE WAS one great all-Wexford success at Fairyhouse on Tuesday in the 150th Irish Grand National Beginners’ chase involving two of the county’s equine dynasties.
Jockey Seán O’Keeffe from Harveystown, Taghmon, and owner/trainer Denis Hickey from Garryrichard Stud, Foulksmills, combined to score with well-supported Countess Cathleen (11/4).
It was a nicely judged ride that gave O’Keefe his 21st win of the season, taking it up coming to the second last and seeing it out nicely to beat Edward O’Grady’s Shakeytry (11/4) by nearly five lengths.
Apart from training, Denis Hickey is prominent in the breeding business and runs the Garryrichard Stud which has been in the family since 1870.
Famous stallions have included Arctic Slave, Over the River and Jeremy, and the family trained Bob Treacy to win the Thyestes Chase twice, in 1999 and 2001.
Hickey said Countess Cathleen needed heavy ground and had been waiting for it. He’s hoping she will score again this season.
He praised his young jockey: ‘Seán is riding with great confidence at the moment’.
Otherwise it was a quiet day for the Wexford connections, with Barry O’Neill’s third in the bumper on Ultima Thule (7/1) the only thing of note.
At the re-fixed Punchestown meeting on Wednesday – a victim of Storm Brendan on Monday – Mikey Fogarty (Cleariestown) had his sixth win since he resumed his riding career in the autumn on wellbacked hurdling debutant Darrens Hope (11/4), owned and trained by Robert Murphy in Cappoquin, Co. Waterford.
Fogarty was strong in the finish, being pressed hard at the last but staying on stoutly to see off Paul Townend on the Willie Mullins favourite, Et Dite (5/6), by four lengths. Well back in third was Seán Flanagan on Colin Bowe’s Fort Worth Texas (3/1).
It was a case of near misses for the Wexford connections in other races. Jonathan Moore was second on Saol Iontach (7/1) in a handicap hurdle, beaten less than a length, and he was third in a maiden hurdle on Yafordadoe (14/1), both for Gavin Cromwell.
Flanagan did well to get second, albeit well beaten, on 33/1 outsider Bois De Clamart, for Liz Doyle, behind Davy Russell on an Elliott favourite, Sean Says (1/1), and Seán O’Keeffe was second on Tom Gibney’s Rare Conor (6/1) in a novice hurdle.
At Navan on Saturday, Jamie Codd had another bumper winner for Gordon Elliott on hot shot, Eskylane (8/15), romping in by over eight lengths.
Flanagan was second on Meade’s Village Mystic (7/1), behind Jessica Harrington’s outsider, Mr. Hendricks (18/1); Moore was second on Cromwell’s Alfa Mix (6/1) in the €50k Grade B Navan Hurdle behind Mark Walsh on Kilfenora, with O’Keeffe third on Court Maid for Tom Mullins.
It was a pretty blank day for Wexford connections at the big meeting at Thurles on Sunday where Willie Mullins dominated with a treble, including both Grade 2 races where he had a 1-2-3 in one and the first two in the other. Daryl Jacob came over to ride Footpad (8/11) but was 14 lengths behind Real Steal (2/1) for Mullins and Townend. Footpad has really to find top form this season.
The dominance of the big stables on the Irish national hunt scene is graphically illustrated by the tables where Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott are jousting at the top as usual with nearly 130 winners each, though Elliott has had nearly 860 runners compared to 480 odd for Mullins.
Henry De Bromhead is third on 65 winners, followed by Joseph O’Brien (59), Gavin Cromwell (52), and Noel Meade (38). The pickings get very slim after that and Paul Nolan, who is having quite a good season, shares tenth on the table with Jessica Harrington on twelve winners from his 128 runners, and Liz Doyle sneaks into the top 20 with ten winners from 134 runs.
When you see the likes of Shark Hanlon with just six wins, Edward O’Grady (five), Enda Bolger (four), Mouse Morris (one from 57 runs), you have to wonder how most yards survive at all. Many of them supplement the training with pre-training, breaking, and a bit of buying and selling, but it is a lot of hard work for not a lot of reward.
Many people have working with horses in their blood and they love the game, but it certainly is not an easy way of making a living and you can only applaud their determination and resilience.
It is not surprising that the overall number of National Hunt trainers has dropped dramatically in the past decade. With all things equine such a fundamental part of Irish life, you have to ask if those at the lower end of the scale do not deserve a bit more support.