‘Flag’ flies for O’Brien but ‘Scatter’ steals show
IT’S 13 years since Aidan O’Brien went a season without an Irish Classic success and he left it late to keep his remarkable record in tact, as Flag Of Honour (2/1 favourite) led from pillar to post in the Group One Comer Group International Irish St Leger at the Curragh yesterday.
The son of Galileo produced a career best on Irish Champions Weekend to deny Irish Derby winner Latrobe – trained by Aidan’s son Joseph – in what was a weekend of St Legers for the Ballydoyle maestro and jockey Ryan Moore.
Victory in the €500,000 Irish Classic was soaked up by O’Brien and Moore, unlike their English St Leger triumph with Kew Gardens on Saturday, as they made a swift exit from Doncaster to land in Leopardstown just minutes after unsaddling.
“We had to get out of there very quickly,” O’Brien said. “We didn’t get a chance to look at replays. We got a helicopter from Doncaster to Doncaster airport, then a plane from Doncaster airport to Dublin and a helicopter from Dublin to Leopardstown.”
On any normal weekend, O’Brien and Moore airport-hopping their way further into the history books would be the story, but victory for Skitter Scatter (7/2 favourite) in the Group One Moyglare Stud was one of the most celebrated races of the season.
Underestimated somewhat despite her convincing Debutante Stakes success, the Scat Daddy filly provided Patrick Prendergast and Ronan Whelan with their maiden triumph at the highest level.
Prendergast was running around kissing everyone in sight as the parade ring was full of congratulations for the local trainer with 20-odd horses. It is one of the feel-good stories of the season and the result the Irish Champions Weekend needed.
Ronan’s father Tom was straight over to owner Sonia Rogers, thanking her for allowing his son to continue his association with a horse which has helped keep his name on the map. Prendergast himself was struggling to comprehend that he could have a future 1000 Guineas winner.
“Coming here I thought this was a filly who could run well in a Guineas, now I think she could win it. I’m quite astounded at how good she is. I was worried coming into today because I’d felt it had been a long year for her,” a jubilant Prendergast said.
“We just wanted to win her maiden, that was my brief and it’s incredi-
ble that she has just kept going and improving. I was also worried that she has finally started to grow – she’s not going to be so small next year.
“All my staff have worked incredibly hard and they’re all involved with her and that’s the beauty of a small yard.”
Prendergast added of Whelan: “I don’t think Ronan realises how good he is. I said to him going out that there were other jockeys looking for the ride on this filly as the year went on and I told him ‘there’s a reason that you’re on her, because you’re world class’ – and he is.”
The English raiders were dominant with three wins – Mick Channon’s Barbill (6/1) took the €300,000 Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sale Stakes – from eight races, and none
were more impressive than Charlie Appleby’s Quorto (11/8 favourite).
The Dubawi colt shot up the reckoning for next year’s English 1,000 Guineas (8/1 from 14/1) with William Buick steering him to a decisive defeat of O’Brien’s Anthony Van Dyck in the Group One National Stakes.
“He’s put himself there as a candidate for the 2000 Guineas and at this stage if you pinned me down I’d say he’s a miler who could stretch out to 10 furlongs. He’s very much his father in many respects,” Appleby said of the Godolphin two-year-old.
Karl Burke also made hay on Champions Weekend – Laurens caused a huge shock when lowering Alpha Centauri’s colours on Saturday – with Havana Grey (15/8) providing more
satisfaction for favourite backers in the other Group one on the card, the Flying Five Stakes.
Burke could hardly believe his luck. “This time last year if someone had said you’d have two Group One winners in a weekend you’d think they were dreaming, but he fully deserved this and it bugged me earlier in the season when people were saying he hadn’t trained on,” he said.
“My career has been a bit of a roller coaster and more roller than coaster most of the times.
“The last five or six years have been fantastic, though, since I came back after the year off with the ban.
“Every year we’ve managed to hit lucky with some nice horses at the sales.”