Doyle and Dunne hit big time at Ayr
THE BIG win of the week was undoubtedly scored on the Ayr Grand National card on Saturday by the Seán Thomas Doyletrained Crosshue Boy in a Class 2 £100,000 novice handicap chase under a fine ride by Harley Dunne (The Ballagh-based amateur).
Saturday’s win was in the full spotlight of the ITV racing coverage and their experts, such as Mick Fitzgerald, were lavish in their praise of the job done by Doyle and his jockey, Dunne. While they have had plenty of track experience, they are more familiar and successful figures on the point-to-point circuit.
Dunne gave the horse a very cool ride, nursing him along in mid-field before making steady progress and taking it up after the last to close it out on the 22/1 outsider. He had a length to spare over Wayne Hutchinson on Alan King’s Dingo Dollar.
The eight-year-old son of Brian Boru, owned by N.J. Heffernan, has been in the form of his life in recent times. He won three times in a ten-day spell in March at Leopardstown (under J.J. Slevin), at Wexford on St. Patrick’s Day and at Down Royal, and followed this up with a terrific third in a €50,000 graded race at Fairyhouse (ridden those three times by Dunne).
Crosshue Boy had won his point-to-point under Barry O’Neill at Tattersalls away back in October, 2014, but had scored just three wins from 24 runs on the track until his recent burst, one of them being at Wexford on St. Patrick’s Day last year.
Here’s hoping the Crosshue Boy fairytale run continues at Punchestown this week; he is now likely to take his chance on Friday in a €100,000 Grade A handicap over two miles five furlongs.
Colin Bowe got the week off to a good start when winning a two miles five handicap chase at Tramore on Monday with his well-backed Lacken Bridge (5/1), a seven-year-old son of Scorpion.
Jonathan Moore (Adamstown) had his best winner for quite a while at Fairyhouse on Tuesday when he scored with a good ride in the €55,000 INH Stallion Owners’ novice handicap hurdle series final on Agent Boru (10/1), trained by regular supporter, Tom Gibney. Moore was understandably delighted after taking a tough tumble over the National fences at Aintree the previous week.
Jamie Codd made it a Wexford double in a thrilling finish to the Joseph O’Reilly Hunters’ Chase, Getting Jim Dreaper’s Sizing Coal (5/4f) home by a head after more than three miles.
Action returned to Fairyhouse on Thursday and it was another good day for Wexford connections. Seán Flanagan got on the Gordon Elliott/Gigginstown bandwagon with a snug win on Azua Emery (2/1) in the €15,000 mares’ maiden hurdle, a spare ride in place of an unwell Davy Russell.
Flanagan made it a double and gave Colin Bowe his second of the week in a two miles four mares’ handicap on board the well-backed Victoria Bay (12s into 5/1) for the Rich and Nora Furlong partnership.
Liz Doyle (Crsossabeg) trained her tenth winner of the season from 140 runs with Catwalk King (6/5f) in a two and a half mile maiden hurdle under Adam Short who was impressed: ‘He jumps like a buck and has a bit of size for chasing. He screams quality and can progress away on nicer ground.’
In Britain, three Wexford men won with their only rides of the day - Tom O’Brien at Cheltenham on Thursday in the £25,000 mares’ handicap chase, cruising in by 15 lengths on Sister Sibyl (7/4);
on the flat on Saturday, Pat Dobbs (Enniscorthy) had his first win since his return from the U.A.E. on Zaaki (9/2) for Michael Stoute at Thirsk, and Jimmy Quinn (New Ross) won at Newbury on Lunar Jet (11/2) for Jim Mackie.
Aidan O’Brien did not enjoy much success in the trials at the Newmarket Spring meeting but he did get a double with Ryan Moore at Navan on Sunday, with Order of St. George (2/9) in the €60,000 Vintage Crop Stakes and with So Perfect (4/1) in a fillies’ maiden.
All eyes will focus on the season-ending Punchestown Festival this week which concludes on Saturday.