Track-winning trio
Jordan, Black and Bowe all deliver
ONE OF the richest day’s racing of the year took place at the refurbished Longchamps in the centre of Paris on Sunday, with almost €8 million on offer in seven Group 1 races, the highlight being the €5m Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
But the week will be remembered for jumping success by three local stables that don’t figure that often in the winners’ enclosure – Brian Jordan (Rathangan), Tony Black (Bunclody) and Colin Bowe (Kiltealy), with Mark Scallan (Cleariestown) riding his first track winner for more than five years.
There was a Wexford double at the National Hunt meeting at Clonmel on Thursday, with wins for trainers Jordan and Bowe.
Scallan concentrates mainly on the point-to-point scene where he rides and trains, but he does ride out regularly for Brian Jordan, and it all came together nicely when Knock on Steel won the opening Kilmore Maiden Hurdle over two miles.
To complete an all-Wexford success, the horse is owned by Richard Eustace and was bred by his sister, Susan. The win was not unexpected; he touched 25/1 in the morning, opened on the course at 11/2, and went off at 7/2.
The Bowe winner came in the €15,000 three-mile handicap hurdle with Sweet Home Chicago (8/1) under Bryan Cooper, owned by Fiona Bowe. He was held up but moved through to take it up coming to the second last and he finished it out well.
Jonathan Moore started the week with a winner for Noel Meade at Roscommon on Monday, steering home Lord in Red (10/1) in a two and a half mile handicap hurdle. He beat a Mullins hot-shot, hitting back to regain the lead in the final furlong under a good ride.
In the bumper at the same meeting, Jamie Codd cruised home on Eoin Griffin’s Castletown Quary.
Tony Black from Bunclody picked up a good winner at Gowran Park on Saturday in an incident-filled handicap hurdle. Teqany (10/1) survived a stewards’ enquiry to take the two miles Thomastown Handicap Hurdle under Danny Mullins by a nose from Reaver, his second win since August.
Liz Doyle’s Justmemyselfandi ran another very game race to finish second, less than a length behind Henry De Bromhead’s Judgement Day (both 2/1) after a tough battle in the €20k Captain Christy Novice Chase. Doyle’s horse had won at Sligo just over a week earlier.
Aidan O’Brien sent a ten-strong team to Paris but had to be satisfied with two seconds, which more or less typifies his season. He had five in the big one, the Arc, but his best was fifth with Capri (26/1) behind repeat winner, Enable.
It was the same in the Prix L’Abbaye sprint with Lost Treasure the best of his four, again in fifth. His two seconds were a very game Magic Wand (5/1) in the mares’ Prix de L’Opera and Broome (7/1) in the two-year-old mile.
It was the same story in the big race on Saturday, the €267k Group 1 Kingdom of Bahrain Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket, as O’Brien’s Happily (8/1) was foiled by just a head as he was fighting back at the finish under son, Donnacha.
The victor here was the tenacious Karl Burke-trained Laurens (11/4) which was gaining her fourth Group 1 of the season.
Usually the ride of P.J. McDonald, she has been ridden in her two most recent wins by Danny Tudhope as the Taghmon man is recovering from leg injuries suffered in a freak parade-ring fall at Newcastle some weeks ago.
There was a good day of mixed racing at Tipperary on Sunday, and Jim Bolger came close in the Group 3 Coolmore Stud Concorde Stakes with Smash Williams (10/1) and Flight Risk (33/1) filling the minor places behind Dermot Weld’s Yulong Gold Fairy (9/2).
Bolger has been having a quiet time but had a winner at Naas on Tuesday, Smart Flies (5/1) in a seven-furlong maiden, while Aidan O’Brien had a double with Norway (7/2) under Seamie Heffernan and Fightfortheheroes (1/1) under son, Donnacha.
He had a win with the well-bred Snowflakes (9/4) in a mile maiden at Cork on Wednesday.
He kept up the strike rate at Dundalk on Friday with Never No More (4/7) in a €20,000 five-furlong sprint while his son, Joseph, made it a good night for the family with a double.