The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Ballymac Cooper cruises to Juvenile Derby heat win
IT was an average enough programme at Tralee Track on Friday night, with the highlight being a terrific run of 28.62 (.10 slow) by the John Moynihan-trained Zingers, but, really, it was all about the very best of juvenile class at Shelbourne Park where the quarter-finals of the Dublin Coach Juvenile Derby (winner, €22,500) were run off...and our own Liam Dowling was very much a central figure, especially with the flying machine they call Ballymac Cooper.
Ballymac Cooper is a September ’17 whelping by Ballymac Matt out of Ballymac Scala, and he was running from trap 5 in the first quarter-final, sharing 5/4 favouritism with Brinkleys Kid in trap 1. For those who took the 5/4 about him, it proved to the be the easiest of pickings – for the very good reason that he absolutely routed the opposition on his way to a ten-length victory over Clonbrien Flash in a blistering 28.07.
This was one of many great runs which Ballymac Cooper has produced since he introduced himself on May 3 with a run of 28.30 (28.70 on going rated .40 slow) in a novice sweepstake at Kilkenny (he won by eleven lengths on that occasion) and it goes with saying that huge interest will focus on him in the second semi-final of the Dublin Coach Derby this Friday night, especially by those watching on the Tralee Track monitors. Being a wide seed, he has trap 6 on this occasion.
Liam Dowling also has Ballymac Wisdom (Definate Opinion – Coolavanny Angie) running for him in the first semi-final. This lady has outstanding gears as well and, although she comes up against Skywalker Canny, which, like Ballymac Cooper, won his quarter-final in 28.07, she has a mighty chance of qualifying for the final, especially from a trap 1 draw.
It’s marvellous to see Liam Dowling so strongly involved in this great Shelbourne Park juvenile event and it would really be something if both Ballymac Cooper and Ballymac Wisdom both anage to qualify for the final on Friday week.
Mind you, nothing could top what the man has already achieved on track and field...
Liam was also chasing a pot of €30,000 in the Irish Laurels at Cork with Ballymac Anton, but this fellow missed the break in heat 3 (round 2) on Saturday night and failed to qualify in fourth place behind dead-heaters, Rockybay Foley and Clona Dream.
However, Kerry is still represented in the event by Joey I Said, which comfortably won heat 4 for Scartaglen trainer, Maurice O’Connor, and the Nolan O’Connor syndicate, and Scart Jim, which finished a close third in heat 2 behind Arklight Rumble (28.35) for James Mahony, of Scartaglen.
The very best of luck to these two in the semi-finals this Saturday night.
Turning to last Friday night’s action at Tralee Track and the run of 28.62 by the John Moynihan-trained Zingers, this January ’18 son of Droopys Jet and Honeypot Lane had demonstrated very clear ability in a recent A3 sweepstake over 500yds at the Oakview venue, but he kept on running into trouble.
No traffic problems this time, though, in a 525yds race for A3 class. Miss Aero might have broken best from trap 2, but Zingers, which was 6/4 second favourite and ran from trap 3, simply powered into the lead on the back straight and he wound up winning by no less than nine and a half lengths from even-money favourite, Cashen Sankarani , with a length and a half back to Miss Aero.
The night’s programme was headed up by three semi-finals of an 18-greyhound A3 525 sweepstake carrying the name of LB Rovers (winner, €850) and another local trainer, Brendan Maunsell, well known for the Fire Height prefix, provided the fastest winner in Fire Height Sean, which he owns himself and which clocked 29.03 in the third semi-final.
The other semi-final winners were the Patrick O’Connor-trained Chubbys Lara (29.14) and the Padraig Regan-trained Confident Rodman (29.28) and the draw for the final this Saturday night is (trap order): Fire Height Sean, Whistling Rover, Chubbys Lara, Manhattan Field, Champagne Jenny, Confident Rodman.
Other Tralee winners: Maggie Mustang, 18.26; Darragh Jake, 29.77; Clounamon Puma, 29.56; Sporting Pat, 42.26; Hayeses Sky, 17.70; Headleys Adam, 29.04.