Wexford wins countrywide WEEKLY ROUND-UP

IN ADDITION to the action at Ballinaboola on Sunday, there were also point-to-point meetings in Clare, Oldtown, Co. Meath, and Tallow in Waterford, and Wexford connections travelled the country to pick up winners at each of them.

In the jockeys’ title race, there was a significant move by eleven times champion Derek O’Connor who had a four-timer to move up to 18; current champion, Jamie Codd, had a double and is on 21, while leader Barry O’Neill had to be satisfied with a single win and is on 25.

After his treble at Ballinaboola, Rob James is now sixth on ten.

At the Ward Union Hunt meeting at Oldtown, Codd won the open race for local trainer Jim Dreaper on the Alan Potts-owned Grand Jesture to qualify the horse for Cheltenham.

Denis Murphy (The Ballagh) got third with Palmers Hill under Harley Dunne.

He doubled up in the five-year-old plus mares’ maiden on Princess of China (Stowaway-Handful of Euros), a first of the season for Paul and Andrew Pierce from Killurin.

Codd also had a second, and a third on his brother William’s Rio Vivas before dashing to Punchestown to win the bumper.

At the West Waterford Foxhounds meeting at Tallow there was a fairly rare occurrence, a dead heat for first, in the five-year-old geldings’ maiden. Robin the Hare (Robin Des Champs-Pretty Puttens) was one of those involved for Michael Goff from Clondaw, Ferns, under Cork rider Eddie O’Brien.

He shared with Coole Hall, for Borris duo, rider Richie Deegan and trainer Aidan Fitzgerald.

Barry O’Neill got his winner by a big margin in the concluding six-year-old plus geldings’ maiden on Colin Bowe’s Lacken Bridge (Scorpion-Rose of Salome), and this will be aimed at a winners’ race.

They were celebrating 200 years of local racing at Belharbour in Clare. The long journey paid off for Jimmy O’Rourke (Ballycogley) when he won the fiveyear-old geldings’ maiden on Donnchadh Doyle’s Uppertown Prince (Strategic Prince-Tarrawarra) for the Monbeg Syndicate.

James Doyle’s (Monageer) U No Like was well back in second. This pairing got a third win in the ladies’ open at Nenagh the week before with Springingforgold (Gold Well-Annie Be Quick) under Liz Lawlor, a performance that impressed all the experts and inspired talk of the Foxhunters Chase at the Cheltenham Festival

Next weekend, they race at Kirkistown, Co. Down, on Saturday and at Punchestown and Knockenard, Co. Clare, on Sunday.