Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
FOLLOW SCIENCE
Rivals could be left trailing in Rocket’s wake
ROCKET Science should be tough to beat in the PWC Kilkenny Handicap at Gowran Park today.
Ground conditions were heavy yesterday, with parts of the track waterlogged.
If the action goes ahead, Rocket Science – proven in testing conditions – might give Shane Foley a welcome success as he currently trails Colin Keane by seven (85-92) in the battle for the Jockeys Championship f o l l o wi n g Keane’s Fairyhouse double yesterday.
The selection l anded a handicap at Roscommon back in mid-august, beating Mean Fomhair, which she meets on 6lb worse terms here. But since that clash, the Gerry Keane-trained Mean Fomhair has been largely disappointing while Rocket Science has produced mixed performances, including a couple of solid ef forts in stakes company.
The Jessica Harrington filly finished fourth to subsequent Group 1 winner Champers Elysees in the Fairy Bridge at this venue and, after a disappointing run in Listowel, was fifth to Current Option in the Concorde (Group 3) at Tipperary last time.
Th e a b i l i ty to handle conditions will be crucial in the two-year-old maidens.
Jo s e p h O’ Br i e n’s R o yal Blend, although possibly flatt ered by a rating of 90, possesses solid placed form on testing ground , with seconds to Earth Strike and Dame Dandy at Leopardstown and Galway respectively giving her r o c k- s o l i d claims in the second division of the median auction maiden.
And, last time, she filled fifth spot behind Sweet Gardenia in the listed Churchill in Tipperary. With in-form Dylan Mcmonagle claiming a valuable 5lb, Royal Blend sets a decent standard.
In the five-runner Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Race, a trio of pre vious winn ers will face a pair of maidens from Ballydoyle. Cosmic Vega and Flying Visit have both triumphed in soft ground while Harrington’s (inset) charge went on to finish fourth to Sweet Gardenia in a listed event at Tipperary.
But the one I like is Aidan O’brien’s onceraced Galileo colt Sandhurst, off the track since finishing third behind Ides Of August and Southern Cape in a Leopardstown maiden back in June.
Sandhurst will be ridden by in-form Seamus Heffernan, who will deputise for the suspended Joey Sheridan when the Tony Mullins-trained filly Princess Zoe bids to follow-up her sensational Cadran win, on her return to Longchamp, for Sunday’s Prix Royal-oak.