51 up for O’Keeffe
Shane Fitzgerald got the Brian Hamilton-trained Justicialism up in the dying strides to land the two-mile handicap hurdle for fouryear-olds at Naas on Sunday. The 11/2 chance had plenty to do jumping the final flight as Calvados was nicely clear, but the Buttevant conditional never gave up and his mount led in the shadow of the post to pip the brave front-runner by half a length.
Paul Townend and Willie Mullins got in on the winning act as the Marie and Joe Donnelly-owned Bring On The Night took the second division of the two-mile maiden hurdle in terrific style. Sent off the 5/6 favourite on his debut for the champion trainer, the five-year-old eased clear from the final flight to beat the Barry Connell-trained Snake Oil by eight lengths and not surprisingly will now take up his entry in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. Denis O’Regan combined with County Meath trainer Francis Casey to win the two-mile handicap hurdle with Palace Rock, which was bred the trainer’s late father Peter. The 7/2 chance got it wrong at the final flight but he lasted home to win by half a length from the Seamus Fahey-trained Take All.
It proved to be a great weekend for Thurles trainer Pat Doyle as he landed winners at Fairyhouse on Saturday and at Naas the following afternoon. It started well as the Ben Harvey-ridden Mister Bo saw off the Lorna Fowler-trained Banjaxed to win Fairyhouse’s bumper. The 9/1 chance scored by threeparts of a length in the colours of the trainer’s wife Mary. Better was to come less than 24 hours later as Flame Bearer won the Grade 2 BetVictor Novice Hurdle at the County Kildare venue. Ridden by the trainer’s son Jack, the strong even money favourite comfortably got the better of the Oliver McKiernan-trained Meet And Greet by two and a half lengths.
Rachael Blackmore won the first of Sunday’s Grade 3 races when partnering the Declan Landy-owned Captain Guinness at Naas to a comfortable success over two Willie Mullins-trained horses in the BetVictor Chase. A well-supported 5/4 favourite, the seven-year-old was tight to the stands’ rail when leading over the second last fence and he ran on well to beat 15/8 shot Blackbow by two and three-parts of a length with 5/2 shot Cash Back well adrift in third place. The Roger Brookhouse-owned Gabbys Cross scored a four-length success for Blackmore and the County Waterford trainer in the two and a half-mile novice handicap chase. The sevenyear-old was so keen on the way to post that unavoidably jumped a fence before the race had even started, but it took nothing out of him and he raced clear of 9/4 favourite Ballyshannon Rose from the last to score in good style.
The Kenny Alexander-owned Brampton Belle bounced back to winning ways with a narrow, and possibly fortunate, success under Rachael Blackmore in the Listed BetVictor Apple’s Jade Mares Novice Hurdle at the rearranged fixture at Navan on Sunday. The weekend storms caused a 48-hour delay to the meeting but Henry de Bromhead’s six-year-old certainly wasn’t put out. A well-supported 7/2 chance, she got the better of the front-running Shane O’Brien-trained My Design after the final hurdle and then held off the late surge of Joseph O’Brien’s 9/4 favourite Lunar Display by a diminishing half a length to record her second win from just four starts.
Newmarket-On-Fergus apprentice Jessica O’Gorman rode her second winner when taking the seven-furlong handicap at Dundalk on Friday night on Miss Cunning, the horse that got her off the mark in August 2020. Trained by Kevin Prendergast in those days, the fiveyear-old was having her first start for owner/trainer Aengus King and for good measure was led up by the winning jockey’s father, Anthony. The 40/1 chance got the better of the Amy Jo Hayes-ridden Sunset Nova by a head with Chummie, ridden by Chloe Byrne, half a length away in third place.
County Kilkenny trainer Pat Murphy gave Cahir’s Nathan Crosse his third winner of the winter series and his 80th winner in all as Craft Irish landed the seven-furlong maiden the same night. Owned by the J & J Racing Partnership, the 4/5 favourite had loads in hand as he beat the John Nallen-trained Cristal Clere by two and a half lengths.
SUCCESS FOR MORRISON IN THURLES
Tallow trainer John Morrison was among the winners at Thurles last Thursday where he landed the ladies’ handicap hurdle with Danegold. A third winner on the racecourse for Rochelle Murphy, the 14/1 chance skipped clear between the final two flights to win by all of 10 lengths from the Eoin McCarthy-trained Tohellortoconnacht in the trainer’s own colours. Meanwhile, Jody Townend brought her tally for the season to 17 winners when winning the bumper on 14/1 chance Mitiva. The four-year-old was making her racecourse debut for County Wexford trainer Liz Doyle and she readily got the better of the Willie Mullins-trained 13/8 favourite Brookline to win by two and a half lengths in the hands of the champion lady rider.
Paul Townend shared a double with Willie Mullins at Punchestown on Wednesday week where Burning Victory landed the Grade 3 Quevega Mares Hurdle, a race Mullins has made his own, in good style. A 1/2 favourite in the colours of owner Audrey Turley, the former Cheltenham festival Triumph Hurdle winner made all the running and comfortably held off the staying-on Queens Brook to win by a length and a half and secure her place in the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham. Ramillies, a 4/9 favourite, won the two and a half-mile maiden hurdle in facile fashion, the Marie and Joe Donnelly-owned sevenyear-old might not have jumped with any great fluency but he raced to a seven-length win over Gordon Elliott’s 3/1 chance The Waltzer and the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle is a possibility.
Pat Flynn teamed up with leading conditional rider Shane Fitzgerald to win the two-mile maiden hurdle on the day with Walnut Beach. A drifter in the betting markets, the five-year-old was sent off at odds of 9/4 but readily got the better of the Willie Mullins-trained 2/1 favourite Haxo by two and three-parts of a length. It was Fitzgerald’s 37th winner of the season and he trails Jordan Gainford by five winners in the race to become champion conditional rider. Doneraile jockey Darragh O’Keeffe moved onto the 51-winner mark for the season with success on the Robert Widger-trained Indie Belle in the second division of the two and a half-mile handicap hurdle. The 10/1 chance ran out a three and a quarter-length winner from Denis Hogan’s Wild Hunt.
Conna trainer Sean Aherne was among the winners at the rearranged fixture at Navan last Tuesday week where Ask And Answer, in the colours of Eoin Barry, recorded a gutsy victory in the opening division of the two-mile five-furlong handicap hurdle. With Sean O’Keeffe in the saddle, the nine-year-old had a battle on his hands from before the second last hurdle, but he doggedly held off both the Tony Martin-trained 4/1 favourite Nathaniel’s Dream and Paul Gilligan’s Uknowcarty by a nose and three-parts of a length. Aherne said, “He was entitled to win one of those and hopefully he might get another one, maybe over fences. Sean was very good on him today. I’d say he’s a horse that’s a bit nervous in among other horses and if he is able to dictate, like he did today, he’s much happier. Every one of those winners is deeply appreciated.”
UPCOMING FIXTURES
Clonmel – Thursday, March 3 (first race 2.20pm); Dundalk – Friday, March 4 (first race 4.55pm); Navan – Saturday, March 5 (first race 1.40pm); Wexford – Sunday, March 6 (first race 2.10pm); Leopardstown – Sunday, March 6 (first race 1.55pm).