Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Conditions are a Dream
SUITED by ground conditions, Onenightidreamed should have a big shout in the Group 3 Coolmore Stud Home Of Champions Concorde Stakes in Tipperary tomorrow.
It’s been a quiet week – a two-day ‘holiday’ followed by a few days wandering around Goffs before returning to action in Dundalk last night.
And, with a jumps meeting in Gowran today and a mixed card in Tipperary tomorrow, we have only three flat races for the weekend. Luckily, I’ll be involved in all three.
Onenightidreamed, a great servant for the Stacks, has two seasons in one. He’s a real mud-lover, so he’s a horse for the spring and the autumn.
He has won an Irish Lincoln and the Amethyst at Leopardstown in 2015 and, last year, won the Group 3 Gladness at the Curragh.
This horse hasn’t run since April, when he won a conditions race over tomorrow’s course and distance. He hasn’t had any issues or hold-ups in the meantime.
But the ground is always an issue with him. And, realistically, there have been no suitable races for him – his Group win ruled him out of the listed races in Killarney and Listowel. So tomorrow’s race and the Navigation in Cork are the only races left for him.
He’s back, fit and well and in very good shape. His recent work has been good. And we know he goes in heavy ground, which can’t be said about some of his rivals.
It looks a competitive race, with the likes of
and in the line-up. But Onenightidreamed has a solid each-way shout. My chief concern is that a lack of match-practice.
I liked a Most Improved colt, when I rode him for Bill Durkan at Leopardstown – he ran quite well to finish sixth in the race won by Theobald. And I felt he should be capable of winning a maiden.
He’s a colt with a big frame, open to plenty of improvement. And connections tell me he has improved plenty since that run in June.
So I’m looking forward to riding him again in what is probably a hot maiden, when the ability to handle heavy ground and stay nine furlongs will make it a real test. But it’ll be interesting to see how he fares.
My other ride tomorrow is my first spin in a while for Eddie Lynam, in the nine-furlong Thetote.ie Handicap.
I rode this filly on her debut at Leopardstown last year. And she improved nicely through the season.
She has run twice this year and progressed from her first run to finish fifth to Gymkhana at Gowran last time.
With more improvement and her proven ability to handle plenty of ease in the ground, this High Chaparral filly might be in the shake-up.
Wednesday’s meeting in Naas is confined to two-year-olds. And I’m looking forward to riding
for the boss (Kevin Prendergast)
in the fillies maiden.
Lady O’reilly’s filly was very green and slowly into stride, but came home well to finish sixth to Threeandfourpence
She learned plenty from the run. And her work has improved. So the Declaration Of War filly should be competitive.