THE names of owner Patricia Hunt and trainer Noel Meade are never out of place at any major National Hunt Festival, but at the weekend they combined to win the Paddy Power Irish Lincolnshire with Layfayette. This was the four-year-old gelding’s third and most important win of his career.

The son of multiple Group 3 winning miler and 10 furlong runner French Navy (Shamardal) was bred by Matt Duffy, who sold the then colt as a yearling for just €4,000 at Fairyhouse to Emmanuel Hughes. What a thrill Hughes got when, the following May, the colt realised €54,000 as a breezer at the Tattersalls Ireland Goresbridge Sale.

Layfayette has won more than double that purchase price in 10 starts, only twice finishing out of the money. His half-brother Urlucc (Lord Shanakill) did even better, winning over £50,000 with three juvenile victories, and he cost a mere €1,200 as a foal.

French Navy stood for five seasons, until last year, at Kildangan Stud at a fee of €4,000.

Goffs Million winner

Soul City (Elusive City) won more than €1 million when racing, and yet you would be forgiven for forgetting him as a racehorse. Thirteen years ago, as a two-year-old for Richard Hannon, he won the Group 3 Prix La Rochette in France, beating Milan and Jukebox Jury, and a listed race at Deauville, but his greatest payday was at the Curragh when he landed the Goffs Million.

Third in the Group 1 Irish 2000 Guineas to Mastercraftsman, he eventually went to stud in France as a six-year-old and, with his seventh crop of racing age being his 2021 two-year-olds, he has sired about 30 winners, one of which was runner-up in a listed race.

Why does he get a mention this week? Well, his two-year-old daughter Josejosephine won at Lyon Parilly on Saturday, the first juvenile race of the season in Europe. She is the fourth winner, all of whom won at two, out of the unraced Royalrique (Enrique). Two years ago that mare’s juvenile Has D’emra (Kheleyf) won three times at that age and placed in three listed races.

A day later, the Jim Bolger owned, bred and trained Missing Matron won the first two-year-old race of our season here. By Vocalised (Vindication), sire of the Group 1 winning juvenile Verbal Dexterity, Missing Matron has three winning siblings, the best of which was Dubai Sand (Teofilo), a stakes winning two-year-old.