WHAT an emotional day for the family and friends of John Thomas McNamara at the weekend when the Munster National at Limerick, sponsored by Ladbrokes, carried the late, great rider’s name in the title. Victory went to Tiger Roll, a son of a Derby winner and a half-brother to a classic runner-up in the Dubawi gelding Ahzeemah.

Bred by Gerry O’Brien, Tiger Roll sold for 70,000gns as a foal to John Ferguson but he was sold as an unraced three-year-old at Doncaster to Nigel Hawke for £10,000. In November of the same year he won a juvenile hurdle on his debut, was sold to Gigginstown House Stud for £80,000 at Brightwells and on just his third start he won the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham.

He has now won three times over hurdles and the same number of times over fences and his earnings have moved north of £180,000. He rates as a winning investment for Michael O’Leary. Tiger Roll is a six-year-old son of Authorized and his dam is the Entrepreneur mare Swiss Roll.

She was trained by the soon to retire Tommy Stack and won twice, earning blacktype when runner-up to Icklingham in the Listed Vintage Crop Stakes at Navan.

Swiss Roll is one of three stakes horses from On Air, a daughter of Chief Singer who won three times on the flat and also won over hurdles for Nick Gaselee.

In addition to Swiss Roll, this trio includes the Group 3 winning Orpen filly Pollen and Berenson, an own-brother to Swiss Roll. Berenson ran just twice from the Stack yard, winning a maiden and finishing second to Dubawi in the Group 1 National Stakes at the Curragh.

On Air is one of seven winners from the stakes-placed French runner Green Light and she is a daughter of Ranimer, winner of the then Group 2 Sun Chariot Stakes for owner Sir Robin McAlpine and trainer Peter Head. She was also runner-up in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Authorized stands under the Darley banner in France and he is sire of four Group 1 winners on the flat, including Ambivalent and Seal Of Approval. His National Hunt winners include six-time Grade 1 winner Nichols Canyon, Tiger Roll, the Grade 2 winner Zamdy Man, while another Gordon-Elliott trained son is Commissioned who gave the trainer a Royal Ascot winner this year in the Queen Alexandra Stakes.