THE autumn season reaches its delayed conclusion tomorrow at Tattersalls, and it will not be long until attention soon turns to the new crop of four-year-olds, who are currently being readied for their competitive debuts early next year.

Their first opportunity to run between the flags will come at either Ballinaboola or Bellharbour on February 1st, and the countdown to that began last week when the first crop of 2026 four-year-olds received their hunter certificates.

Sam Curling, Jerry Baragry and Donal Commins were first out of the gates, having each already taken out hunter certs for three-year-olds.

Whilst those preparations continue, at the same time, the four-year-olds from the 2025 spring term are continuing to make a very positive impression for their new connections on the track.

Last Saturday, Princess Day and Taurus Bay, who had both won four-year-old maidens earlier in the year, added track successes to that. Princess Day had won her maiden on debut for Rob James at Fairyhouse in late May, and she made an immediate impression on stable debut for Champion Hurdle-winning trainer Jeremy Scott, by landing a Chepstow bumper on her first start under rules.

That was on the same afternoon that Taurus Bay remained unbeaten with his third career success. A four-year-old maiden winner at Comea in February for Denis Murphy, he is already being considered for a Grade 1 assignment at Christmas, after he won for a second time over hurdles at Aintree for Ben Pauling.

Successful rules debut

Twenty-four hours later, Lord Rouge, who had finished second to the exciting Heldam in a Punchestown four-year-old maiden for Pat Doyle back in February, made a winning start to his rules career for Gordon Elliott in a maiden hurdle at Cork.

Those three weekend successes continue a very positive trend which has seen last season’s spring four-year-olds make a particularly notable impact on the track in just a few short months.

In all, the 2025 spring crop of four-year-olds have already brought their tally of track successes to 42 victories, the first of which was achieved by the Punchestown Festival winner Bud Fox.

That son of Walk In The Park was successful on the first day of the 2025 four-year-old maiden term at Bellharbour in February, before winning a bumper at Punchestown for Gavin Cromwell.

Derek O’Connor, who had started Bud Fox off in his Bellharbour maiden, currently leads the way in terms of the number of track winners to have emerged from his spring team of four-year-olds in 2025, thanks to the subsequent exploits of Bud Fox, Glitz And Glamour, Harry Lowes and The Flaggy Shore.

The latter had only fetched £36,000 after her winning debut at Stowlin, a price which looks to have been a shrewd spend by Highflyer Bloodstock following her eye-catching seven-length bumper success at Warwick in recent weeks.

THE contingency weekend that the IHRB leave free at the end of the autumn term has once again been called into use, after last Sunday’s fixture in Tattersalls had to be put back by seven days.

Disappointingly, the fixture was unable to get underway last weekend due to a lack of ambulance cover, which led to an announcement being made just after 12.15pm, stating that the point-to-point would have to be cancelled.

The timing of the fixture, coming as it did on the final Sunday in advance of the Cheltenham December sale, heightened the frustration of those connections of horses who had hoped to run at the fixture and secure their place in the sale.

They will now get the chance to run tomorrow, with the rescheduled fixture beginning at the earlier start time of 11am, in order to avoid disruption with the arrival of horses on site at the sales complex ahead of the Sapphire Sale.

The Tattersalls postponement reduces the Christmas break down to little over two weeks until the spring term gets underway at Dromahane.

Ahead of that, the IHRB have issued several key dates in the Christmas & New Year schedule for hunter certificate registrations and the closing dates of point-to-point entries.

Handlers of horses who wish to run at that Dromahane fixture on Tuesday, December 30th, should note that entries will close at 12 noon this coming Tuesday, December 16th.

The entry deadline for Ballindenisk and Tinahely on Sunday, January 4th, is Tuesday, December 30th, whilst those connections who intend to run at Aghabullogue or Turtulla on Sunday, January 11th, will need to have their hunter certificates lodged with the INHSC no later than the close of business next Friday, December 19th.

Ratings of the week

THERE was no shortage of quality action at Dromahane last Saturday, with all three four-year-old maiden races producing eye-catching performances, beginning in the four-year-old mares’ maiden.

Burds Of A Feather (82+) was certainly deserving of a maiden victory, having been in front and going well at Turtulla last month, only to run off the home bend.

At Dromahane, she again raced from the front, and despite being joined and headed by the impressive newcomer, Even Tho (84x), when that rival fell at the last, she was still able to return by a double-digit winning margin, suggesting it was a race to note.

The Old Head (94+) continued the excellent recent run of form in the age division for John Murphy, as this Walk In The Park gelding was well-produced by Johnny Barry to come off a strong gallop.

Finishing out the race best of all allowed him to clock a particularly quick time, as the four finishers returned at wide intervals owing to that fast tempo.

The second division of that four-year-old geldings’ maiden was run to a more conservative pace in comparison, with Barry Stone taking advantage of that aboard Super Junior (92+).

They were able to slip the field with a decisive move leaving the back straight, which proved significant.

At Ballycrystal, Lola De Magny (78+) controlled the four-year-old mares’ maiden from the front. She had finished well at Knockmullen House on her most recent start, and the change in tactics to ensure that the race was run to a good tempo brought out the best in her. She is clearly a good staying type.

Front-running tactics also paid dividends for Watery Borren (89+), who similarly made all, albeit at a steadier pace given the deteriorating conditions. He was on course to record what had seemed likely to be a more comfortable victory before he made an error at the last. This resulted in his advantage being eroded down to just a length at the line.

In contrast, Thinkitdontjinxit (92++) had plenty left in the tank in the opening division. This newcomer, who had overcome several novicey errors earlier in the race, produced a striking turn of foot in the home straight, given the conditions, to emphatically pull clear on the run-in by a widening eight lengths.