CARRYING the colours of Brian Mellon, the Andy Oliver-trained Pretty Omagh Girl marked her first run of the year, and her first in handicap company, by landing the mile handicap at the Curragh on Sunday.
This was just a fourth career start for the four-year-old Shaman filly who Caledon-based Oliver purchased for €28,000 at the 2023 Goffs Orby Sale.
She was ridden on Sunday by Ben Coen who was also on board the chesnut when, on her debut, she finished fourth of 14 in a mile auction maiden at the Curragh in late June last year.
Luke McAteer partnered two winners at Dundalk on Tuesday, the second being Cuban Grey who recorded his seventh career success in the five-furlong maiden at odds of 22/1.
Good humour
The six-year-old Havana Grey gelding, who was led up by our good friend James Lambe, is trained for the McKenna Partnership by Pat McKenna who, as ever, gave one of his entertaining, educational performances when interviewed by Racing TV’s Fran Berry.
He’d put you in good humour. For the record, McKenna Racing gave 5,000 guineas for Cuban Grey when the grey was sold at the Tattersalls January Online Sales in 2024.
An owner-breeder we should mention is Alan Dunlop whose Gordon Elliott-trained five-year-old gelding Loch Cuan (Court Cave - Inisharoan, by Jimble) justified 9/4 favouritism in the opening two-mile, six-furlong Cartmel Sticky Toffee Pudding Maiden Hurdle at the Cumbrian track on Saturday.
At the same meeting, the extended three-mile, one-furlong mares’ handicap hurdle was won by the seven-year-old bay Tread Softly Now (Champs Elysees – Watch Closely Now, by Winged Love) who was bred in Britain by her owners Stephen Sinclair and Ian Duncan.
This was a fourth career success for Tread Softly Now who is trained by Duncan.
At Wexford on Wednesday, division one of the two-mile, one-furlong handicap was won by the Philip Rothwell-trained Kilt. This was a first success over hurdles for the five-year-old Kingman gelding who is owned by Dougie Sloan in partnership with William Jones.
ON the jockey front, I am again going to lead off with Dylan Browne McMonagle. And that’s not just because he partnered three winners at the Curragh over the weekend. No, it’s a bit more personal than that as the second of his two winners there on Saturday, the Eddie Lynam-trained Headmaster, just happened to be my Nap which moved me right up the table as the four-year-old Dubawi gelding scored by a neck at odds of 14/1!
Darragh Keenan rode a winner at York on Saturday as did Oisin Orr who did so again on Monday at Redcar where Patsy Cosgrove was on the mark on Tuesday.
On BBC Newsline this week, we learned, thanks to Ciaran Turich, that Spirit Dancer, on whom Orr won two runnings of the lucrative Bahrain International Trophy (2023 and 2024) for Richard Fahey, and Sir Alex Ferguson had been retired into the more than capable hands of the jockey’s stepmother Rachel Carton.
Among Rachel’s many roles is that of Secretary of Letterkenny Riding Club.
Downpatrick hosts some home winners
I WAS sorry to miss the ITBA (Northern Region) breeders’ awards and lunch last Friday at Downpatrick and the evening’s regional point-to-point awards at the racecourse.
So I also missed seeing wins for the Elizabeth Carson Racing Syndicate’s Bruant in the two-mile, three-furlong handicap hurdle, for the Pat Conway-bred eight-year-old mare Joya Del Mar (Ol’ Man River – Sand Reef, by Footstepsinthesand) in the Frank and Brian Fitzsimons Memorial Handicap Hurdle and for Deckie Lavery on Everest The Brave in the Down Royal Corporation of Horse Breeders Maiden Hunters Chase.
That six-year-old Shantarm gelding is trained by Gavin Cromwell who also supplied Lavery with a winner at Ballinrobe on Tuesday in the four-year-old Snow Sky gelding Fiveandahalf.
Also at that west of Ireland track, Sam Ewing recorded a double, the second leg coming on the Noel Meade-trained Joe Cool.
This four-year-old Lightning Spear gelding was bred by Joe Cunningham out of the Dubai Destination mare Prewar, a half-sister to Monty (by Motivator) whose 12 wins included two at Group 3 level.
Saintfield will be sadly missing this year
ONE show we were always happy to promote in this column each year is Saintfield Horse Show but, understandably, this has been cancelled for 2026. In a recent Facebook posting, organiser Joan Cunningham informed all of this decision.
“It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that my husband Colin Cunningham has died (peacefully in hospital on April 17th). He had been in and out of hospital since Christmas.
“As a result, I have had no time to organise the Saintfield Horse Show this year. There is an enormous amount of work goes into it. I am dreadfully sorry to let the people down who were looking forward to it.”