How did you get involved in the equine industry?

My brother and his family run the Tipperary Equestrian Centre in Thurles, so I’ve been in horses my whole life. I bought my first racehorse for €200 when I was 16 and she won three races so that was the start of it. My nephew, Darragh Ryan, showjumps professionally, and my daughter has won at the Dublin Horse Show before.

We run Boomerang Horse & Country in Thurles. We supply most of the racetracks with shavings and we deal with a lot of studs and racing yards. We’ve been in the business for 17 years supplying bedding and woodchip for gallops all over the country.

Tell us about Carrigans Grove.

We bred Carrigans Grove out of a mare that we used to race called Queen Grace. She’s named after our daughter, Grace. We bought her for €2,000 and she won four races for us and placed 18 times, we had great fun with her. Michael Browne used to train her.

She’s bred five winners so far, and has a lovely colt foal by Phoenix Of Spain at the moment, a yearling by Sands Of Mali, and two months ago her two-year old made £175,000 at the breeze-ups.

How was your day at Naas?

We got tremendous hospitality at Naas after the win, from Eddie Moran and Olive Walshe. We’re only small owners and it was a small race, but we were looked after so well, it was incredible. We were standing near the winning post and I went ballistic! We met Jessica Harrington in the owners and trainers’ bar after the race. She’s an inspiration to so many women around the country.

The friends that came with me want to start a syndicate for the Phoenix Of Spain colt now. They want to call it ‘Anxious For Courting’ after the song Bold Thady Quill. We’re all auld lads but we’re still anxious for courting! It’s great to introduce new people into racing. We went back to celebrate at Vincent Corcoran’s pub afterwards.

What’s the plan going forward?

She’s going back to Naas in 10 days’ time for an apprentice handicap over six furlongs, and Gary said she should win again the next day. She’s only run four times this year, and Gary has ridden her on those occasions. She won at Dundalk in April and then was second twice before winning at Naas. That’s a very good record in Ireland, it’s so competitive here. It’s great to have a filly that can do that.

We like to have a few bets as well. When she won at Dundalk she was 16/1 and we all had €800 each-way on her! Pat (Flynn, trainer) told us all on Wednesday morning that it was her day, so we all had a few quid on her. Fair play to him for telling us! It helps to pay the bills and keep the horse in training. She’s won €16,000 in prize money this season so it all helps.

We’ve had a serious enquiry about selling her, so we’ll be making a decision on that next week.

How did the partnership with Pat come about?

Pat has been one of our best and most loyal customers over the past 17 years. We’ve been supplying him with bedding and woodchip for his gallops for a long time. He was a Munster boxing champion in his day, and that was his 830th winner as well.

What’s the breeding operation like at home?

We only have three mares at the moment. We like dealing with Joe and Jane Foley in Ballyhane, they’re top class and brilliant people to deal with. Queen Grace will go back to Sands Of Mali to be covered.

Carrigans Grove was a very small foal so we didn’t take her to the sales, there was no point in taking her. She’s a very tough filly, a little battler. She gets it from the mare. She was small and tough as well.

What’s been a highlight for you over the years?

Show jumping would be our number one thing, and it’s great seeing my family do well. We had a good horse named Boomerang Breeze at the Dublin Horse Show a few years ago, and my newphew Darragh won the young riders’ on him. The year after, Darragh’s brother Cillian won the children and horses class.

I gave Ado McGuinness a loan of the horse for his daughter Aisling, and she did very well on him as well. He only cost €2,000. It’s not all about expensive horses. Grace was on a winning team at the Dublin Horse Show when she was 12, on a horse that only cost €9,000.

What advice would you give someone that wanted to get into ownership?

Ideally, if you could get a few friends into it to lighten the load, that would be good. People think you have to pay hundreds and thousands for a horse, but you can get in handy enough if you have somebody to pick them up for you at the sales. There’s a lot of very good smaller trainers around the country as well. You have to enjoy the whole process.