All-Ireland Final 2025
It’s the final the neutrals wanted, the Ulster Champions Donegal against The Kingdom making it our 59th Final appearance.
With the kids, nieces and nephews all older now, it’s a hard slog to organise tickets, but thankfully we all get sorted to see Kerry claim their 39th All-Ireland victory.
One of the stars of the show is Fossa clubman Paudie Clifford, who is a great racing man and great pal of trainer Cian Collins. Paudie helps us out every year for our Skelper Quanes Bar in Blennerville Cheltenham Preview night by joining the panel and he came to Willie Mullins’s for a morning with me two years ago.
He promised Willie when he won Sam again, he would bring the famous cup back to the Closutton yard, so we are looking forward to a morning’s craic over the winter.
Of course, we have a great night of celebration and I have a great team minding me with Siun, Caroline Marie, Cathy, Cara, Aoife and Savannah. Sure, I’m blessed among women! Ciarrai Abu!
Galway Monday
“Do you remember the year…?” It’s a saying that is associated with the Galway Festival more than any other meeting on the circuit!
I suppose it’s partly because of the racing, the gambles, the drama and, of course, stories of the craic down the years. Galway is different and that’s why everyone adores it. Sure, even Willie Mullins is pictured in the winner’s enclosure without his trademark trilby. He leaves it in the wardrobe, we presume because while it’s a serious business on the track as always, the vibe between races and afterwards is always a holiday one.
It never ceases to amaze me the way the Galway Festival year after year drags punters, racegoers and social climbers from all over and abroad back to the meeting. This year will see 53 races with €2.1 million in prize money and approx 800 horses competing.
An attendance of about 130,000 over the week with 1,600 staff looking after them. There will be 171,000 pints consumed and the boys going real well will splash out on 5,000 bottles of champagne.
Galway also has a new winner’s enclosure this year, but it is the old reliables that mostly grace it. Willie Mullins and his nephew Emmet supply J.P. McManus with a double with Davy Crockett and Filey Bay.
Alan O’Sullivan had the job of steering Filey Bay and afterwards he dedicated the win to his much-missed brother Michael.
”He is looking down on me since the day he left us,” Alan and Michael’s dad William is here with niece Maxine and it’s a brilliant success for the much-loved family.
We also have a great story when It’sneverjustone scores for local Monivea native David Loughnane, who now trains in England for his maiden Galway Festival winner.
Owned by English-based Ian O’Connor and The Fox and Hounds Syndicate who are here, David is a proud man and tells us, “This was my Everest for a long time now and it’s very special.”
After racing, I head to The Quays for a few sociables with Caroline Marie, Aisling and Chips and the bar is rocking with a live band and happy racegoers and we finish off the night in O’Connell’s, where I meet Tyrone friends Frankie “My Auld Tomato” Campbell, his sons, Micky and Conor, and trainer Andy Oliver.
Galway Tuesday
The weather is decent for Day 2 and it’s the “smaller” trainers that shine, with five of the races going their way.
The feature Colm Quinn BMW Mile goes to Dunum led in by groom Louie Magill for trainer Natalia Lupini, based in Scarvagh, Co Down and originally from Milan. Ridden by the Peter Pan of the weigh-room Seamie Heffernan (he rode his first winner in 1988) and owned by Maurice and Mary Burns. Maurice let’s us know he hurt his back at the weekend and thought he wouldn’t make it today, so he is delighted and he named the horse after the Latin name for Downpatrick Town.
The opener on the card went the way of Sticktotheplan and Ricky Doyle for Kildare trainer Cormac Farrell and Summer Snow is a popular success for Wicklow trainer Peter Lawlor under Rory Cleary. In the finale, we have a dead-heat with Heliogabalus (Shane Foley) for Athy trainer Sean Byrne and Castleheath (Sam Coen) for Mullingar handler Ciaran Murphy.
Monroe’s Tavern on Dominick Street is always a great port of call and Gary and Rob cater for a great racing crowd this evening, and loads of bookmakers, with Justin “Sparticus” Flood, Marty McCutcheon, Victor Norris, Ray “Shapes” Mulvany, Billy and Jack Rodgers and Eoin Fitzgerald. Trainers Elliott and McGuinness and politicians Nina Carberry and Martin Heydon.
Galway Wednesday
Plate evening and there is a brilliant crowd to enjoy another memorable feature. Tradition seems everything these days with Tipperary winning the hurling, Kerry winning the football and Gordon Elliott winning the Plate.
Western Fold provides the Meathman with a fifth success in nine years and a second success in the race for jockey and local boy Danny Gilligan. Jointly-owned by Bobby O’Ryan (who bought the horse), John Wright and David L’Estrange, he wins by four and a half lengths from the admirable stalwart Jesse Evans.
An Elliott winner is always matched by a Mullins winner at the Festivals and Willie is in the number 1 spot (trilby back on) after Hipop De Loire scores under Paul Townend. Emmet Mullins wins with Galway specialist Teed Up, his sixth track success, and tells us “a soldier is the right analogy for him”, as jockey Ronan Whelan poses for the picture.
Jockey Declan Queally lands some hefty wagers for his dad and owners Man About Dog Syndicate with Bal Kauto and tells us afterwards “we might go for the McCarthy’s Bar Lexington Handicap Chase at Tramore. It’s kind of a local race and I’d say my dad would like to win it.”
Twenty-three-year-old Dublin native Patrick O’Brien is another jockey smiling, winning with the Harry Rogers-trained Cleopatra’s Needle reducing his claim to 5lb. Owners Nap Racing Syndicate are represented by Paul Browne and he tells us, “we went seven years without a winner and a lot people might have given up but we’ve had five winners now in the last 18 months. You need to just persevere at this game.”
O’Connell’s on Eyre Square is our port of call this evening, where you will catch up with Ross O’Sullivan and Katie Walsh, Eric McNamara, Gordon Elliott, Jody McGarvey, Ryan McCue, Darragh Hayes, John Lupton and former Cork hurling captain Mark Landers.
Ahead of racing, I take a mosey around the enclosures and check out some of the 57 bars and restaurant facilities on track.
In The Claddagh Restaurant, you can have a smoked salmon salad for €10, followed by beef and horseraddish for €18.50. Catch of the day is €18.50 and a cup of tea €3. In the bars, a pint of Guinness is €6.90, a pint of Rockshore €7.50, a vodka is €7.50 and a bottle of Dom Perignon is €300.
On the track, the day doesn’t disappoint with the highlight Guinness Galway Hurdle providing a nail-biting finish followed by a lengthy stewards’ enquiry.
Helvic Dream and Donagh Meyler chin Ndwaai and Jack Kennedy by a head and it’s theatre for the following 25 minutes, with trainers and great friends Noel Meade and Gordon Elliott waiting on the result.
Tom and Caroline Hendron had led in Helvic Dream and Ndwaai’s locally-based owners the Earls Family of Easyfix fame are pacing up and down the parade ring. The result is announced and the placings are reversed!
You got to feel for everyone involved, but for us on the outside looking in, it is complete drama and puts a ribbon on another brilliant week and fodder for fellas saying in the future “Do you remember the year…?”