‘IRREPRESSIBLE’ is a description which could have been coined for Philip ‘Buster’ Gilligan. Buster has the same optimistic outlook whether he gets left at the start, or wins by a distance.Buster and his wife Mary (nee Kane) are very active on social media showing off the fun and games at Mary’s Mooreside Equestrian, near The Naul.
The footage of their three-year-old son Jason and the lovable Shetland Blippi, riding, driving, mowing grass and generally having a ball is a great tonic in these worrying times.
Buster, now 30, came from Swords and he resides in Stamullen. The genial owner/trainer/driver notches up 10 or 12 winners every season and will be hoping to better that in 2020.
Dad Philip and Mum Gina are well-known as the first family to take a seat in the trackside bar every week.
Buster’s father also Philip achieved the ambition of many a horse-mad teenager when he finished up helping with the show jumpers nominally owned by the Minister for Defence during his time in the forces.
Ringcoola Abu and Bothardeal Clover are just two of the jumpers tended by ‘Gillo’, as Philip senior is affectionately known.
Nowadays, Gillo is captain of a motley crew of enthusiastic young horsemen. Several of the regulars in the barn used to race on the road. The fun and the experience that they have gained on proper tracks is a good advert for organised harness racing.
All the young men in the syndicate agree that ‘track’ racing is safer and requires more skill.
Buster is renting John Richard-son’s former barn at Portmarnock. “We used one of the boxes as a solarium for the horses and several boxes are taken up by ponies for the Tiny Hooves series,”
The syndicate’s name ‘The Money Comes First Syndicate’ conveys the fun-loving nature of the people involved.
Funny name or not, harness racing is a serious business.
Backers like Andrew Gosson, with his energetic children, Adam Gibson, Stephen Coleman, Richard Phelan, James Fettason and Anthony O’Donnell will ensure that Buster’s string are well jogged while he is out working as a lorry driver.
Tigress
(2yo f Ambro Deuce - Summers Dream)
She is our first tilt at the Delaney Memorial. We paid £2,600 for her at Builth Wells and John Richardson broke her over the winter. A lot has to go right to even get into the heats, but so far so good.
Tarawood Cj
(6yo Arts Conquest – Azar Hanover)
He’s our highest-grade animal. The fact that some of the better performers have been exported to race in the States might help his case. The former trainers didn’t have the best of luck with him so we’re out to turn things round. He’s in his prime as a six-year-old. We raced him once last year and he won.
Bian Luis Porsguen
(9yo g Giant Cat – Quinoa Porsguen)
We gave him the year off last season. He’s been a great servant although he’s had niggly issues. On his day he’s a decent racehorse. He worked in a very sharp time last week.
Éclat De Roche
6yo g (Nil de Rib – Sultana De Vire)
He’s just in from France. He looks and feels fine so far. He was fourth over there the week before he was shipped. Most of his best form seems to be on grass tracks so you’d have to think of Musselburgh or the Red John for him.
IN a move which should be commended in a volunteer led organisation the Irish Harness Racing Association have announced that the opening meeting of 2020 has been put back a week until at least April 5th. The revised date is not definite and the organisation will take advice from the HSE and other bodies before commencing racing.
Realistically, the main track Portmarnock usually only attracts a few hundred spectators. As has been well documented, harness racing gets no government help with prize money, nor SIS money so ‘behind closed doors’ would be even harder to achieve than at a thoroughbred fixture. The organisers face a difficult call, but this observer has faith in their desire to do the right thing.