THE last couple of days have been just a little sad here at Commonstown after we decided to call time on Jezki’s career.

He has been a wonderful servant for us. We knew he was popular and it was really great to see the reaction he got online after we announced the news on Thursday.

He was very much one of the main players in a rich era of two-mile hurdlers and he had a great rivalry with Hurricane Fly, in which he more than held his own. In all he won 16 races, eight Grade 1s and earned over €1 million in prize money. That is a truly brilliant career.

The highlight for me would have to be his Champion Hurdle win in 2014. He was brilliant that day and really fought up the hill. That was a special win for J.P., everyone at home and my family.

Jezki was a real character around the place. Everyone loved him. He retires a fit and healthy horse and will enjoy the rest of his days out in Martinstown.

To sum him up, I’d have to say he is right up with the likes of Moscow Flyer. He was brilliant.

We’ve had a quiet week on the track but hopefully that will have changed after this column goes to press, as we were due to have seven runners at the Curragh yesterday evening.

The soft ground has changed things and I’ve found some of the surfaces we’ve raced on lately to be very tacky, which might not have suited the horses we’ve ran. I think Irish racing gets very competitive around this time of year as well. There were three races with 25 or more runners at the Curragh last night and it is a similar sort of situation at Cork again today.

It seems I wasn’t the only one who thought it was a bad thing that last week’s Curragh fixture clashed with the Aga Khan Trophy. There were probably more trainers at the RDS than down there which is a fair sign! I was glad to read that Pat Keogh is looking into moving the fixture back to the weekend for next year.

Looking ahead to the big racing next week, we’re sending two over to York – Servalan and Cool Vixen, both owned by Vimal Khosla.

Servalan is going to have another go at seven furlongs in the Group 3 City of York Stakes. We’re going over for good ground as much as anything, as she really didn’t enjoy the soft ground at the Curragh last week. Before that, she did really well to win a listed contest at Naas. Cool Vixen will run in the Lowther Stakes. That is a big step up for her but hopefully she can improve on just her third start. Nope, my other entry for that race, won’t run.

At home the Debutante Stakes and Futurity Stakes take centre stage on next Friday’s Curragh card. I’m aiming Alpine Star towards the Debutante. We were really impressed with her at Galway, where she won from a wide draw and saw out the seven-furlong trip very strongly. My plans for the Futurity are still a bit cloudy but I might run Jungle Cove there. He is still a maiden but he has improved on each of his four starts.

Finally, I’d just like to say a massive well done to Jim Bolger on what seemed to be another hugely successful Hurling for Cancer event at Newbridge on Tuesday. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend but both of my grandchildren went and they got loads of autographs – they were delighted. The money raised so far is nothing short of amazing, so a huge well done to both Jim and Davy Russell, and everyone that helps make the event happen.

WE have run five today– four at Cork and one at Tramore. I’ve declared both Marshall Jennings and Chocolate Music for the Listed Platinum Stakes at Cork (2:35). Marshall always seems to run a solid race and he went well in the Colm Quinn at Galway. He is dropping down to seven furlongs but I don’t think that will have a negative effect on him. He won at the track at the beginning of the season and Tom Madden gets on very well with him.

Chocolate Music ran well at Galway as well, when a closing fifth in the listed race won by Surrounding. She could improve from that run and she receives plenty of weight so we’re hopeful of a big run.

Dame Kyteler has a tough task with the sheer number of rivals she faces in the fillies’ handicap (3:10). There are 17 fillies declared which is a sign of how competitive the racing is at this time of the year. She won nicely at Tipperary but then struggled a little on her handicap debut at the Curragh. She has only had the four runs so hopefully there is more to come from her.

Unknown Pleasures is a Zoffany filly owned by the Niarchos family and she is making her debut in what looks a very good two-year-old fillies’ maiden (5:25). She goes nicely at home and we like her. She’ll stay a mile and we’re looking forward to seeing her in action.

Over at Tramore, Marfa Lights is having her fifth start in a 12-furlong maiden (5:10). It looks like a good maiden and she is only rated 68 so it could be tough for her.

IT was good to hear about the addition of a mares’ chase to the Cheltenham Festival from 2021 onwards.

I don’t really go along with the argument that it dilutes the quality at the festival. I’d be more hopeful that it will encourage owners to keep mares in training. A lot has been done for mares in recent years and this is another step forward – the incentive of a chance of having a Cheltenham Festival runner is huge.

Obviously the race would have been something we’d very much consider for Magic Of Light but she’ll be 10 years old by then so it might just have come too late.