THE return of flat racing to Navan played host to a couple of major and successful gambles and a huge one was landed by the reserve All Class who was returned at 9/2 in the first division of the one-mile five-furlong handicap having been as big as 66/1 in the morning.

Trained by David Dunne and owned by his uncle Paul, this six-year-old mare was having her fifth start for her trainer and this was her first handicap outing after she was the subject of a running-and-riding enquiry at Dundalk several weeks previously.

Nathan Crosse (picked up a one-day whip ban) produced her to lead a furlong from home and went on to defeat Crassus by two and a quarter lengths. Afterwards the stewards enquired into her apparent improvement in form before taking the decision to refer the matter on to the CEO of the IHRB.

“My horses were under a cloud over the winter but they have been running well lately and this mare had been working way better than she was over the winter. She’s a very difficult filly and had to come today with a companion as she starts fretting. We’ve learned how to manage her,” reported Dunne.

Earlier, Emmet Mullins produced Taskhan in peak condition for his first run on turf to land the three-year-old 10-furlong handicap. The Mullins-owned gelding was unable to make a telling impression in three Dundalk maidens in the early part of the winter but he wasn’t disgraced on a couple of occasions and a switch to testing ground was always likely to suit the son of Born To Sea.

After being backed from as big as 20/1 in the morning into 9/2, Tashkan made the running for Ross Coakley. At one point in the straight he looked to be in trouble when he was joined for the lead but he rallied splendidly and was particularly strong over the last furlong as he forged clear again to score by three and three-quarter lengths.

“He has improved for being gelded and he’ll probably improve for a longer trip,” said the Cheltenham Festival-winning trainer who is already eyeing a juvenile hurdle campaign for his charge but reported in the meantime that: “He’ll probably go for another three-year-old handicap.”

Meanwhile, the second division of the one-mile–five-furlong handicap went to Gavin Cromwell and Chris Hayes as Duchess Ravenwaves (9/2) bounced back from a recent fall over fences at Wexford to win nicely. The Peter Michael-owned mare led early in the straight and sustained her effort in good style to defeat Room To Roam by half a dozen lengths.

A FEW interesting early-season maidens provided plenty of food for thought for the coming months and the first of these came in the five-furlong maiden where Linda Barrett struck for Fozzy Stack and Andy Slattery.

This Dark Angel filly comes from the family of Las Meninas, who was sent out by Stack’s father, Tommy, to win the 1994 1000 Guineas, and left the form of her unplaced debut at Dundalk in December well behind. Linda Barrett cruised through the race, led early in the last furlong and sustained her effort to defeat the 33/1 newcomer Shikoko by half a length. She is owned by American Craig Bernick.

“She was disappointing the first day when it just didn’t happen for her but that was much more like it. She had been working okay in the spring on soft ground and I think she can build on this,” commented Stack.

Ger Lyons and Colin Keane struck with a nice type in Team Of Firsts who justified 7/4 favouritism in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Maiden over a mile and a quarter.

This David Spratt, Sean Jones and Lynne Lyons-owned son of Zoffany showed plenty of ability in two runs late last season and confirmed that initial promise in likeable fashion. He got on top over the course of the last furlong to defeat Play The Crowd, a 125/1 shot, by three and a quarter lengths.

“He has a big frame and just needed to fill into it. Colin said he took a blow turning in and he took a blow pulling up so he will improve for this run. He’s a good mover for a big horse and he doesn’t need the ground that soft,” stated Shane Lyons.

The other maiden went to Johnny Murtagh as Earlswood (15/8), who showed plenty of promise in two of this three runs for John Oxx last season, won the colts and geldings maiden over a mile. Ben Coen took the mount on the Glyn Davies-owned son of Pivotal who produced a determined effort over the last furlong to pull two and a quarter lengths clear of the newcomer Too Nice.

“He came up the hill well, Ben said he handled the ground well and he’ll go on better ground too. I’ll speak to the owner but he could head for a Derby Trial,” declared Murtagh.

BY far the most impressive display on the card came from Jessica Harrington’s Pepperoni Pete in the one-mile handicap named in honour of racecourse manager Peter Killeen who oversaw his final meeting last weekend.

Almost two years after his only previous success the Jessica Harrington inmate was all the better for a recent comeback at Dundalk as he stormed to an 11-length triumph. The 11/2 favourite was ridden by Shane Foley and is owned by the Blessingndisguise Partnership.

“He absolutely loved going a mile on this very testing ground and it’s great for the owners as they nursed him back from a bad fall in Gowran last summer when he broke two vertebrae in his neck,” commented the trainer’s daughter Kate. “They had him in pre-training and he seemed very happy to be back riding out so they said they would run him on the flat.”

The capable Conversant (11/1), who hit a great run of form in the concluding months of the 2019 season but was restricted to just one run last year, made a bright start to his new campaign by landing the five-furlong handicap for Denis Hogan and Joey Sheridan.

The Choi Fook Racing Syndicate-owned gelding had to work for this success over the last furlong but he knuckled down well under pressure to get on top in the closing stages and defeat Mi Esperanza by half a length. This six-year-old could easily be adding to his tally in the coming weeks.