THE feature race on a tasty looking flat programme at Cork next Saturday is the Group 3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Give Thanks Stakes, the €75,000 centrepiece receiving a large contribution from the Irish EBF who are the biggest sponsors of racing in Ireland.

The race is named after the Jim Bolger-trained Give Thanks who had a sparkling season as a three-year-old back in 1983. That year she won six races including the Group 1 Irish Oaks at the Curragh, and three Group 3 races, namely the Lancashire Oaks at Haydock, the Musidora Stakes at York, and the Oaks Trial Stakes at Lingfield Park. Her placed efforts included finishing second in the Group 2 Gallinule Stakes at the Curragh and the Park Hill Stakes at Doncaster, and third in the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks.

While the Give Thanks Stakes was first run in 2003 at Cork racecourse, the filly herself never ran at the track. She raced at the same time as her great stablemate Flame Of Tara who also has a race named in her honour.

Last year Eziyra followed up her third-place finish in the Group 1 Darley Irish Oaks by travelling down to Mallow to contest and win the Give Thanks Stakes. The Aga Khan homebred was the third of his fillies in four years to win the race, following successes for Zannda and Edelmira.

It is a race Dermot Weld loves to target and he also won it in the last decade with the subsequent QIPCO British Champions Fillies and Mares winner Sapphire.

Earlier this year Goffs announced that it was to sponsor the Listed Platinum Stakes at Cork, the main supporting race on next Saturday’s seven-race card. The one-mile contest for three-year-olds and upwards has a prize fund of €47,500 and has been won in recent years by the likes of Sir John Lavery, Rose De Pierre and Eshera. The sponsorship is part of Goffs’ increasing support of Irish racing which also includes significant sponsorships at Naas, Leopardstown, Punchestown and The Curragh. At the time of the announcement Goffs group chief executive Henry Beeby said: “The Goffs Platinum Stakes is a welcome addition to our sponsorship portfolio and underlines our commitment to racing in Ireland. The timing of the Platinum Stakes is a great fit as it coincides with the launch of the Goffs Orby and Sportsman’s yearling catalogues, whilst, of course, so many of our major yearling vendors are based in the Munster area. We are very much looking forward to our first sponsorship at the track with a race that consistently attracts a quality field.”

Manager of Cork racecourse Andrew Hogan was no less enthused. He said:

“We are delighted that an internationally-renowned player in the Irish bloodstock industry such as Goffs has come on board as sponsors here at Cork Racecourse Mallow. The Listed Platinum Stakes has attracted some top class runners over the past number of years and with the support of the team at Goffs the race can only go from strength to strength.”

The rest of the card is no less attractive, with a valuable fillies’ handicap and a pair of maiden two-year-old races, one each for fillies and for the boys.

It will be a particularly busy 24 hours for Andrew Hogan who also runs Tipperary racecourse. The evening before he has a seven-race flat card there where the main attraction will be the Listed Coolmore Ivawood Stakes for two-year-olds. The winner of that race will be given a free entry for the Champions Juvenile Stakes at Leopardstown on Irish Champions weekend.