AFTER teaming up for winners at Dundalk’s previous two meetings, Pat Flynn and Robyn Donaghue-Leahy combined for a double, which 5/2 favourite Jordan Breeze initiated in the five-furlong handicap.

Always close to the pace, the Starspangledbanner gelding scored by a length and three-quarters from One Cool Bear.

“He’s a course and distance winner and we were fairly hopeful,” said the winning rider.

“We said we’d get out and get him settled, we knew there would be plenty of pace. I got a dream run up the inside and it was fairly straightforward after that.”

Orla Tynan, who rode the unplaced Whatswrongnow, was suspended for four days for using the ProCush with excessive frequency.

Eagle soars home

Also owned by the trainer’s wife Catherine, Not Just Any Eagle (8/1) completed the brace for Flynn and Donaghue-Leahy in the handicap over a mile and a half.

The winner and Sunrush were up front throughout in a steadily-run affair and the Free Eagle seven-year-old came out on top by a head. That made it four winners on the spin for the winning rider.

“I can’t give him enough praise, he’s a super horse,” said Donaghue-Leahy. “I’ve won six on him now and he has won nearly 100 grand in prize money. He’s just very, very tough.

“He had been running over staying trips and back in trip tonight, it probably just caught him off guard a little bit. He battled the whole way.

“That’s my second double and he was actually part of my first as well. He’s an old legend.”

GARY Carroll was another rider to register a double, which he kicked off by making all on 5/6 favourite Southern Boulevard in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden over five furlongs.

Fourth in a listed race at this track on her previous outing, the keen-going No Nay Never filly, trained by Ger Lyons for the Southern Boulevard Partnership, scored readily by three and a quarter lengths from Scolyer.

“She’s a very, very quick filly and is her own worst enemy at the minute,” said Carroll. “Hopefully next year, when she gets a bit stronger and matures mentally, she could develop into a nicer type of filly.”

Positive tactics

Carroll also adopted positive tactics on Henry de Bromhead’s Wearing Stars (9/4) in the mile maiden.

In front after two furlongs, the Ben Halsall-owned winner made the rest and defeated market leader Lookingforarainbow by three-parts of a length.

“She’s a good genuine filly. She has been knocking on the door in decent maidens and has just been getting nabbed,” said Carroll. “If anything, I probably went a little bit soon, but she hung on.”

The 85-rated daughter of Starspangledbanner was a third winner of the day for de Bromhead after a brace at Down Royal’s afternoon session.

City bridges gap

Sent off 11/4 favourite in his bid for a first victory in three years, City House came from off the pace under Rory Mulligan to take the Bar 1 Betting Handicap over six furlongs.

Sporting a first-time visor, the Night Of Thunder gelding led close home to beat All The Girls by half a length.

“He wasn’t winning out of turn,” admitted winning trainer Ado McGuinness. “He was a classy enough horse and was a cheap buy, he cost 20 grand last year.

“He’s picked up plenty of prize money through the year, but wasn’t winning. I didn’t know if he was seeing out seven, and I knew a fast six today would suit him.

“The Dooley brothers are great supporters of mine and it’s great to get a winner for them. We’ll tip away with him. He ran in Newcastle on Good Friday, and we could go back there again when we’re finished here.”

SON Of Beauty (7/1) swooped late under Reese Holohan to take the one-mile handicap for trainer Stephen Thorne.

Holohan switched right for racing room entering the final furlong (eight-day suspension for careless riding after a couple of rivals were inconvenienced) and the Nando Parrado gelding finished off well to foil Daler by a head.

“He’s a horse that broke his maiden here earlier in the year,” said Thorne of the Riverstown Stables-owned three-year-old.

“He ran a lovely race in Leopardstown in early summer and backed up a little bit too quickly in Gowran the following week.

“We decided then to leave him off, he’s a big-framed horse, so we said we’d give him time to mature and develop. He’ll be kept lightly raced through the winter months, and hopefully can continue to progress.”

Close finish

The 3/1 favourite Go Out made the breakthrough when hanging on by a nose in the Irishinjuredjockeys.com Handicap over a mile.

James Ryan’s mount improved to lead travelling well over a furlong out in the 0-60 contest, but Prada’s World finished with a rattle to make it a close-run thing at the line.

“He was due that,” said winning trainer Danny Murphy. “He was second here in his first three runs for me.

“One of the partners is my good friend James Morgan. We changed colours from my mother’s colours to his. He’s a real Armagh fan, so that’s why they are orange and white.

“The other partner is John Pearson. He’s 90 years old and that’s his first winner. He’s 70 years waiting on a winner!

“His daughter is a great dog trainer and she has three runners here tonight. It’s a big night for him.”