THERE is surely every chance that bigger and better things lie in store for the free-going Speisialta on the evidence of her runaway victory in the Abbey Haven Care Centre & Nursing Home Hurdle - relishing this return to the scene of her wide-margin maiden hurdle win for a 14-length success under Eoin Staples.
The Tony Black-trained mare, owned by Austin Fanning, can be hard on herself and remains a work in progress, but she certainly has more ability than her mark of 115 implies. Her rivals couldn’t live with her here under a well-executed front-running ride.
“She’s worked and done plenty of schooling on soft ground, so I was fairly confident that she’d handle conditions,” said the trainer’s son, Richie Black, as the ground eased overnight at Sligo.
“Tight tracks and small fields suit her, and she obviously likes this place. She’s gradually settling down with racing, that’s the only thing that has worked. All of the jockeys that have schooled her have said she’ll do well over fences, so we might give her a break now and bring her back novice chasing next year.”
Fanning added: “I rang Richie this morning and asked ‘how are we fixed’, and he told me he was in the box, freezing, with the mare. He travelled all the way up, three and half hours, from Bunclody in the box beside her, to keep her calm. And he’ll do the same on the way home. He’ll be warmer now after a winner, and we might get him a hot whiskey or something to help.”
Rose reads the market
A late market move proved telling in the opening Sligo Fillies Maiden Hurdle for four-year-olds as Paddy Magee’s Mystic Rose ran out a ready seven-length winner at odds of 8/1, having been available at 28/1 in the ring beforehand.
Josh Williamson had a willing partner in the Terry Hyland-owned filly, who holds a potentially workable mark of 46 on the flat. She picked off runner-up Look At You pretty comfortably once engaging top gear.
“She was a little bit tricky to post, but I had been well informed about her and she was grand during the race,” said the winning rider.
“She was flat out for the first half mile, then they steadied it up and I had a good run around. She jumped very well and put it to bed quickly.”
Ocean off the mark
There was also some market confidence behind the McGill family’s Ocean Of Dreams (SP 4/1 from a morning price of 10/1) in the first division of the Callan Tansey Handicap Hurdle, and it was well placed as the one-time Ballydoyle classic hopeful opened his account over hurdles in fine style.
Six lengths was the margin of victory for the Moss Star Syndicate’s five-year-old, who was ridden to success by Oran McGill for his father Gary.
“Going back over shorter seemed to suit and he has a bit of flat class and speed, so he carried me into it well,” said the rider.
“He has a bit of a high knee action, so the cut in the ground helped, and he’ll be kept lit now for the winter.”
YOU Make Me Smile (11/2) clearly likes racing under the shadow of Benbulben and won for the second year in a row on this card in the End Of An Era Handicap Hurdle - the first leg of a double on the day for Pat Fahy and Danny Mullins.
The eight-year-old, owned in partnership with the trainer and the Hennessys, boasts recent form figures of 181231 at this venue and benefited from a tactically-astute ride to keep on well down the outer for a four-and-a-quarter length victory.
“She made me smile anyway!” quipped Mullins. “She likes tracks like this with a stiff finish. From four or five furlongs out, you’re climbing here, but I had a willing partner and she was very tough because the ground is starting to be hard work after the rain we’ve had this afternoon.”
Castle collects
As conditions got more testing through the card, keeping out wide onto the freshest ground proved a wise move, and Mullins was again seen to good effect when completing his brace aboard 25/1 longshot Moorish Castle in the Solar Generation Handicap Hurdle over three miles and an extended furlong.
The George Moore-owned home-bred winner had hinted at potential at Fairyhouse in January before some lower-key efforts. However, he got an excellent run around here and improved from a return run at Gowran three weeks earlier.
The lightly-raced maiden stuck to the task in a gritty fashion to beat 3/1 joint-favourite Boston Rajj by half a length.
Fahy said: “This fella is out of a good mare, The Green Lady, who I trained, so he has the breeding and the size, but Danny made the difference. I didn’t give him any instructions, just let him do his own thing, and that’s what I usually do.
“It was the same when I was able to get Ruby. I’d have horses with bits and pieces of form, but unable to win, and I’d put Ruby on them and they’d win, simple at that. Danny is my new Ruby! It’s great for George Moore. He’s an extremely loyal owner and were it not for the likes of him, I wouldn’t be here.”
Mighty ‘Night
Not to be outdone by his brother riding a winner earlier on the card, Dara McGill timed his challenge to perfection on Noel Kelly’s Tonightsagoodnight to take advantage of a good opportunity in the John Thomas McNamara Series Qualified Riders Maiden Hurdle.
Runner-up Gunnery Sergeant essentially looked a sitting duck for the point-to-point recruit from before the turn in, and this ended up being a perfect first start for his new yard, in the colours of the Jolly Men Racing Syndicate, at 17/2.
Speaking after scoring by eight and a half lengths, McGill said: “He popped away and came up out of my hands three out. When I had a look ahead of me, they all seemed to be stopping and I knew there was no rush to get there.
“He jumped well overall and was still green at the back of the last, so he should give the syndicate a bit of fun. Something like a novice hurdle in the north of England might be an option for him next.”
WE mightn’t have even reached the end of October yet, but Dermot McLoughlin has already matched his total of winners from a season ago, and he continued his excellent start to the campaign with a clearcut victory from Finnians Row in the second division of the Callan Tansey Handicap Hurdle.
It was winner number nine of the season for the dual Irish Grand National-winning trainer - and a third in that period for Anne McCartan and Frances Smyth’s 10-year-old, with the veteran taking advantage of an attractive mark over hurdles here.
Liam McKenna had a fair deal to spare aboard the 18/1 shot, collecting by four and three quarter lengths.
“I’m delighted for the horse, and I’m three from four on him now this summer,” said the winning rider.
“Dermot was very bullish about him this morning. The horse has been running on summer ground, so I was keen to get him out onto the best of it from two out.”
Remember shades it
Winning margins don’t come any tighter than was the case in the extended-three-mile-one-furlong Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden Hurdle, as Paul Fahey’s Rememberwhat did just enough to deny the 100-rated Fuusland in a ding-dong battle by a nose.
Ben Kennedy’s mount, a strong stayer owned by Siobhain Fahey, was workmanlike on the run-in and did lean towards the runner-up under pressure. However, there wasn’t enough interference for the result to be overturned by the stewards.
“I thought going to the last that he’d quicken up, but he doesn’t do a whole pile when he gets there,” Kennedy said of the 9/2 winner.
“He’s a big lairy lad, but he loved that ground and his jumping will sharpen up as he gets more experience. He’ll jump a fence as well.”