WILLIE Murphy has introduced a number of subsequent big race winners into competitive action in the point-to-point fields, with horses of the calibre of Grade 1 victor Annacotty, Grade 2 second De Plotting Shed, and Ben Pauling’s 144-rated A Hare Breath all graduates of his Co. Carlow yard.

His Ballycurragh Stables appears to have produced another exciting individual in Global Citizen (2/1 favourite), a close relation to De Plotting Shed and A Hare Breath, who dominated proceedings to run out an impressive debut winner of the Country Fresh Dundalk five-year-old geldings’ maiden.

Always positioned close to the fore in the hands of in-form Noel McParlan, the Alkaadhem gelding eased clear of his rivals in between the final two fences to account for Lingstown runner-up Lovely Schtuff by four lengths. “This is an absolute aeroplane!” exclaimed the winning handler. “I have had nice ones in the past who have all turned into highly rated track horses, but he is just different. Everything that he does at home is just so easy.”

Winning owner Martin Byrne, who also bred the bay gelding, appears to have another smart type on his hands, and Murphy continued: “Martin is a neighbour of mine and he will probably be sold now. He is the real deal.”

RACE INTENSIFIES

The race to become champion point-to-pointer intensified considerably over the weekend, as a fifth success of the season for Ourmanmassini (5/4 - 2/1 favourite) in the Total Produce open lightweight, saw the nine-year-old join Sprintingforgold and Minella For Value at the head of that title race.

The easy-to-back Peter Flood-trained son of Dr Massini made smooth progress to hit the front at the penultimate fence, and soon put the race to bed with a standout leap at the final obstacle to defeat the keen-running track recruit Heaney by three and a halflengths.

“He is a very simple horse. He travelled very well there and jumped savage. Once he has good ground, he is such a straightforward horse that you could almost run every week. Anthony (Fox) gave him a great ride and he is a great help to me at home. I would be lost without him and Barry Browne,” reported the Meath-based handler.

Wexford duo Harley Dunne and Denis Murphy found one rival too good in last year’s renewal of the Darver Castle four-year-old mares’ maiden with subsequent dual bumper winner and listed third Just A Thought, but their representative in this year’s contest, Princess Roxy (5/2 - 3/1), ran out a comfortable winner.

A £5,000 purchase at Goffs UK last May, the Mark Rimmell-bred daughter of Midnight Legend quickened smartly off the slow gallop in the colours of Maria Byrne to defeat recent Lemonfield fourth Youknowell by two lengths.

“She is a lovely mare who does everything so easily. She is a horse who has always impressed us with all her work at home. We have just been waiting for that bit of nicer ground before running and she got that today. She did it very well there and I would say she is going to head to the Cheltenham sales now,” reported Tom Cloke, representing the absent winning handler.

DOUBLE

That success had initiated a double on the card for Dunne as he claimed both mares’ maiden’s on the card, later teaming-up with former point-to-point jockey Shane Byrne to land the College Proteins five-year-old and upwards mare’s maiden aboard Denito’sgoldengirl (5/2 - 4/1). Placed at both Ballinaboola and Borris in the autumn, the six-year-old was returning from a winter break when making all the running to record an emphatic six length success over Rathbawn Rose.

Carrying the colours of Aidan Byrne, father of the winning handler, the Gold Well mare was just a tenth runner this season for Wexford-based Byrne who rode over 47 winners between the flags in his time in the saddle, when he was based with Denis Murphy.

“A friend of mine Dermot Clarke picked her out for me. Harley (Dunne) gave her a great ride and kept it simple out front. She will go for a mares’ winners’ race in the next couple of weeks,” remarked the winning handler.

FIRST WINNER

The 20-year-old jockey Neil Bashford was another to enjoy a career first on the Louth card when steering the Niall Madden-trained Pass The Ball (6/4 - 2/1 joint-favourite) to a wide-margin victory in the Deeside Agri Services older geldings’ maiden. A close second just seven days earlier at Castletown-Geoghegan when returning from two years on the sidelines, the eight-year-old posted an exhibition of jumping to account for Skyhill Allstar by 25 lengths.

“I’m delighted to give Neil his first winner as he is a long-time family friend. Neil also works for me and is a great help in the yard. He came to me after spending a year or two down with Aidan O’Brien and is the son of Bloodstock agent Brendan Bashford,” reported a clearly elated Kildare-based trainer. Running in the colours of Kilteel-based Sean Dowling, a long-time owner with Madden, the Westerner gelding is likely to head to the Bishopscourt Cup at the Punchestown Festival later this month.

Dermot McLoughlin is enjoying his most profitable season between the flags to date as the victory of Freewheelin Dylan (5/2 - 3/1) in the Sean Gallagher Lougher Stables winner of one contest, provided his Ratoath stables with their seventh pointing success of the current campaign ensuring his string is operating close to a 25% strike rate.

The five-year-old who was bought privately out of Shane Donohoe’s yard during the winter, had got off the mark at Maralin on his first start for McLoughlin, and despite the quicker underfoot conditions on Sunday, the Curtain Time gelding comfortably eased clear of Novo Dawn by four lengths, with the same distance back to the sponsor’s Big Jack Behan in third.

Of the bay gelding owned by Sheila Mangan, who works for the winning handler, McLoughlin noted: “He is a grand horse and he would have preferred that ground over the testing conditions at Maralin. They went a good gallop which suited. He is a nice horse and I would say we will probably go to the track for a bumper with him now.”

Geraghty interest

FRESH from a Grade 1 treble at the three-day Aintree Grand National festival aboard Defi De Seuil, Buveur D’Air and Yanworth, Barry Geraghty was an interested spectator at Bellurgan Park on Sunday. Geraghty’s wife, Paula, has had a number of pointers in-partnership with handler Warren Ewing over the year’s including last year’s Kirkistown maiden winner and subsequent Cheltenham sales topper Cesar Collonges.

The Louth hunt created a great family atmosphere at their parkland venue which was staging a point-to-point for the second successive year with bouncy castles and funfair rides to keep the younger members of the good-sized crowd entertained between races.