WHILE, understandably, all owners and handlers at this early stage of the season are hoping that their charges make the grade in racing, the chances are that many won’t be good enough.

Some people are far too quick to put these horses down when there could be an alternative career for them but the trick is to pull the plug before these horses get injured or soured and are of no use to anyone.

A real success story is the Indian Danehill gelding Kinsau who, in the colours of his breeder Sean Reilly, was pulled up on his sole start in a 2014 Tinahely maiden won by Wilson Dennison’s Blaklion. The winner, then trained by Colin McKeever, moved to Nigel Twiston-Davies for whom he has won two bumpers, three hurdles and three chases including the RSA Chase (Grade 1) at Cheltenham in 2016.

Kinsau has proved a winner too but in the spheres of eventing and dressage. His passage to these disciplines was helped by the fact that he was trained by former event rider Ciaran Murphy who was actually on board the bay on that afternoon in Tinahely.

Now an eight-year-old, Kinsau has won four national junior one-star events under Westmeath’s Sofie Walshe and the pair finished 13th (out of 75 starters) in the European junior eventing championships at Millstreet in July. Also this year, the combination won at the Irish Pony Club’s national dressage day and ended the season by landing the elementary title at Dressage Ireland’s national championships in Cavan when they also won the Irish Horse Welfare Trust leading thoroughbred award.

Elizabeth Power has enjoyed a good season with Kate Horgan’s Saffron Walden gelding Mind Me who ran in three point-to-points in the 2011/’12 season. Now an 11-year-old, the Mags Power-bred dark bay was unlucky not to win the open intermediate title at Eventing Ireland’s national championships in Tattersalls in September after which he finished second in the CCI3* at Ballindenisk.