THE enterprising committee at Ballindenisk have recently started putting photographs from past meetings in their race card. The year’s pre-Christmas card featured photos from the first ladies race held on the course in 1960 unusually for that time over bush fences.

The race was won by Betty Fell, whose father owned the land on which the course is sited, and whose brother Robert has transformed the farm into a centre of equine excellence.

What interested me in particular was the photo of the winner Ice Link with his rider and owner. The owner was Dr D.J.K. (Kevin) McCarthy, a name that rang several bells with me. After first seeing the photograph I made several enquiries and now know much more about the man.

Although from a Cork family, he was in fact born in Manchester due to the exigencies of the Great War in which his father perished. He returned to Ireland where he was brought up by an aunt and eventually qualified in medicine in Cork. Newly qualified, after the Second World War, England was crying out for doctors; he moved and he practised at Stourbridge in Worcestershire.

That county being a popular area for hunting and equine activities he was able to indulge his passion for riding and quickly impressed the locals and got himself rides racing. In 1947 he won the prestigious Lady Dudley Cup on Arod, a 10-year-old in his first season racing who had only recently won his maiden. His only other previous wins were in the show ring. He was then sold on to the great horse producer Ted Marsh for whom he won twice on the track. Kevin McCarthy rode in two more renewals of the championship race, once for Ted Marsh himself and then for the celebrated Hutsby family which says much for the esteem in which he was held.

Incidentally, the Lady Dudley Cup was held at Chaddesley Corbett in those days though on a different course to where this year’s international challenge will take place. Also in that period other Irishmen rode in the race, notably Jack Hartigan and Frank Fitzsimons, father of Frankie.

Kevin McCarthy came back to Ireland in the 1950s, first to Co Cork before settling in Co Wexford. His last point-to-point winner was Barnagoulane who won a maiden at the Bray meeting on their old course at Newcastle in 1986 and he passed on in the 1990s.

I regret that I never met the doctor for I know that he was very popular in the Killinick country and is still fondly remembered there.