A FIRST winner of the season for John Oxx arrived in style as the Godolphin-owned Highland Dress signalled that he could be a well above average type in the Matchbook Straight Seven Maiden.

Also an opening winner of the domestic season for jockey Colm O’Donoghue, Highland Dress is out of a half-sister to the top-class juvenile Saoirse Abu, from the family of Balanchine, and he was returned a well backed 4/1 chance for his debut.

The Shamardal colt travelled through this seven-furlong contest stylishly and had any amount in hand as he crossed the line two and a quarter lengths ahead of the 73-rated Arabeska.

“He was ready to run this time last year but just met with a few little setbacks and here he is today,” said Oxx. “This is a lovely track for horses having their first runs as it’s so level. This horse had been working well and we felt that if he did things right that he could be hard to beat in his maiden.”

The first two-year-old race of the season over Cork’s new sprint track might just have witnessed the appearance of a high-class juvenile in Aidan O’Brien’s Mount Fuji. As a half-brother to the Phoenix Stakes winner Sudirman, and a son of leading sire Dark Angel, this colt is notable on pedigree alone and his initial racecourse outing suggests that he can uphold his family’s tradition of producing high-class two-year-olds.

A 5/1 chance for the Matchbook Irish EBF Maiden over five furlongs, Mount Fuji initially looked quite green and he was being niggled along by Seamie Heffernan at halfway. However, when the penny dropped, he finished with a powerful last furlong charge that enabled him to defeat Invincible Diva by half a length. The benefit of this experience, coupled with a longer trip, could make him a formidable force in better company over the next few months. Aidan O’Brien indicated that Mount Fuji could have Royal Ascot on his agenda.

Useful

Half an hour later, the sprint track played host to another useful sort as Fozzy Stack’s Woody Creek landed the three-year-old six-furlong rated race which could leave her in line to tackle the Group 3 Ballyogan Stakes at the Curragh next month.

The Craig Bernick-owned and Andy Slattery-ridden daughter of Zoffany was the 2/1 favourite to follow up a recent premier handicap success at Naas and she was an assured two-and-a-half-length winner over Cityman.

The evening concluded with an odds-on winner as the Ger Lyons-trained Heliac made all in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Fillies Maiden. The Khalid Abdullah-owned filly was a 9/10 chance to build on her previous second in a Leopardstown maiden last October and did so without Colin Keane having to ask her for her all.

At the line, Heliac had a length and three-quarters to spare over Sweet Dime who gives the form a good look having previously chased home the subsequent Group 3 winner Tarnawa in a Leopardstown maiden.

Whelan double

FOLLOWING the victory of Highland Dress, the Godolphin colours were back in the winner’s enclosure when Michael Halford’s Balefire (3/1) made all the running for Ronan Whelan in the mile maiden.

Balefire, who chased home California Daddy over this course and distance 12 days previously, enjoyed a straightforward one-and-a-quarter-length triumph over Pacific Ocean.

Whelan later teamed up with the Adrian McGuinness-trained Royal Admiral (3/1) who recorded a long overdue first success in the 45-65 rated 10-furlong handicap.

At one point last season this five-year-old endured a run of defeats that saw him lose out by three-quarters of a length, a neck and then a head, but the Shamrock Thoroughbreds-owned gelding made no mistake this time. He got the better of the teak-tough and admirable Sharjah who has now made 126 career starts.

Improving Attraction

LYRICAL Attraction sustained the progress that she had made on Polytrack to the turf with a clear-cut success in the apprentice handicap where she gave Gavin Ryan his third victory of the season. Jarlath Fahey’s charge, who was fitted with cheekpieces for the first time, was returned the 4/1 joint-favourite and overpowered her rivals in the last quarter of a mile. Lyrical Attraction is owned by Catherine Harrison and was trying grass for the first time since her debut last autumn.