WHETHER he can wrest back his champion jockey crown from Donnacha O’Brien remains to be seen, but 2019 will still go down as a landmark campaign for Colin Keane as a double enabled him to set a personal best tally for a flat season.
On his penultimate ride of the 2017 season, when he was crowned champion jockey, Keane reached the hallowed 100-winner mark. His brace here enabled him to better that tally by one which means that for the first time, in two decades at the very least, two jockeys have recorded a three-figure tally of winners for an Irish flat season.
Appropriately, Ger Lyons supplied Keane with his 100th success and the double was brought up by a promising type in Arthur Moore’s Sea Ducor (20/1) in the one-and-three-quarter-mile handicap.
On his handicap debut, this Sea The Moon three-year-old, who is related to Tiger Roll, bounded clear of the field over the last quarter of a mile to score by two and three-quarter lengths. The winner is owned by the trainer’s wife Mary and was bought by his son J.D. for 10,000gns as a yearling.
“He’s a lovely horse who is going to make a smashing jumper and he’ll make a lovely dual-purpose horse next year,” said Moore, who could have a juvenile hurdler of some substance on his hands in this gelding.
Earlier, Keane struck on the Lyons-trained Nullifier in the five-furlong Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden. Nullifier was making a quick return to action after a third to Hong Kong at Naas on Sunday and the well backed 2/1 favourite turned out fresh to take charge of this race with over a furlong to run.
The Sean Jones, Lynne Lyons and David Spratt-owned son of No Nay Never had two lengths to spare at the line.
“All credit to Shane (Lyons). He rang me about five minutes after this horse ran on Sunday and said he’d be able to run again here,” commented Lyons. “This horse is a good, strong type and he looks a sprinter for next year.”
First-time success
It was also a red-letter day for Kildare-based trainer Des Buckley who sent out his first winner on the track when Oneiroi (14/1) shocked the odds-on Yale in the maiden over an extended five furlongs.
One of three horses under the care of Buckley, who also owns this gelding, the Ronan Whelan-ridden Oneiroi finished out well over the last furlong to defeat the favourite by a length and a quarter.
The winner hadn’t been at his best lately but he did finish second in a couple of Dundalk maidens earlier this year and was steadily coaxed back to form by Buckley to whom he went after chipping a bone in his knee.
Donnacha O’Brien also made his mark at this fixture as All The King’s Men (13/2) readily defied the burden of top weight in the sprint handicap over just short of six furlongs.
The Aidan O’Brien inmate, who carries the colours of Sue Magnier, travelled powerfully throughout and he had something to spare in defeating Silver Service by a length and three-quarters.
HALF Nutz picked an opportune time to deliver on the promise that he has shown at home as he captured the €30,000 Foran Equine Irish EBF Nursery Handicap. In the final race of this year’s Foran series the Sheila Lavery-trained gelding blazed a trail on the outer and sustained that effort in splendid style.
The 58-rated gelding first saw off the Foran Final heroine Lustown Baba before defeating In From The Cold by a length and a half. The 14/1 shot is owned by the Dublin-based Woodfarm Racing Syndicate.
“His homework has been good but he’s been confusing me on the track. Maybe the match practice helped and maybe it suited that he was on his own. I’m just delighted he won for the syndicate as they’ve been very patient,” reported the trainer who was setting a new personal best tally for winners (15) in a season.
Jim Bolger’s strong finish to the season continued as the Kevin Manning-ridden Tidal Action (7/1) edged a tight finish to the one-mile, five-furlong maiden. The 69-rated son of Cape Cross, who is owned by the trainer’s wife Jackie, finished determinedly to defeat Born By The Sea by a head with the Keane-ridden favourite, Pienta, having to settle for third.
APPRENTICE Danny Sheehy put an injury hit four months behind him in the 45-65 rated five-furlong handicap where he teamed up with Eddie Lynam’s Teddy Boy (14/1).
Sheehy dislocated his shoulder during a race at Fairyhouse in June and that injury required surgery which then kept him out of action until Tuesday’s fixture at the Curragh. A welcome change of fortune came for the rider here as the 16-race maiden Teddy Boy, in the colours of the trainer’s wife Aileen, got to the line a head in front of Face Off.
The Johnny Murtagh-owned and trained Shore Step notched up his first win for just over a year and his eighth in all in the five-furlong 50-80 rated handicap.
The experienced nine-year-old belied odds of 16/1 with a game front-running effort under Shane Kelly that saw him contain the challenge of Aloysius Lilius by half a length.
DECLAN McDonogh picked up a two-day whip after partnering Face Off into second in the handicap won by Teddy Boy. In the same race, Karen Kenny got a one-day whip ban after partnering Straffan into fourth.
Leigh Roche got a six-day whip suspension for his efforts on the unplaced Aurora Eclipse in the race that went to All The King’s Men.