ALBANY STAKES (GROUP 3)

IT may have been another Royal Ascot winner for France but Con and Theresa Marnane won’t mind that one bit.

The couple from Bansha House Stud in Tipperary could not sell Different League last year and ended up keeping the filly who is trained in Maisons-Laffitte by Matthieu Palussiere. They now have an unbeaten Royal Ascot winner.

Winners from the French provinces will invariably start at a big price because the form is so hard to assess. However, 20/1 chance Different League had won tidily at Lyon Parilly and Angers, the second time in listed company, and she accounted for some highly-rated fillies here in the Albany Stakes.

Jockey Antoine Hamelin, who was riding his first ever Royal Ascot winner, had the daughter of Dabirism in the lead for most of the way in the far side group.

It soon became apparent that far side group had the edge and Different League only had the favourite, Jessica Harrington’s Alpha Centauri, to contend with in the closing stages.

Firmly driven out by Antoine Hamelin, the winner did not intimidate Alpha Centauri but made sure there was only just enough room for her to squeeze through. She looked like doing so just over a furlong out but suddenly the chance was gone and, although she kept on again close home, the French filly was home and hosed. Jeremy Noseda’s Take Me With You fared best of the near side group, finishing third overall.

The Marnanes picked up Different League for just €8,000. Clearly elated in the winner’s enclosure, amongst friends and family, Con Marnane commented: “We picked her up for eight grand, but we couldn’t sell her as a yearling – we had her in at Doncaster Sales last year but couldn’t sell her. Nobody wanted her but I am glad they didn’t – she’s an absolute beauty.

“We’d love to put her away for the Breeders’ Cup, if failing that returning after the summer for some of the autumn Group 1s.”

Palussiere, who spent 18 years in Ireland, four with the Aga Khan Studs, four with trainer Michael Halford and rest working for himself, pre-training and also sending out 18 winners commented: “It means everything to me, I have always wanted to win a big one in England – at Royal Ascot or Cheltenham as I have a few jumpers too!

“I am supposed to be going home with my wife tonight, I am not sure we will make it now!”

Jessica Harrington was out of luck with the much talked about Alpha Centauri but wasn’t too downbeat. She said: “The other filly just got first run on her. She’s never had to race that hard before, she’s done everything very easily. The further she was going, the more she was putting her head down. Another couple of strides, she might have got it.”