PETER Molloy loved racing and was involved in ownership in the 1970s and early 1980s when Purple Highways, Hindsight and Down The Swanee, all trained locally by Alfie Evans, carried his colours of white with royal blue hoop, royal blue cap with white spots.

Down The Swanee won three hurdle races and two chases. The second of those wins over fences came in the Waterford Crystal Chase at Killarney on May 9th 1983 when the bay stayed on well to beat the Mick Neville-trained mare Hamers Flame by three-parts of a length.

The 1976 My Swanee gelding finished a close up third to Donadea and Twinburn on his only subsequent start, in an extended two-mile, one-furlong at Dundalk on May 21st. Sadly, while being prepared for that year’s Galway Plate – won by Hamers Flame – he broke a leg on the gallops.

When he no longer had racehorses of his own to run, Peter maintained a close contact with the sport by representing his good friend Kevin McNulty when the latter’s Dessie Hughes-trained horses ran in his absence.

Happily for family harmony, Peter’s love of racing was shared by his son Mark. “I was very fortunate that dad passed two things on to me – a good head of hair and his passion for horse racing. We enjoyed many days together at Leopardstown, Fairyhouse, Punchestown, Naas, Kilbeggan, Down Royal, Wexford, Stratford Upon Avon, Aintree and, of course, Cheltenham.”

Peter first attended the National Hunt Festival in 1984 as friends of his had horses with Francis Flood and they travelled over to see Bobsline win the Arkle Challenge Trophy Chase. He returned to Prestbury Park each March most years after that until paying his final visit in 2019. Apart from the Foot and Mouth year of 2001 when they didn’t travel over, Mark accompanied his father to Cheltenham from 1995 until 2018 as, earlier in the month, his wife Emer and he had their first child, Shane, and Peter also stayed home in support.