COMPETITION is generally intense at the annual Clonmult/Dungourney fixture and that trend was maintained last Sunday’s annual renewal, hosted by the United Foxhounds at Boulta.

There were some outstanding performances on an afternoon that witnessed eight races and some 97 runners, with the Donnchadh Doyle-trained newcomer Madmansgame, a half-brother to the Grade 1-placed hurdler Gentlemansgame, impressing by posting a fine stamina-laden performance to claim victory in the first division of the four-year-old geldings’ maiden.

In a race that had strength in depth, Farney River and Frankie Roy took the field along with the eventual winner always in close proximity on the outer.

Spectacular

The Blue Bresil-sired Madmansgame (5/4 – 5/6 favourite) took up the running before three out and, having thrown a spectacular leap at this third last fence, he was always in command thereafter.

Having to be rousted along bypassing the final fence, the triumphant British-bred gamely maintained the momentum in this truly run contest to dismiss last season’s Dromahane fourth Horizon D’Or by three lengths.

El Rojo Grande, having seemed beaten from three out, stayed on purposefully to return a further short head adrift in third spot in a race that’s likely to see a plethora of future winners emerge from it over the coming weeks.

“He’s a lovely fine big horse and he was probably just in front a little bit too long,” said Doyle of the Monbeg Syndicate-owned Madmansgame, an €80,000 graduate of last year’s Derby Sale who is an early June foal.

Ciao Bello

Doyle, who likewise started off Gentlemansgame in points as an autumn four-year-old, and Madmansgame’s rider Rob James departed with two winners as they were also on the mark with Grandero Bello in the five-year-old geldings’ maiden.

In poor visibility, Cloudy Flamingo made his way to the front on the approach to the third last of the 14 obstacles and Ian McCarthy’s grey still held the call when cruelly slipping up on the bend before two out.

Grandero Bello (3/1 - 4/1), who finished third on his previous two starts at Moira and Loughanmore in October, was then left in front. The French-bred, yet another to sport the Monbeg Syndicate silks, was always in command thereafter and he drew clear before the final fence to see off the previous weekend’s Ballindenisk fourth Gavroche D’Allier by six lengths.

“He had two nice runs in October, but he was happier on the slower ground here and he will now go to a sale,” reported Doyle of the Great Pretender-sired Grandero Bello.

Copper gleams

Darragh Allen also partnered two winners, the Araglen native opening his account aboard owner/trainer Terence O’Brien’s well-touted homebred newcomer Copperfasten (5/2 - 2/1 favourite) in the first division of the four-year-old mares’ maiden, much to the chagrin of the six bookmakers present.

The patiently ridden Copperfasten, who had to overcome some interference five out, made smooth progress before the third last fence to lead from the penultimate obstacle. The winning daughter of Flemensfirth looked set to win convincingly on the run to the last, but Desert Fortune had other ideas.

Running green in the closing stages, Copperfasten still held on to beat Desert Fortune, who drifted right-handed on the flat, by a short head in what was the closest finish of the afternoon.

Copperfasten hails from Donal Coffey’s Copper Supreme family and she is a half-sister to Carrig Copper who made Eklat De Rire pull out all the stops when finishing second on his only career start in a vintage five-year-old geldings’ maiden at Dromahane in November 2019.

Fine Fons

The Padraig Butler-trained Fons Vivus completed the Allen two-timer by benefiting from front-running tactics to win the five-year-old and upwards mares’ maiden.

Fons Vivus (4/1 - 5/1), who ran more than respectably when fifth in a Wexford mares’ pointers bumper on her debut back in March, jumped soundly at the head of affairs and was clearly too strong for runner-up Larkfield Legacy before the last, with two lengths the ultimate winning margin.

Timoleague-based handler Butler, who shares ownership of the winning bay with his brother J.J., now plans on running Fons Vivus in a bumper over Christmas.

Butler trains just three horses and the west Corkonian saddled his initial track winner when Da Capo Glory landed a Galway bumper in late October.

THE newcomer Meetingofthewaters impressed by coming from well off the pace under his handler Eugene O’Sullivan’s daughter Maxine to record a bloodless victory in the second division of the four-year-old geldings’ maiden.

Meetingofthewaters (4/1 - 6/1), who was still last with five fences remaining, eased his way into contention from three out and the winning son of Court Cave picked up the running after the second last before defeating Knockanore by three lengths in the familiar It Came To Pass silks of Manchester-based owner Mrs Alurie O’Sullivan.

“I was confident coming here, but then I heard that there were a lot of horses fancied,” said handler O’Sullivan of his 2020 Goffs Land Rover Sale graduate, out of a track winning half-sister to Boneyarrow from the same family as Dakyns Boy and Den Of Iniquity.

“This is always a very competitive race, and I will have a chat with the owners as regards to future plans.”

Cody’s Eleven

There was yet another family success in the winner-of-two contest as Emily Cody, a first-year veterinary student in UCD, returned to the coveted number one slot aboard her mother Debbie Cody’s Exit Eleven.

Having also collected a winner-of-one contest with Cody here at Boulta two weeks earlier, Exit Eleven (3/1 - 7/2) made smooth progress from three out. The towering chesnut edged into a narrow advantage at the last and it was one that he then maintained to the line to account for Susie Miller by a neck.

Striking Out, who was beaten three-quarter of a length into second spot by the aforementioned Susie Miller in a Kinsale winners’ race in October, suggested that his turn is imminent by returning a further one length adrift in third spot.

“I thought that he might not handle the ground as well as he did,” said Debbie Cody of the towering Exit Eleven, owned and bred by Mullinavat-based vet Joe Walsh. “We will give him an easy week and he could go for the hunters chase at Limerick over Christmas.”

THE Andy Slattery-trained debutante Missed Tee came home at her leisure with Eoin O’Brien in the second division of the four-year-old mares’ maiden.

Missed Tee (2/1 - 3/1), a Fame And Glory-sired granddaughter of the 10-time track-winning mare Tropical Lake, was always positioned close to the pace and she eased into a fractional advantage on the run to five out.

She was well on top from two out and coasted home by 12 lengths from fellow first-timer Cluain Aodha, who admittedly was quite badly hampered at the eighth fence.

Handler Slattery’s younger brother Brian reported of Miss Tee, owned by Catherine Ryan from Golden in partnership with her father Philip Brady: “She’s a lovely sort that has always worked well at home and she did nothing there that was not expected.”

Mangan reigns

Jimmy Mangan likes nothing more than to have a winner at this meeting and he sent his supporters home on excellent terms with themselves following the victory of his charge Reign Suepreme in the closing five-year-old and upwards adjacent hunts maiden.

Reign Suepreme (2/1 - 3/1), who finished second in an unplaced maiden at Lismore in March 2020, made most of the running and he was in no mood to be denied in the closing stages as he bravely kept Calling Arc at bay by a length in the hands of Johnny Hurley.

Mangan indicated that the eye-filling Reign Suepreme, representing his long-standing patrons’ Hanford’s Chemist Limited, will probably now go for a winners’ race. next time out,

Horse to follow

Captain Checkdown (A. Latta): A newcomer by Getaway and liver chesnut in colour, he appeared to be the biggest danger to Madmansgame from three out in the first division of the four-year-old geldings’ maiden. Fading into fourth spot in the closing stages, he still ran better than being beaten some eight lengths indicates He looks sure to develop into a smart middle-distance track recruit.