Annaghmore Saturday

FERMANAGH trainer/driver Darren Timlin went from zero to hero with four winners from five runners last weekend.

In the last harness racing summary, Timlin was in the news for all the wrong reasons as everything went awry in Tregaron at the Welsh Classic meeting.

Darren trained and drove a treble at the Sires Stakes meeting at Annaghmore last Saturday and a well-backed winner at the Richard Phelan Memorial in Clonakilty on Sunday.

The Irish Harness Racing Association deserves great credit for marshalling 47 entries on Saturday and 77 entries on Sunday. Not bad for an organisation comprised wholly of volunteers and existing without the relatively massive government ‘assistance’ that ‘racing’ gets.

Timlin comes good

Annaghmore began the weekend with a 10-race card. However, only five drivers got on the score sheet. Darren Timlin drove a treble, John Richardson, Patrick Kane jnr and Sean Kane all bagged doubles while Gavin Murdock won a single race.

Darren Timlin started out in Tempo but moved to the furthest end of the Lakeland County i.e Derrylin, some 15 years ago.

Darren, alongside Jay Murdock at Annaghmore and Tadhg Murphy in Baltimore, share the largest head count of pacers and trotters in work in the country.

He started the season with intent. The horses were running well in defeat, which is not so useful when it comes to buying meal.

Happily for the trainer-cum-farrier and his son Luke their fortunes changed last Saturday.

American Rogue, in Darren’s words ‘can show me his hooves now and again’ which is a euphemism for ‘would kick you out of the cart‘. He has been expensive to follow in recent seasons, with whispers about fast work outs, but some disappointing runs.

On Saturday the grey saw off another grey, Nineteen Forty Seven with owner/driver Joe Caffrey. Even though Greyhound in the 1930s and Laag in the 1980s were legends, grey standardbreds are comparatively rare.

On the day American Rogue (3/1) was a model child picking up the grade F pace in 2.04.4. Favourite MB King Louis ran no sort of race.

Darren later added the last two races with the trotter Epsom de Corvees and the pacer Blazing Hanover.

Epsom (4/1) has pure speed but has been known to gallop away his chance in races. No such dalliances on Saturday as Darren let the gelding trot on, once he got away from the gate without galloping. Feugeres Erem and Sean Kane rallied gamely from a 30-yard trail but the bird had flown.

Noble bloodlines

The enigmatic Blazing Hanover (4/5-evens-4/5) is bred more for the Big Apple than the Orchard County and he showed guts to go with his noble bloodlines in winning the grade G pace. ‘Grade G’ is a lowly grade but 2022 Delaney Fillies heroine Maid Sweet (Gavin Murdock) was in the line-up and that’s a big scalp to take.

“Blazing Hanover has a lot of talent and he is improving with every run,” Darren told The Irish Field.

When he was foaled in Hanover, Pennsylvania, the breeders did not think that one day David Curtin’s entire would swim in Lough Erne as part of his preparation.

As so often before the three-year-old Sires Stakes, both filly and colt divisions were well endowed with prize money yet only produced fields of four and three respectively.

It's a dirty job: Rugadh Me Reidh (John Richardson) leads Arts Princess (Alan Wallace) at Annaghmore \ Chloe Nelson Photography

The fillies’ division went to the aptly named Rugadh Me Reidh and John Richardson. Arts Princess ran well on debut for trainer/driver Alan Wallace snr and owner Kevin Corey.

Rugadh Me Reidh paced 2.01.6, the fastest time of the day. The daughter of Sweet Lou put up a big performance on a rainy day. The track was off by a second or two.

Outsider

Rhyds Shady Affair opened the outsider of three for the colts’ division. Money did come for the son of See And Ski. The gelding is a full-brother to the ill-fated Rhyds Scoundrel, both are grandsons of the Musselburgh winner Shady Romance.

Patrick made it a double when another Ski And See, namely Ski From The Top took the Grade G pace. The Trim Kanes may have scaled back their numbers this year but they are blossoming at the right time. Long Island Art (Jonny Cowden for Jim Galway) was a staying on second.

The two-year-old pace went to the only filly in the contest. Fermanagh trainer, Neville Martin harnessed Sweet Dreams (1/2 favourite) with John Richardson in the bike. Neville’s youngsters always run as straight as a gun barrel, which is crucial. Oakwood Mick was runner-up with Gavin Murdock.

A 2.05 is a nice clock and the Vincent Delaney Memorial at Tir Prince, North Wales, will be the target for the Ederney-based daughter of sire-of-the-moment Sweet Lou.

Sean Kane picked up a handy €1,720 when Just Like Mam pulverised Just Look At Me (Jonny Cowden) by a distance in the four-year-old trot – an actual match.

Sean made it a double in the D and F trot with Hot To Trot (3/1). Ha’penny Chance (4/7 favourite) with Hopper Foran actually passed the post in front but was disqualified for going inside the markers.

Greentree Infinity is trained by Jay Murdock for the Connors family of Cardiff. He was well backed at Tregaron a fortnight ago before a slip at the start ended his chances. Redemption came in the B to E pace. The son of Western Jackpot saw off decent pacers headed by Wayne McNevin’s IB Notorious. The 5/4 to 4/6 was the business.

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