PADDY Twomey has lodged an appeal to the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Body following the disqualification of Rosscarbery in the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday.

An enquiry was called soon after the filly’s jockey Wayne Lordan weighed in 5lbs lighter than the weight he was due to carry, and the filly, who had been supplemented for the race at a cost of €30,000 was disqualified.

Twomey felt the incident came about as a result of an error from the Clerk of the Scales and/or the equipment used. The trainer’s detailed experience of the situation is explained in full in the Curragh Sunday report on page 30.

Given Rosscarbery carried 5lbs less than she should have, it seems extremely unlikely her connections appeal will be successful but it may be the first step in a longer strategy for them to pursue some form of compensation against the IHRB.

Asked by Nick Luck on his Daily Racing Podcast whether he would consider civil action in the future, Twomey said: “Absolutely. It’s an error on the part of the IHRB, they were basically not fit for purpose on the day. They null and voided the horse’s chance from the minute I picked the saddle up from the jockey after the Clerk of the Scales okayed him to go – and from there, the filly’s race was over, she never really ran after that.

“Whether the Clerk of the Scales made the error himself or the computer made it is irrelevant, it’s an employee of the IHRB who has made the mistake. It looks a very archaic system where obviously it’s coming up in stones and pounds which is an obsolete system.

“When he (Clerk of the Scales) is weighing out the jockey, it comes up on the screen in pounds only, so there is loads of room for error when a human being is there and it’s 9st 12lbs and it’s 138.1lbs.

“It should be in kilos, the jockey’s weight in kilos and the scales in kilos – we live in 2022, we live in Europe, we have a metric system for weighing things and I think the IHRB are operating in a bygone age.”

The IHRB confirmed yesterday that the investigation is still ongoing after receiving the appeal and after the matter was referred by the stewards on the day.

Rosscarbery’s owner Robert Moran lost out on €27,000 prize money for her third place finish, but also the value of a Group 1 placing for a filly, which could significantly enhance her future value for breeding. Moran, based in the US, is building a band of broodmares in a stud he owns in West Cork.