A restored full fixture allocation for the Curragh and more blank Sundays during the summer are two of the principal features of the 2019 fixture list released by Horse Racing Ireland.

When Dessie Scahill puts down his binoculars at the end of the Curragh Derby meeting this afternoon he will surely do so with a sense of real sadness.

As tributes pour in for Walter Swinburn following his death at the age of 55, the riding great will always be remembered for his partnership with the mighty Shergar, who completed the Epsom and Curragh Derby double in 1981.