Crowning glory for O’Leary

CURRAGH trainer Ger O’Leary’s first British runner over jumps ended in success when Big King took the Elizabeth Beckett Memorial Novices’ Handicap Chase at Newbury yesterday under Tony McCoy.

With suitable opportunities thin on the ground back home for the gelding, Big King was brought across the Irish Sea in search of decent conditions.

And although the 3-1 favourite paid little respect to the testing fences at Newbury, making several mistakes on his way round, he was always going powerfully and won easing up by three lengths from Torche.