Arch Rebel completes a great day for Meade
Just ten minutes before Harchibald, under an ice-cool Paul Carberry, won the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton, Arch Rebel, the 7/2 favourite, benefited from a confident ride by Niall ‘Slippers’ Madden to beat Don’t Be Bitin’ by five lengths, the pair finishing a distance clear of third-placed Stromstad.
“He could be the real deal,” declared Meade, after recovering from the exhileration of watching Harchibald’s win on the big screen in the parade-ring, “He was only gelded in early in November and it’s not long since we decided to send him hurdling.”
“It thought that the testing ground might finds him out. But he jumps well and has taken to hurdling great. We won’t over-race him and he’ll have one more run, either here or at Punchestown, before going for the Triumph Hurdle which is his big target. And he’ll run again on the flat next summer.”
This was a solid performance by Arch Rebel, having his first outing over hurdles.
He travelled well throughout and looked a winner from the third last flight, cruising alongside Don’t Be Bitin' after the penultimate flight before forging clear on the run-in.
Later, Meade and champion amateur elect Madden looked set for a Grade 1 double at the Dublin track when Sir Oj, previously unbeaten over fences, came down to the final fence with a lead of more than four lengths in the Durkan New Homes Novice Chase.
But Brian Keenan’s seven-year-old ploughed through the fence, unseating Madden and leaving the Pat Fahy-trained, John Cullen-ridden Mariah Rollins to beat longshot Steel Band by four lengths.
In her last outing, Mariah Rollins had blundered her chance away at the final fence at Punchestown, giving Sir Oj the opportunity to assert on the run-in.
This time, the luck was on the side of Fahy’s mare, in the colours of the Roscommon-based Gone West Racing Syndicate.
Fahy said: “Kicking King showed earlier that it wasn’t all Tommy Treacy’s fault when this mare got beaten at Punchestown.
“She probably doesn’t like that ground and was the off the bridle early today. But she kept at it well.”
He added: “The original plan was not to run her after today until the ‘Arkle’ at Cheltenham.
“The plan hasn’t changed, although she’ll be entered for the Irish ‘Arkle’ here.”
The Christy Roche-trained favourite Like-A-Butterfly started a hot favourite for this feature event but ran listlessly, dropping out of contention five fences for home before being pulled up.
Her rider Conor O’Dwyer summed up the performance: “Never going, never happy.”
Noel Meade completed a St. Stephen’s Day double in the bumper, not with 11/8 favourite Celtic Sammy (“too free” according to Meade) but with 14/1 debutant Corrigeenroe, a first winner for Jason McKeown (20), who works in Meade’s yard.
Meade said: “I bought him as a foal off Joanna Morgan and I like him a lot. He could be decent, but isn’t an easy ride and I thought he might be too green today. But he won well.”
Earlier, the Dermot Weld-trained Queen Astrid, a listed winner on the flat for Liam Browne, made a successful start to her hurdling career in the Durkan New Homes Maiden Hurdle.
The uneasy 9/4 favourite made all the running under Garry Hutchinson to record a convincing six lengths win over Letterman, prompting Weld to comment: “Garry started his career with me and I’m delighted to give him a winner on his first ride for me. I’ve been impressed by the way he rides Solerina and knows how fast he’s going. We bought Queen Astrid as a dual-purpose mare and she’ll mix it, on the flat and over hurdles. She jumps well and knew her job coming here. I’ll look for a ‘winners of one’ for her next.
“We’ll hasten slowly with her and she’ll be even better when she steps up to two and a half miles or further,” suggesting that the Royal & Sun Alliance Novice Hurdle might be her target in March.
In the opening maiden hurdle, The Railway Man, dropping significantly in class, made all to triumph for Barry Cash and Arthur Moore, who explained: “He was a bit free and keen last time and we thought he might be happier in front.
“There are no firm plans for him and, like a lot of our, he’s essentially a chaser-in-the-making.”
The Railway Man had run creditably in hot novice events won by Wild Passion and Justified at Navan and Punchestown respectively. Moore added: “We won’t run him too often, hoping to save a bit for Fairyhouse and Punchestown.”
The familiar post-race antics of County Monaghan trainer Oliver Brady entertained the crowd around the winner’s enclosure after Baron De Feypo (Martin Mooney) sprang a 20/1 shock in the Durkan New Homes Handicap Hurdle.
Christy Roche, out of luck with both Martinstown and Like-A-Butterfly earlier, salvaged something from the day when The Boys In Green (Mark Walsh) held the late flourish of Alphazar by a short-head in the Paddy Power Mobile Handicap Chase, prompting winning owner J P McManus to quip: “Little fish are sweet.”
