Ground will suit The Bull Hayes
We almost got off the mark early in the flat season last weekend but Gimli’s Rock was dreadfully unlucky, missing out by the shortest of short heads in a blanket finish at Leopardstown.
It was a titanic finish, with a head between Gimli’s and Fammi Sognare back in third and another head back to Park Ranger in fourth.
He is just such a star because despite being small, he has a huge heart, is a tremendous battler and doesn’t know when he is beaten. He’d actually gotten back up to win and I don’t think he saw Celtic Dane coming, so he was just mugged on the line.
He is a real joy to train and a good character too. He came out of the race well and will go to Fairyhouse and Punchestown now before returning to the The Curragh for a couple of those one and a half mile premier handicaps.
Siren’s Song was second as well in her first public appearance in a maiden.
I said last week that we thought she could be a nice filly and we were delighted with that performance. She ran well and it was a good introduction. She might have given the winner more of a battle had she got out a little sooner but she was really brave to weave through the gaps to get out and I hope she has a bright future ahead of her. She will get an entry in the Salsabil Stakes in Navan which will tell us a bit more.
We had three runners in Dundalk last night and I would have been hoping for good runs from all of them but as with many of the flat horses at this stage, they will surely be coming on for whatever they do first time out. Giving Orders is a nice filly, while I’ve always thought Greenbelt Star is a good horse and I just hope he and Alamanda were fit enough.
The Bull Hayes and Wood Lily run in a good novice hurdle at Gowran Park today. The Bull is one of our best chances of a win over the weekend with the ground good at the moment, which he will like. It’s a nice chance for him to get back on track in his first run since the Deloitte, when he was really bogged down in the ground. He will appreciate this much more. I would hope Wood Lily runs a good race as well.
Gimli’s Return is a nice one first time out in a bumper but you just don’t know what’s what with those until they hit the track. He’s a full brother to Megans Joy, that good mare of Colm Murphy’s that won six races.
On Sunday, I’ll be at The Curragh with It’s Freezing and Bullock Harbour. It’s Freezing is in good form and he seems to have wintered well so we’ll see how he gets on but I’d be happy with him.
The bumper is always a very hot race but Bullock Harbour is coming back from a break. He’ll be fresh and ready to run his race. I’d expect him to give a good account of himself.
Eamonn will travel down with my Limerick team. Native Palm wants the ground to be good so we’re hoping it stays like that and if it does, he should go close even though it’s his first run since October.
Pontiac is running in a very good chase but it’s the next three mile chase for him so we’ll let him take his chance after running a good race last time out. He jumps and stays well.
Top Of The Rock has probably got an opportunity to try and win over 2m3f in the Opportunity Handicap Chase. Mark Bolger rides and the horse is ready to get his nose in front I hope. He, along with The Bull Hayes and Native Palm if he runs, are probably my best three chances of winners over the weekend.
We have the five American two-year-olds arriving on Tuesday and while we know better than to be greedy, there’s nothing wrong with hoping that there might be another Pathfork or Laughing Lashes amongst them.
