Bondi Beach forced to battle for victory at Navan

On a day when his The Gurkha proved an impressive winner of the French 2,000 Guineas in Deauville, Aidan O’Brien also took the training honours at Navan where long odds-on favourite Bondi Beach produced an unconvincing display to justify 1/9 favouritism in the Group 3 Coolmore Vintage Crop Stakes.

O’Brien has won this event with star stayers Yeats, Fame And Glory, and Leading Light in recent years, but Bondi Beach sent off a red-hot 1/9 in the absence of Zannda, will have to step-up on this performance if he is to make an impact on his return to Group 1 company.

Settled at the back of the field, in a slowly run race, Bondi Beach improved with Seamus Heffernan down the outside from the three-furlong pole as Toe The Line tackled and headed Silwana. Heffernan had to shake-up his mount to challenge and, when he hit the front, he merely stayed on to beat Toe The Line by a length-and-a-half.