Galway Tips: Hallowed Star looks poised to concede weight all round

Fri, 31 Jul, 2020 - 12:46

Tommy Lyons

It is day five in Galway, and the last of the three national hunt cards for the meeting, and Shark Hanlon can finish the day on a high by taking the Rockshore Light Bumper with Hallowed Star.

After showing promise on his first two starts, the five-year-old bolted up in a Tipperary bumper last time out, and in doing so looked a much improved and potentially very smart performer. He must concede weight to all his rivals this afternoon, but it doesn’t look the strongest of races and he can prove up to the task.

Fan De Blues will take a great deal of beating in the Guinness Galway Tribes Handicap Hurdle. Willie Mullins’ horse was gambled on to win the Ladbrokes Hurdle at Leopardstown in February, but he pulled far too hard and didn’t quite get home. Nevertheless, it was abundantly clear from that effort that he is going to be much better than his current mark of 126 and if he settles reasonably this afternoon it will take a fair effort to lower his colours.

Poseidon is a potential danger. Still quite lightly raced, he has won two of his 11 outings to date over timber and a mark of 128 looks manageable for Charles Byrnes’ runner.

In Leopardstown, Federica Sophia will take beating in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies’ and Mares’ Maiden. Dermot Weld’s three-year-old made her debut just less than four weeks ago in Cork and, from a high draw, was off the pace early but flew home to finish a close second behind the smart Too Soon To Panic.

It was a huge effort in the circumstances and, while there are plenty of decent runners in today’s race, she looks a really nice prospect, should really appreciate the step up in trip, and can get off the mark here. Tashi, with a rating of 86, sets the standard and her recent effort, behind Tasalka, was as good as she has produced. There is more improvement in Sheila Lavery’s runner, and she deserves respect.

TOMMY LYONS