Clonmel Tips: Sweet Sting can carry top weight to success
Sweet Sting - on a roll after winning two handicaps at Tipperary. Picture: Healy Racing
Sweet Sting can carry top weight to victory in the www.grahamnorris.com Memorial Handicap Hurdle, the feature on this afternoon’s card in Clonmel. Michael Bowe’s mare has been in fine form recently, winning two three-mile handicaps at Tipperary and going up 17lbs in total.
However, so impressive was she last time it seems unlikely her current mark goes close to revealing the full extent of her ability. The more testing the ground the more it will suit, and she can continue her rise up the handicap with a third consecutive victory. Fenno’s Storm is potentially very well treated off 93 and thus feared most.
The opening race is the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares’ Maiden Hurdle and, while Henry De Bromhead has two interesting track newcomers in his two point to point winners, Boher Cailin and Leac An Scail Lady, they will need to be nicely forward to beat Elizabeth J.
The selection, trained by John Kiely, made her seasonal debut earlier this month in Galway and ran a fine race to finish runner-up to Ragnar Lodbrok. She was well held by the winner but stayed on nicely to get by Mighty Tom in the closing stages, and that form received a boost when that rival won a maiden last weekend in Galway.
Decimation can take the Cashel Maiden Hurdle for Henry De Bromhead and Rachael Blackmore. He made his debut earlier this month in Fairyhouse and ran a superb race to finish a close second to high-class bumper horse Queens Brook.
While connections of the winner are adamant their mare was a long way short of fitness, the runner-up lacked experience and put up a bold show from which he should also improve markedly.
Envious Editor, who has some promising form over the past two seasons, made an eye-catching debut for Gordon Elliott but he needs to show he can follow up that effort.
Western Victory can make amends for her late departure at Listowel by taking the Clonmel Oil Chase Day November 12 Mares’ Chase.
Declan Queally’s seven-year-old made the most of a great opportunity when winning at Roscommon in August and lost little in defeat behind Paloma Blue next time.
She was still in front when falling at the last in the Listowel race won by Popong and, clearly in good heart, can make the most of the weight she receives from last year’s winner, Tintangle, and that one’s stablemate Make My Heart Fly.
1:20 Elizabeth J
1:50 Decimation (nb)
2:20 Kalakhan
2:50 Sweet Sting (nap)
3:20 Resurrected Duke
3:50 Western Victory
4:20 Port Rashid
1:20 Boher Cailin
1:50 Envious Editor
2:20 Shedding
2:50 Fenno’s Storm
3:20 Forrard Away
3:50 Tintangle
4:20 Gold Sun
