Lonesome Boatman cruises to Cork National glory
LOCAL SUCCESS: Trainer Seán Allen and jockey Darragh O'Keeffe celebrate after Lonesome Boatman's victory in the Paddy Power Cork Grand National Handicap Chase. Picture: Healy Racing
If the crowd at Cork Racecourse on Sunday afternoon was dispersed for much of the afternoon, they congregated in jubilation around the parade ring following Lonesome Boatman’s local success in the Paddy Power Cork Grand National Handicap Chase.
The combination of Darragh O’Keeffe — the natural successor to Davy Russell as a local hero for Cork’s National Hunt enthusiasts — and local trainer Seán Allen, for whom it was only the fourth winner of his training career, was an irresistible draw for racegoers.
The winner received a tremendously positive ride from O’Keeffe, who is on the crest of a wave. Clear at the top of the jockeys’ championship at this early stage of the season, and seeking a third winner on this day, he gave a young man’s ride to Lonesome Boatman and his mount responded with some prodigious leaps which kept him in front all the way to the winning line.
“That is unbelievable,” beamed Allen. “Darragh rode the horse in Punchestown in May and put this race to us. We knocked the cobwebs off him at Listowel, as you wouldn't want to be coming to this race without a run.
“He was very fit, very straight, and seemed to be back to himself in the parade ring beforehand. He was electric everywhere.
“And the man on his back … what can I say? He was brave as a lion. Even when he was five or six lengths ahead, he was still firing the horse at fences.”
Explaining his own background, he added: “I farm in Araglin, which is 40 minutes away. I have eight horses, and my brother, Darragh, rides out for me.
“The O’Learys, from Rathcormac, have been great supporters of mine and without them I’d be lost. We got the horse from Martin Brassil and Seán and Bernardine Mulryan, and he was a credit to them, having come in tip-top order.
“I had my first runner around December 15 last year, and this is my fourth winner, and two of them have been here.”
O’Keeffe’s two earlier winners provided two more for Henry de Bromhead, whose tally for the last fortnight is an impressive 15.
Listowel bumper winner Mister Pessimistic was backed as though defeat in the first division of the Paddy Power From The Horse’s Mouth Podcast Maiden Hurdle was out of the question and, bar a mistake two from home, it was plain sailing for the four-year-old who has now won a point to point, a bumper and a hurdle.
“Seán Doyle recommended him to us, and it was pretty simple once I saw the name,” joked De Bromhead. “However pessimistic I am, there’s only one fella more pessimistic than me, and that’s his owner, Niall. But I’m delighted for him, this is a lovely young horse.”
De Bromhead and O’Keeffe were back in the winner’s enclosure when the exciting Echoing Silence took the mares’ maiden hurdle. Like their earlier winner, this lady had a point-to-point and bumper success on her card, and while she was beaten on her only previous outing in a maiden hurdle, this was much more in line with expectation.
“She was probably a little bit disappointing on her first run over hurdles, in Navan last year, but after we bought her, all she did was grow, so we backed off her,” said De Bromhead. “She’s come back twice the mare this year, and you can see it there. We bought her as a four-year-old and she came very highly recommended from Sam Curling.”
It was a day to savour for the O’Keeffe jockeys, as Seán recorded a fine double of his own. Riding King In Love for trainer Seán Aherne in the Paddy Power “I Still Call It Twitter” Handicap Hurdle, he delivered the 14-1 chance to challenge at the last, and his mount found plenty to supplement his Naas success from March.
Declan Queally stepped up to provide the second leg of the double, doing so with Tackletommywoowoo in the listed novice hurdle. O’Keeffe dropped the 3-1 chance out early and bided his time before delivering another beautifully timed challenge.
Trainer Robert Tyner and owner Brendan Keogh have a fine prospect in the shape of the Phillip Enright-ridden I’m Slippy, who turned the second division of the maiden into a procession.
“That was a nice introduction,” said Tyner. “He took a bit of a dive at the second-last, but he was lacking a bit of company, maybe. He actually loves jumping — he had plenty of jumping done last year before he won his bumper. He’s an exciting horse.”
Eoin Griffin ended a long wait for another graded success when Ol Man Dingle ran out a comfortable winner of the Grade Three Paddy Power Irish EBF Novice Chase under a canny ride by Ricky Doyle.
“We’ve been really looking forward to today,” said Griffin. “It’s a long time since we’ve had a horse like this. We’ve had a few false dawns, and it’s 2011 since I had my last graded winner, so it’s brilliant to have a horse like him in the yard. He’ll get an entry for the Drinmore, but we’ll enjoy today and worry about that further down the line.”
Charles Byrnes and Anthoy Bustin teamed up to take the finale, the Daniel And Orma O’Keeffe Handicap Hurdle, though it was only in the last stride that the collared Plunkett Street. So close was the finish, it took quite a few minutes for the result to be confirmed.
