'The Banks' at Clonmel as Ellies Rock rolls to win
ON SONG: Ellies Rock & John Shinnick win the Kep Italia Mares Handicap Hurdle for the TerenceOBrien Racing Syndicate. pIC: HEALY RACING
There was a Cork takeover of Clonmel on Thursday as The Banks Of My Own Lovely Lee was sung with rare gusto after Ellies Rock ran out an impressive winner of the KEP Italia Mares Handicap Hurdle.
The Terence O’Brien-trained eight-year-old was backed into 3-1 and ran out a smooth winner under John Shinnock, scoring by two lengths from Might Be The One, prompting her delighted — and extensive — syndicate into song.
Carrigtwohill handler O’Brien explained: “We really wanted to go for a two and a half mile race, I wasn’t sure if a two-mile race would suit her, but the only two and a half mile available was Down Royal and if we sang The Banks in Down Royal we’d be shot!
"To be honest none of us were going to travel up there so we said we’d come here and obviously two miles is no inconvenience to her.
“She was entitled to win on her January run and hopefully there’ll be another day or two in her.”
The card opened with a Gordon Elliott one-two as 100-30 shot Maxxum rewarded the trainer’s persistence with the horse’s owners by beating stablemate Dee Capo in the SIS Supporting Irish Racing Chase.
Look To The West was sent off the 5-4 favourite but was under pressure when falling two fences from home, leaving the way clear for the Elliott pair to fight out the finish.
“He is a good horse but it has been hard to place him,” said Elliott of the Jack Kennedy-ridden winner. “It is a long time since he has jumped a fence and the owners weren't that keen to run him back over fences but, being so hard to place over hurdles, I convinced them to run here.”
Of the runner-up, Elliott added: “Dee Capo ran a lovely race, he was a bit sticky early on after his run in Cheltenham and he hit the line well.” Elliott was expected to complete a double in the KEP Italia Superior Helmets Maiden Hurdle and did just that but it was 7-1 shot Celtic Alliance, the outsider of the three Cullentra House runners, who landed the spoils in the hands of Jake Coen.
Celtic Alliance’s cause was helped by 4-7 favourite One To Witness enduring a torrid passage through the contest but Elliott was still impressed by the winner.
“I’d say it was a very low-grade race but she was tough, she surprised me to be honest,” Elliott said.
The KEP Italia Maiden Hurdle was pleasant viewing for punters as 11-8 favourite Kaiser De Chanay made every yard of the running in the hands of Rickie Doyle en route to an emphatic 12-length success.
“It was an ordinary race and I was kind of surprised at the rating he got for his Naas run,” winning trainer Martin Brassil said. “He jumps very well, second in a point-to-point in Turtulla so, all in all, it’s a step forward from his previous runs. We were probably riding him a bit wrong and not making enough use of him.”
Elsewhere on the card, Roc My Haarth won the KEP Italia Handicap Chase for trainer Ray Hackett and jockey Liam Quinlan at odds of 13-2, Blue Train (5-2) took the KEP Italia Handicap Hurdle for Charles and Philip Byrnes before the Mark Fahey-trained High Kick Kev (4-1) landed the bumper in the hands of Derek O’Connor.
