Racing preview: Sky Captain can hit heights at Killarney
Sky Captain and Billy Lee won the Jimmy Murray Agri Services Maiden for Paddy Twomey.
With the Paddy Twomey team in sizzling form, Sky Captain is hard to oppose in the Killarney Racegoers Club Race, the final race at the Kerry venue’s May meeting on Tuesday.
Ahead of Monday’s meeting at Roscommon, Twomey had saddled nine winners from his last 11 runners, a phenomenal strike-rate that Sky Captain, the trainer’s sole Killarney runner on Tuesday evening, can enhance.
The selection made a winning debut as a four-year-old in a Roscommon maiden last July before running well in defeat when a five-length second to Taipan at Galway a month later.
Sky Captain returns to action sporting a first-time visor and, assuming that aid ekes out further improvement, he ought to prove hard to beat.
Joseph O’Brien has also reached for visor for Defiantly and this previous Killarney victor can give Sky Captain most to think about.
By then the in-form O’Brien should already have been among the winner’s with Alphonsus Liguori fancied to land the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden, the first contest on the seven-race card.
The Study Of Man colt ran a fine race on debut at Gowran Park last month, going down by just a head to stablemate Perisher.
The winner has since boosted the form by following up in impressive fashion at Naas so Alphonsus Liguori, sure to be more streetwise second time out, ought to be a tough nut to crack.
Glyfada can land the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Race for Donnacha O’Brien.
A good second on debut at the Curragh, the Camelot filly built on the promise shown there to score at Naas a fortnight ago.
With further improvement anticipated, Glyfada sets a decent standard here and is fancied to get the job done.
The Brehon Hotel Handicap looks pretty tricky but the booking of Colin Keane to ride the Kevin Coleman-trained Honouramongthieves suggests a big run is anticipated.
The Twilight Son gelding didn’t get home when fading late on to finish sixth of eight in a Cork handicap last month so this slight drop in trip looks a wise move.
There’s also a jumps card at Sligo where Gordon Elliott-trained Gerrys Wish can strike in the Solar Generation Handicap Hurdle.
Stablemate Speculateur looks to have been found a decent opportunity to make a belated breakthrough in the Enda McGoldrick, Plant & Agri Hire Maiden Hurdle and it’ll be a disappointment if he fails to deliver.
Darren Norris
5.05 Alphonsus Liguori (NB)
5.40 Glyfada
6.10 Treasure Rose
6.40 Can I Kiss You
7.10 Honouramongthieves
7.40 Factual Fact
8.10 Sky Captain (Nap)
Next best
5.05 Dark Leader
5.40 What About Us
6.10 Mystic Bella
6.40 Tero D'rosa
7.10 Musashi
7.40 Harry's Legacy
8.10 Defiantly
5.27 Hey Now
5.58 Beir Bua
6.28 Centaq
6.58 Speculateur
7.28 Ilbdare
7.58 Gerrys Wish
8.28 In A Sonnet Next best
5.27 Lilac Lady
5.58 Louie's Folly
6.28 Bowgate Street
6.58 Red Or White
7.28 Mother Ship
7.58 Ballyglass Beauty
8.28 Seven Towers




