Dylan Browne McMonagle lands Ballinrobe double
Merlin The Wizard and Dylan Browne McMonagle won the Michael Joyce Memorial Handicap at Ballinrobe. Pic: Healy Racing Photo
Dylan Browne McMonagle landed back-to-back winners for trainers Ray Cody and Joseph O'Brien at Ballinrobe yesterday evening.
The Cody-trained Merlin The Wizard won’t run again before the Galway Festival after his success under the champion jockey in the nine and a half furlong Michael Joyce Memorial Handicap for owners Lorna Honan and Ronnie Quinn.
The 7/2 chance won an optional claiming race over two furlongs further at Limerick earlier in the month by a length and a quarter and enjoyed the same winning margin in beating Ger Lyons’ 5/1 shot Daler this time.
Cody commented, “His owners are from Galway and that's the plan for him now. It will be more competitive there but this was a nice race to win.
“I told Dylan to pop out and be handy, to settle him where he was comfortable and he gave him a brilliant ride. I was happy watching it because I knew it was going to be hard for the fancied ones to come from the back.”
Despite stumbling on leaving the stalls and running wide into the straight, 9/4 favourite Rodeo Blues scored a most comfortable win in the JJ Burke Peugeot Handicap for Joseph O'Brien.
Browne McMonagle had the three-year-old in front passing the two-furlong pole and although running off the final bend, she came home a three and a quarter length winner from Adrian Sexton’s 12/1 chance Sands Castle.
Kildare’s Max Popan rode his first winner on only his seventh ride when taking the Ronan & Tom Gibbons Memorial Apprentice Claiming Race on the Ken Condon-trained Femme Beauty.
The strong 13/8 favourite made most of the running and skipped clear early inside the final furlong to beat the Jack Davison-trained 100/30 chance Cameclose by four and a half lengths.
Popan said, “It’s some feeling to have your first winner, just crossing that line. I want to thank Billy Lee, Niall McCullagh and Shane Foley for always being there for me and of course Ken and Pauline (Condon), they’ve been so good in their support.”
The winner was subsequently claimed for €15,000 by trainer Ger O’Leary.
Billy Lee landed a winner of his own when partnering Deressa to a narrow success in the concluding Irish Stallion Farms EBF (Fillies) Handicap for Paddy Twomey and owner Mel Sutcliffe.
The 7/1 chance was trapped behind a wall of horses before the straight and came widest of all with the challenge to pip Andy Slattery’s 11/1 shot Royal Hollow by a neck with Ross O'Sullivan’s 6/4 favourite Switch From Diesel a length and three-parts away in third place.
Wonderfulwonderful made every yard of the running to take the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Maiden for John McConnell and Jack Kearney. The 5/1 chance had enough in reserve to hold the late runs of 3/1 shot Camino Lad and 4/5 favourite Nermal by half a length and a neck respectively.
Dermot Weld and Chris Hayes landed the Lodge At Ashford Castle Maiden with the 2/1 chance Harana who picked off Johnny Murtagh’s 15/8 favourite Mano Chicago at the furlong pole to win by three and a half lengths.
Another cosy scorer was the Dick Donohoe-trained 6/1 chance Daboya who took the Gain The Advantage Series Handicap by three lengths under Sam Coen in the colours of the Goatsbridge Syndicate, her fourth career success.
