Having done the one job for a half century, you would either be an expert at whatever discipline it happened to be or completely fed up with it. There’s no way Noel Meade could be dissatisfied with the 50th anniversary of producing equine excellence from his Tu Va base in Castletown, Co Meath.
Having belatedly garnered for his first Group One on the Flat courtesy of Helvic Dream at The Curragh during the summer and already filed away another Grade One via the impressive victory of Beacon Edge in the Drinmore Novice Chase at Fairyhouse prior to Christmas, the €200,000 Paddy Power Chase trophy will now sit proudly and snugly beside them.
By their very nature, big field handicaps are notoriously trappy and take quite the degree of winning. So attempting to land one with a ten race might seem a tall order, let alone with a horse that requires a hold up ride and the latest delivery possible. But then, when things are going your way sometimes it’s better to not try figuring it out and just enjoy the outcome.
Yet the combination of a textbook ride from Sean Flanagan which in itself enabled the safe negotiation of a passage through a race which had quite the degree of carnage therein and the immediately aforementioned traffic problems themselves incumbering steeds that would’ve been considered among the leading contenders at flag fall.
Winning one of any sport’s top prizes is a huge thing and never easily done. In horse racing terms, scooping a good pot in the silks of Irish racing’s most important owner carries even greater significance.
In the aftermath of today’s success, winning trainer Meade stated ” He travelled well, his jumping was edgy for a long time but he seems to have got the hang of it. I think he’ll get three and a half (miles) “. One for the long range notebook for Easter Monday methinks.
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