Category: RACING
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So near, yet so far away
New Year’s Day, 2011. Beginning another round of the calender in Fairyhouse. Same as it ever was. Except in that case it was anything but that. For about 18 months beforehand, dad and his best friend, the late former undertaker Oliver Cunningham, were tipping around with a few horses in training with Tom Taaffe. Spruce…
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Niall hangs up the Boots and goes for the Slippers after decorated career
One of the formative chapters in the construction of a large portion of my life revolving around horse racing came to an end today when Niall ‘Slippers’ Madden hung up his riding Boots and went for the Slippers after a wonderfully decorated career in the plate. From Irish racing’s ‘footwear family’ – Dad Niall ‘Boots’…
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Supporting actor lands all the plaudits yet again
In the preceding offering on these pages mention was afforded to the wonderful renewal of the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham in 2005. In no way was Hardy Eustace a back number – he could hardly be having won it the previous season – but, for whatever reason, the vast majority of the debate and rancor…
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Another day, more for Mullins but Henry hogs the big one
By ten past twelve today, Willie Mullins had another two winners on the board – one in both Limerick and Leopardstown. Both courtesy of horses breaking their maidens who would’ve been expected to have done so before now. One of which was the instigation of a treble for owners Joe and Marie Donnelly. The black…
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They’re top weight for a reason!
Before I was properly attuned to horse racing, one of the things that actually put me off it was the amount of prattling on the presenters and analysts on television – particularly the late John McCririck – did before a race. The thought process here would have been ‘Just list the runners and riders and…
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BREAKING NEWS: Limerick races off due to waterlogging
Today’s intended race meeting in Limerick has been lost to a waterlogged track after Greenmount Park shipped another 18mm of rainfall overnight. There will be a further inspection to determine whether Monday’s fixture can go ahead.
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Doubles for Meade and Elliott as Mullins has four tops
In a world less ordinary, any semblance of what once passed for normality has to be clung to and cherished. So to that end, racing going ahead in Leopardstown and Limerick going ahead was absolutely treasured. Once that was saved, though, things went very much along usual lines. In that, between both meetings Willie Mullins…
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Back to the future with a winning pedigree
A retired local farm worker, long since departed to the calving pens up yonder, once told my father “Don’t let anyone ever tell you about the good old days, the good days are now”. Keeping in mind that this would’ve been in the late 1970s or early ’80s anyone who had done a decade or…
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Elliott’s superstar an exceptional Envoi for Irish racing
Over the past few months, since the outbreak of Covid-19, I have made no secret of the fact that the restrictions in and re-shaping of the world because of the virus have had a very substantial effect on yours truly. No secret was made of the fact that I didn’t exactly handle the situation well…