DERBY winner Motivator’s half-sister Clear Skies completed a hat-trick of Dundalk wins at the venue on Friday night week, when landing the Crowne Plaza Jockey &Trainer Awards Handicap for trainer Aidan O’Brien, his jockey son Donnacha O’Brien and owner J.P. McManus.

The daughter of Sea The Stars began her winning ways in a maiden at the track on November 8th and today scored a third win this month when beating Carried by a length.

Jockey Donnacha O’Brien said : “She’s just a progressive filly. She always worked nicely at home but it just took her a while to get her act together on the track.

“Before, she was kind of quitting off it but now she’s quickening and galloping out off it.

“The second favourite (Carried) was in front of me so I wanted to put him to bed when I could and then worry about what was coming from behind me after that.

“She’s probably not far off being capable of getting some blacktype. I don’t know if there is anywhere she can go at this time of year.”

Melbourne Cup hero Joseph O’Brien was also on the mark at the venue, as his French import Unpretentious scored on her Irish debut in the Dundalk Business Club 2018 (Fillies) Maiden.

Ridden by jockey Sean Corby, the former André Fabre-trained daughter of Invincible Spirit scored on her fourth career start and her first for O’Brien.

Jockey Corby later said: “The main thing was to get her to relax early, as in her races in France she ran a bit keen.

“She was a little keen for the first furlong, but once I got a bit of cover she was fine.

“She stuck her head out well to the line and I couldn’t fault her. She’s very well-bred and hopefully she’ll improve from here.”

Champion jockey Colin Keane was again in the winner’s enclosure in the Joe Wall’s 70th Birthday Nursery, having steered the John Kiely-trained Check Your Pockets to beat runner-up Mojambo in a tight finish.

Mojambo is in the care of Keane’s employer Ger Lyons but the champion jockey was unable to ride at reserve Mojambo’s 8st 7lbs, and in the end beat that rival by a neck on the winner.

Kiely wasn’t present but afterwards Keane said: “I rode her the first day in Tipperary and I was mad about her.

“Niall (McCullagh) said she ran a little bit keen with him the last day so he said to drop her in, take our time with her and get her to spit it out, which she did today and she came home well.

“She’s still a big frame of a filly and hopefully they’ll have plenty of fun with her next year when she grows into herself. She’s still a bit green but I suppose it’s the first time she’s hit the front and especially under the lights they can go off a little bit.”

FIRST WIN

At the other end of the riding scale, 19-year-old Dubliner Thomas Sherry rode his first career winner when landing the opening www.dundalkstadium.com Handicap on the Michael O’Callaghan-trained Aggression (3/1).

Sherry switched Aggression, running in the colours of the Michael O’Callaghan Racing Club, to the outer with two furlongs to race and from there quickened well for a length and a half win over Flawlessly.

Sherry later commented: “That’s my first winner and it’s my 16th ride and the boss (O’Callaghan) has been very good to me.

“He ran a cracker last week and was just beaten a nose and we fancied him for tonight.

“The plan was to sit mid-division but he missed the break and we took our time. He has a great turn of foot and can pick up off a very fast pace.

“I’m delighted to get the first winner and hopefully it picks up now.

“I’m 19, from Dublin city centre and went to the racing academy (RACE) two yearand spent a year with Michael Halford. I went to the boss last year and I’m enjoying it.”

The next race, the Irishinjuredjockeys.com Claiming Race, was won by the subsequently claimed New Story, for trainer Eoin Doyle and jockey Shane Foley.

The four-year-old son of New Approach had won twice in Britain in 2014 and having not raced in 2016, was today scoring for the third time on his sixth start for trainer Doyle.

Jockey Foley later said: “He had a couple of solid runs in those kind of races and did it well. He obviously started with a rating of 90 and was down off 70 today, likes the all-weather and had been knocking on the door.

“They’d been riding him with a bit more patience and Eoin (Doyle) just said today to jump him out behind the leaders and if he’s good enough he’s good enough and thankfully he was.

“Off a rating of 70 I think he might be alright even in a handicap and could run well over a mile and a half.”

New Story was claimed for €8,000 by F.M. Carton to be trained by Mark McNiff, while fourth-placed Asian Wing was claimed by James Mescall to stay with his current trainer John Feane.

SCOPE

Foley’s former employer Michael Halford trains and Eric Koh owns Invincible Ryker (well-backed 5/2 favourite) who won the Floodlit Friday Nights Apprentice Handicap under jockey Ross Coakley.

In first-time cheekpieces, the gelding was produced with a well-timed challenge when beating Rivellino by half a length.

Halford said: “He’s a grand big horse, likes it around here and has plenty of size and scope to him. That’s a good trip for him and we just put the cheekpieces on him as he was idling a little bit.

“He’s still relatively lightly raced and is getting the hang of it now – it’s a big difference when they go into handicap company.

“He had a wide draw tonight and Ross did well on him; he got him in and got a little bit of cover and once he relaxed he was always happy.”

Princess Yaiza came to the rescue of bookmakers in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Maiden, as the Gavin Cromwell-trained filly foiled a gamble on newcomer and eventual runner-up Elegant Drama.

Ridden by Ronan Whelan, Princess Yaiza battled gamely for a half-length win over the Ger Lyons-trained Elegant Drama, who had been backed from 7/4 this morning in to 4/6 favourite at the off.

Cromwell later commented: “I fancied her coming here and then I saw all the money for Ger’s (eventual runner-up Elegant Drama) so it was a bit of a worry.

“She’ll go another furlong and we’ll see what the handicapper does; we might go for something else up here as she seemed to handle the surface.

“I thought in the straight she might just be done for gears but she got away with it grand.

“She’ll be a lovely three-year-old as she’s a big scopey filly and she has a great attitude.”

Bookmakers suffered a reverse in the concluding Crowne Plaza Hotel Race & Stay Handicap when the well-backed Eddie Lynam-trained Clare Island won under jockey Robbie Downey.

The Kilboy Estate-owned daughter of Holy Roman Emperor was backed from 12/1 this morning and from 10/1 on track in to an 8/1 chance and in the end scored readily by two and a quarter lengths from runner-up Red All Star.

Lynam wasn’t present but jockey Downey later said: “It was probably wasn’t the greatest 0-65 but she did it nicely.

“Hopefully the handicapper won’t give her too much for that and she’ll get her head in front again.”

Acting Stewards

N.B. Wachman, A. Byrne, Ms M. Cosgrave, Dr J..F. Gillespie, M.F. O’Donoghue

Horse to follow

ELEGANT DRAMA (G. Lyons) She was a well-supported favourite in the fillies’ maiden. While she came up short when finishing second compensation awaits in a similar race.