TWO racenames at the Curragh next week caught our eye.

One race on Monday marks the retirement of Eamonn Lloyd, a member of the Curragh groundstaff. Eamonn has spent over 50 years in racing, having started with Mick O’Toole when just 12 years old.

He also worked with Paddy Prendergast and Stephen Quirke before joining the Curragh Racecourse. His colleague Shane Gorey said: “Eamonn has been a great addition to the racecourse for over 20 years and his knowledge of the training grounds has been invaluable.”

Then on Friday Paddy Power has branded one race the ‘Jerry Hannon Appreciation Handicap’. Jerry worked with Paddy Power for close to nine years before he went full-time into commentary and the bookmaker’s marketing team had some fun in the past parodying Jerry’s famous ‘Roaring Bull’ call. God knows what they have planned for Monday. Watch out, Jerry.