Castleisland Races took place last Saturday and Mikey Sheehy took the riding honours with a four-timer, while Rossa Ryan and Rory King both rode doubles.
As is the norm, Mikey Sheehy took all three of the small pony races, with Another Tiger, Hello Star and One Of The Girls all maintaining their winning runs.
A laudable innovation saw the 12.2hh and 13.2hh races run as “Hands and Heels Races” without whips. Mikey then went on to add the 12-furlong race as Who’s Your Daddy won, to make it five wins from the last six runs for Duagh, Listowel owner Batsy Maher, putting the previous week’s blip behind him as he strode clear up the finishing hill.
Danny Sheehy has had to play second fiddle to his brother Mikey in the winners over the last few weeks, but he didn’t go home empty-handed as he partnered another Batsy Maher-owned horse, Man Of Steel, to win the second split of the mile race.
It was brother Mikey who looked likely to pose the biggest danger as they ran to the final bend but, ironically in light of the events in the political world that week, The Taoiseach slipped up and luckily Mikey, somewhat similarly to Enda, escaped with just a good bruising.
Rossa Ryan was never likely to match his exploits of the previous Sunday when he rode a seven-timer, but he would have been happy with his double nevertheless.
He opened his account in the 14.2hh race, where he partnered Green Monkey to win for Abbeyfeale owner Rachel McMahon, as he reversed Ballingarry placings with Whuse The Feek.
IMPRESSIVE WIN
Ryan sat in third place until he struck for home with less than two furlongs to travel for an impressive win. He then teamed up with Glenbeigh, Co. Kerry owner Gerard O’Connor to take the first division of the mile race with You’ll Never Know. Ryan dictated matters from the front here as he won from That’s Our Grouse.
Rory King had a good day also as the Kanturk rider made two trips to the winner’s enclosure. He first took the non-winners race on Darragh’s Magic, who made most of the running to win for the Shanagolden, Co. Limerick-based DHOK Syndicate.
King doubled-up then in the day’s feature, the Island Derby run over two miles, as Ballybrown Boy got the better of Coola Boola after leading from five furlongs out and bravely holding on up the hill.
In the 2014 Dingle Derby, these two finished 1-2, with Jack Kennedy on Coola Boola winning from the Killian Leonard-ridden Ballybrown Boy. The winner is from the Co. Limerick-based Dealview Racing stable.
There was a number of exciting finishes throughout the day and the 15hh race resulted in a dead-heat with the judge unable to separate the hat-trick seeking On The Edge and Rock Hopper.
Incredibly, the dead-heating pair are both trained in Bantry, Co. Cork by Alex Hamilton. On The Edge was partnered, as usual, by Libby Ducker, while 14-year-old Co. Tipperary rider Shane Crosse, son of Tommy Stack’s head man Matty, was registering his first win of the season on Rock Hopper. It was a well-deserved win for Rock Hopper as the David Granville-owned veteran had filled the runner-up berth on the previous two weeks.
The concluding maiden race provided a thrilling three-way finish with 14-year-old Fethard, Co. Tipperary rider Ben Coen getting Mr. Bush home in front from Carpe Diem and Forgive And Forget. Coen had to be at his best to land this one as Mr. Bush hung left up the straight.
RESULTS
Saturday, July 9th
12.2HH Race (7F): 1, Five Counties Syndicate’s ANOTHER TIGER (Mikey Sheehy); 2, E. Finn’s BISCUIT (Daniel King); 3, M. Slattery’s HERE COMES THE PAIN (Andrew Slattery).
13.2HH Race (9F): 1, Curly Syndicate’s HELLO STAR (Mikey Sheehy); 2, R. King’s. Carey’s TWINKLE (Daniel King); 3, O’Sullivan/King’s CARRIG AVA (Rory King).
14HH Race (9F): 1, Three Counties Syndicate’s ONE OF THE GIRLS (Mikey Sheehy); 2, B. Sexton’s TELL THE STORY (Darragh O’Keeffe); 3, V. Moriarty’s OBI ONE KNOBI (Darragh Moriarty).
14.2HH Race (12F): 1, R. McMahon’s THE GREEN MONKEY (Rossa Ryan); 2, Are You Well Syndicate’s WHUSE DA FEEK (Ross Sugrue); 3, W. McGrath’s SANDYCOVE (Darragh O’Keeffe).
15HH Race (12F): 1, A. Hamilton’s ON THE EDGE (Libby Ducker) and D. Granville’s ROCK HOPPER (Shane Crosse); 3, Deelview Syndicate’s BUBBA WATSON (Rory King).
Open Horse Race (1M) Div. 1: 1, G. O’Connor’s YOU’LL NEVER FIND OUT (Rossa Ryan); 2, P. O’Connor’s THAT’’S OUR GROUSE (Mikey O’Connor); 3, B. Maher’s MAN OF ACTION (Mikey Sheehy).
Open Horse Race (1M) Div. 2: 1, B. Maher’s MAN OF STEEL (Danny Sheehy); 2, C. Flannery’s BANNED SUBSTANCE (Joe Conlon); 3, Ph. Collins’ DRIVE ON REGARDLESS (Rory King).
Non Winners Horse Race (10F): 1, DHOK Syndicate’s DARRAGH’S MAGIC (Rory King); 2, Are You Well Syndicate’s NEARLY A DREAM (Ben Coen); 3, Are You Well Syndicate’s LIVE THE DREAM (Joe Conlon).
Open Horse Race (12F): 1, B. Maher’s WHO’S YOUR DADDY (Mikey Sheehy); 2, Deelview Syndicate’s EASY ON THE SOUP (Rory King); 3, Five Counties Syndicate’s MANYARI (Danny Sheehy).
Island Derby (2M): 1, Deelview Syndicate’s BALLYBROWN BOY (Rory King); 2, Three Counties Syndicate’s COOLA BOOLA (Danny Sheehy); 3, Curly Syndicate’s TIOCFAIDH AR LA (Mikey Sheehy).
Maiden Race (12F): 1, B. O’ Riordan’s MR BUSH (Ben Coen); 2, Deelview Syndicate’s CAPRE DIEM (Rory King); 3, R. Sugrue’s FORGIVE AND FORGET (Ross Sugrue).