THE Westmeath Foxhounds hosted their annual spring meet at the sunny venue of Castletown-Geoghan on Sunday, where in-form handler Gary Murphy unveiled another impressive newcomer to shine at the fixture.

Seven four-year-old maidens lined up for the opening race, four of whom were debutants, including the winner, Myrighthandman (3/1 - 5/2 favourite) in the colours of the Turbine Syndicate.

The son of Walk In The Park, who is a half-brother to multiple graded winner Westerner Lady, set a strong gallop from the drop of the flag, he fenced fluently and showed a smart turn of foot into the straight battling to fend off the challenge of runner-up Partimonio by a length.

This victory marked the first leg of a double for jockey Barry Stone, and was Murphy’s fifth four-year-old winner since the turn of the year, as the pair are proving a duo to be reckoned with.

The winning handler remarked: “He’s a tough, hardy horse who jumps for fun! He’s got a fantastic pedigree being by Walk In The Park, and he’s a beautiful horse with a great movement. He’ll be sold now. That’s our fifth four-year-old winner of the season, so things are going really well, long may it continue!”

Shining performance

Michael Murphy and Darragh Higgins of Redbridge Stables have been enjoying a strong run of form recently, and they added to that success here as Shining Marble (5/2 - 7/2) made amends for his fall on his previous outing at Borris House.

The son of Mahler was always prominent and caught the eye as he quickened on the approach to the straight. It was clear he was in command thereafter, pulling away to win by two lengths from Woodie Campelltown.

This victory was well-deserved for Shining Marble, a half-brother to eight-time winner Marble Moon. He had looked set for a top finish when falling at the last on his previous start, and he seemed to relish the good ground here.

Winning handler Michael Murphy commented: “He did that fabulously. The horses are all healthy and well, and they’re running great at the moment, which is the main thing. He’s a lovely horse who’s really enjoying the better ground, so we may look at a winners’ race for him.”

PLENTY of locals enjoyed success in the sunshine, and the adjacent hunt winners’ race was claimed by maiden Mosstown Mill (5/2 - 3/1), owned by locals Dolores and Tony Gleeson. The son of Harzand, who had pulled up on his only previous start, took a major step forward here. He fought gamely down the straight, overcoming the favourite What A Flirth to win by a neck in the hands of Eoghan Finegan.

Winning handler Ciaran Murphy remarked: “We’re thrilled with him. We gave him a run to gain some experience and help him improve. Tony Gleeson, who owns him, is local to here and we really wanted to get a winner here this year for him. To be fair to the organisers, the ground is in beautiful order, which gave us the opportunity to run, and he loved it. He’s a nice horse, a summer horse, and will likely head to the track at some point.”

Front-runners

Further local success came when Bestaline (3/1 - 7/2) and Kevin Healy made their front-running tactics pay off to win the open contest. From the moment the flag dropped, Bestaline set a strong gallop and never saw another rival. This grey French-bred daughter of Martaline had previously gotten off the mark at Daramona House in March, using the same front-running approach.

Kevin gave her a tactical ride, filling her up as they headed out on the final circuit, and once again kicked on. She won by eight lengths from favourite Pat Coyne. Winning owner and handler Simon Cavanagh commented: “She’s been good this season. She came here at the start of the year and wasn’t beaten far. She had a bit of an up-and-down spell with a fall and a pull-up, but then she went to Daramona House and put in a smart performance, doing the same thing she did today.

“She likes small fields and is a tough mare when she’s out in front. She could potentially go to a summer hunter chase if one suits her, but if not, we may return to hurdles in the summer. Either way, she’ll stay in open races for the remainder of the season.”

Main Man

Peter Flood’s Man Of The House (5/2 - 2/1) sent punters home happy as the seven-year-old son of Masterofthehorse was produced under a well-judged ride from Georgie Benson to land the six-year-old and upwards geldings’ maiden. A form pick, having finished second on his previous start at Daramona House in March, Man Of The House stepped forward from that effort here. He joined the leaders on entering the straight and, together, the pair kicked on, stamping their authority over the field to win by a convincing 10 lengths from Maison De Balzac.

This £4,000 Goffs acquisition appears to be finding his stride of late. If he continues to progress, he could feature prominently in winners’ company for the TFC Partnership.

PRINCESSE MILANIA (6/4 favourite) brought up the second leg of a double for Barry Stone, where front-running tactics proved to be the common denominator with winners on the day.

The Robert Tector-trained five-year-old daughter of Milan was returning from a 126-day break and was sent off favourite on this occasion, having finished second on her previous start at Borris House in December.

She took a smart step forward here, she upped the tempo on the run to three-out and fenced with great efficiency. She stayed on gamely into the straight to score by four lengths from Nicolas Fortune.

Horse to Follow

Patrimonio (C. Doyle): a newcomer son of Barastraight, put in a smart performance, holding every chance on the run to the final obstacle. Although he had to settle for minor honours, he lost little in defeat.