CORK on Saturday broke a four-day period without Christmas racing and provided trainer Padraig Butler with a big-race win as his De Capo Glory (9/2) landed the featured €22,000 Easyfix Handicap Hurdle for the Red Strand Syndicate and jockey Darragh Allen.

Racing with the leaders, Allen moved the 135-rated seven-year-old to dispute the lead at the second last and very late on the run-in he got the better of runner-up Rebel Early, scoring by a head.

Bandon-based Butler reported: “It is his first run for five months and Darragh knows him very well having won a bumper and maiden hurdle on him. We couldn’t look past him with his 7lb claim on that ground.

“This horse was my first winner, he is still flying the flag and is a mighty horse. He isn’t big, but is very well-bred and jumps hurdles very well.

“He pulled up in the Galway Hurdle when they went a million (speed) and we were behind and beaten after the first hurdle.

“He ran well when finishing fourth in the Red Mills Hurdle at Gowran last year and that is an option again.

“It is mighty for the five-member syndicate (Red Strand Syndicate) and there are a lot of happy people here, although two are at home with Covid, another is in Copenhagen and he couldn’t make it. They are west Cork people and we had our initial syndicate meeting in the Red Strand (in Cork).”

Monaghan-based trainer Anthony McCann ended a busy few days with consecutive daily wins in the concluding Irish EBF Mares Bumper, as Familiar Dreams (11/4 - to 13/8 favourite) won well under jockey Aine O’Connor for the All Four Counties Syndicate.

Racing on the chopped-up ground along the inside, O’Connor’s mount led after halfway and maintained her gallop to the line, comfortably holding Knockarina by two lengths.

McCann later revealed: “Myself and Aine walked the track and decided to ride her like the best horse in the race. It wasn’t ideal going down the inner on the chopped up ground, but we had the advantage of having the inside.

“It might be too late in the season to go hurdling now, so maybe we’ll go for another listed mares’ bumper.”

He added: “A big thanks to all the lads in the yard as I’ve been gone since Wednesday evening, as we ran horses at Newcastle on Thursday. I had a winner at Wolverhampton yesterday, left last night at 9pm, got to the ferry at 3am and arrived into our yard at 7.45am this morning.

“The horse lorry had earlier left for Cork at 5am, so I followed on down in the car although it was touch and go as a water pipe burst in the lorry on the way down! It is four and a half hours and I haven’t got to the bed yet.”

VETERAN 12-year-old R’evelyn Pleasure (13/2) notched a seventh career success when following up a recent win at Limerick, in the Easyfix Handicap Chase, scoring for trainer Sean O’Brien and jockey Mark McDonagh.

Afterwards trainer O’Brien reported: “I had to run him back so quick as he came out of Limerick well. He ran well in this race a few years ago, it was a small field and Mark kept it simple. The plan is to go to Thurles, over two mile and six furlongs, in 15 days’ time.”

He added: “We had this horse’s grandam who I won two bumpers on (in 1996/’97) and my uncle and cousins, who part-own this horse, have been involved with this pedigree forever and a day.

“Mark (McDonagh, owner and father of the winning jockey) has just gone out foreign but I’m delighted for him and also for a cousin and another part-owner Ellen O’Brien, who had baby Lily a few days ago.”

The other chase on the card, the Quays Bar And The Stables Bar Beginners Chase was won by the Ellmarie Holden-trained Jet Setting Johnny (10/3), which scored a half-length win under jockey Hugh Morgan.

The winner carries the colours of the trainer’s buyer-seller father Paul Holden and Holden junior said: “That was a long time coming but we got there in the end and Hugh, who is with me full-time now, knows him inside out.

“The initial plan was to sell him after point-to-pointing, but that didn’t work out although he is for sale now. We had a recent point-to-point double (at Dromahane last Saturday) including five-year-old point-to-point winner Frisby who will join Jet Setting Johnny and another four or five of our horses to sell at an upcoming Doncaster sale.”

Second success

Flamborough justified strong even-money favouritism in registering his second course success in the Annual Membership Rated Novice Hurdle, for trainer Tom Gibney and owner Seamus Kiernan.

Ridden by Darragh O’Keeffe, the son of Farhh led at the second last and eventually held Morning Soldier by two and a half lengths.

Gibney reported: “It was a very suitable race and was almost made for him. It’s great if you have a horse who fits into these novice rated races and he did. He didn’t travel great in the race so we are delighted to get the result.

“We hummed and hawed about going to Limerick (over Christmas), but in the end we sat tight and decided to come back to a track he had won at. It looks the right thing to have done now.”

THERE were two maiden hurdles on the card with the first such race - the opening race, won by the Tom Cooper-trained, Ciaran Mooney-owned D Art D Art (10/3), under Donagh Meyler

The French-bred five-year-old led from the fifth and while pressed by runner-up Paggane approaching the final flight, secured a better leap and won readily by three and three-quarter lengths.

Trainer Cooper reported: “We dropped him in at Naas, but he got crowded and, with more light today, jumped savage and was deadly. Ricky Doyle schooled him over hurdles before he ran at Naas and said he never saw a horse go from ‘A to B’ as quick.

“His form is on heavy, but yielding ground shouldn’t inconvenience him. I didn’t think beyond today and it is hard to know where to go now.”

Paggane’s trainer Willie Mullins and jockey Paul Townend had better fortune in the ITM Stallion Trail 12-13 January Maiden Hurdle as Largy Hill comfortably justified 1/2 favouritism when beating Oscars Brother. The winner carries the colours of Simon Munir and Isaac Souede and afterwards Townend said: “He stayed nicely, travelled well and, with the ground being testing, had to do things right which he did. He improved from a good first run (over hurdles) and we were hoping he would improve at this distance. He was professional in everything he did and stayed very nicely.”