NOEL Meade recorded a breakthrough Group 1 win on the flat earlier this year with Helvic Dream in the Tattersalls Gold Cup and the Castletown trainer enjoyed another memorable day on this valuable eight-race card sharing two significant victories with rider Chris Hayes, who completed a 336/1 treble.

The €120,000 Irish EBF Auction Series Race Final provides less expensive horses with the opportunity of a big pay-day and Lady Of Inishfree, who went through the sales ring for €20,000, confirmed the promise of her fourth in listed company last month by leading inside the final furlong for a half-length verdict at odds of 7/2.

Corporal Violette didn’t enjoy the clearest of passages but kept on well for second, with Seeingisbelieving a further two and a half lengths back in third.

The daughter of Farhh is owned in partnership by Eoin Banville, Ken Bolger and Peter Parkhill, and Meade commented: “I think she’s very good and she’ll be better on better ground. There is no question in my mind that she is a stakes filly but she was getting into this race well so we had to have it in mind with the prize money.

“She won’t run again this season and there is a chance that she could be sold. One of the owners, Eoin Banville, is in hospital at the moment after getting a kick and knocking the top off his thumb. It’s after getting infected so this will give him a bit of a lift,” added Meade.

Meade double

Hayes and Meade struck again just 35 minutes later with Elysium in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Garnet Stakes. The 9/1 chance was patiently ridden to challenge over a furlong out in this mile listed event and got on top in the closing stages to beat Emphatic Answer by half a length, with Oodnadatta staying on two and a quarter lengths away in third.

“George (Strawbridge) bought her after she won the Group 3 Weld Park Stakes last year and he kindly left her with me. I was hoping she’d run in the Irish Guineas but we never got a chance to train her for it as she got a lung infection in the spring and it’s only in the last six weeks she started to come right,” said Meade.

He added: “She was a bit unlucky in Cork last time where she got into all sorts of trouble. She might run again at Leopardstown next Saturday and if not this will probably be her last run for me as she might be going to the States. He’s a lovely man to train for and has been very patient.”

Hayes, third in the flat jockeys table on 54 wins, initiated his treble when Pearle D’Or made a taking debut in the Tifrums Irish EBF (C&G) Maiden. The 13/2 chance travelled sweetly behind the leaders and showed some greenness before asserting to beat El Magnifique by two and a quarter lengths.

The Moyglare Stud Farm homebred gelding is trained by Dermot Weld who said: “He’s a nice big horse, still very raw. I said to Chris take your time on him, he’ll be a bit backward but he’s been working very nicely and I think he’ll come home well for you. That’s exactly what happened. That’s it for the year with him. He’ll learn plenty from that and he handles the (yielding) ground.”

THE Irish Stallion Farms EBF Bluebell Stakes was the other listed contest on the afternoon and Thunder Kiss (5/2), trained by Ger Lyons for Newtown Anner Stud Farm, rounded off a very consistent campaign leading over a furlong out on the stands’ side for Colin Keane and keeping on gamely to beat Sweet Molly Malone by a neck.

Assistant trainer Shane Lyons said: “Ger wanted to run her in this race to go out on a high and fair play to Maurice (Regan) for letting her run. It was a tough ask with a penalty. She has been so consistent all year and is very genuine. She is going to stay in training next year. She goes on most ground but is very effective on that.”

Beach best

Michael O’Callaghan has enjoyed a good year with his juveniles and Siesta Beach provided the Curragh trainer with his 10th individual two-year-old winner in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden.

The Joe Higgins-owned 11/4 chance led over a furlong out under Leigh Roche and soon asserted to score by a length and a half from the staying-on Knocklane Lass.

O’Callaghan said: “She deserved that and is learning with racing. She’s a filly who could get a bit of blacktype and we might run her before the year is out in something like the Bosra Sham at Newmarket.”

Admiral improves

O’Callaghan later completed his first double in the Irish EBF Auction Series Nursery where his own Admiral D added to a Listowel maiden win earlier this year. The 11/4 favourite overcame a slow start quickening clear from over a furlong out under Jake Coen to beat Bobby Dasser by an impressive four and a half lengths.

“We thought a lot of him earlier in the year but fast ground and five furlongs at Royal Ascot proved the wrong thing to do and set him back for the rest of the year. I ran him back in a nursery at the Curragh and he just wasn’t himself so I gelded him and gave him a break. He’s been off for three months and will improve from this run,” said O’Callaghan. “Early in the year I thought he was a Birdcatcher horse and he could still go for it but we’ll see what the handicapper does with him.”