HE may have been a fortunate winner at Kilbeggan last month but there was no fluke about the victory of Typical Thomas (13/2) in the featured Co-Op Superstores Handicap Chase at Cork on Sunday.

Ridden by Mark McDonagh, the bottom weight raced prominently throughout to beat The Dara Man by four lengths.

“He has a tendency to jump left so Mark’s plan was to get out to the outer,” said James Fahey who trains the progressive six-year-old who runs in the colours of his partner Heather Heffernan. “He was very lucky to win in Kilbeggan when he would have finished third or fourth only for two horses to fall and was then unlucky at Downpatrick when he jumped violently left at the second last.

“This is our biggest win and the horses are running to their ability. All winners help but the big winners will hopefully put us in the shop window. The phone will be fully charged so we’ll see how things go.

“Seamus is my father - I’ve no brothers but Mark is a cousin and Peter, Jarlath and Paul are uncles who all train horses.”

Hands On (9/2) provided trainer Enda Bolger with his first three-year-old winner in the Mallow Maiden Hurdle. The J.P. McManus-owned gelding met some traffic in the home straight but quickened well to lead on the run-in and beat Eagle Fang by a half-length.

Bolger said: “He is out of a Galileo mare and isn’t very big so it was an easy choice to go three-year-old hurdling. He must be Flemensfirth’s first three-year-old winner too. It was no harm that he met some trouble in running as it will make a man of him. He was still green, he pulled hard early on, but is learning his job all the time.”

Off the mark

Runner-up in a bumper and maiden hurdle, Time Marches On (5/1) got off the mark on his fourth start over fences in the Qifa Financial Planners Rated Novice Chase.

A second winner on the card for Scorpion, the Robcour-owned winner was produced to lead three out by Keith Donoghue and, despite a mistake at the last, beat Clever Currency by two lengths.

Winning trainer James Motherway was absent as the winning rider explained: “James has gone to the point-to-point in Tinahely. He rang me on the way down and said there were a couple of excuses for his last few runs. He thought he’d go close. He was lazy and was probably just doing enough.”

THE I.N.H. Stallion Owners EBF Novice Hurdle produced a cracking finish with progressive mare Desert Heather (15/8 favourite) completing a hat-trick of wins when edging past the always-prominent Solitary Man close home to score by a neck in the hands of Ray Barron.

The daughter of Cloudings was returning from five months off having won twice at Kilbeggan in the spring. Declan Queally junior said: “There was a small entry so I rang Harry (Gettings, owner/breeder) to say I was going to stick her in.

“She was only back in the yard, from being out in the field, six weeks so it was a fair trial of her but she is a lively little thing and is able to gallop. She was right at the weights so it is mighty. There is a three-mile Grade 3 novice hurdle here in three weeks so we’ll probably go for that.”

The 11/4 favourite Getabelle won the first division of the Finbarr Galvin Cupra Handicap Hurdle. Brian Hayes brought the market leader from mid-division to lead before the last and she went away to beat Onefortheditch by four lengths.

Liam Cusack, who trains the six-year-old for John T Murray, said: “I felt she was in great form this week and rode her the other day. I was worried when I declared her on soft, soft to heavy but the forecast was quite good and when I walked it, I thought she’d be okay.”

Local

The second division of that two-mile-three-furlong handicap hurdle was won by Chapel Street (7/1) under local rider Dan King.

Trained in Castlemartyr, Co Cork, by Joseph Hennessy and a winner at Wexford last year, the Scorpion gelding came from mid-division early in the straight to head Ladyeze Man after the last and was driven out to beat that rival by a hard-fought neck.

Hennessy said: “He is an eight-year-old who is hard to get ready and has had a few problems. Stephanie, my daughter-in-law, rides him and owns him with my son Richard.

“We’re dairy farmers and have a couple of horses.”

BLACK Bamboo had little difficulty justifying 4/9 favouritism in the Connolly’s Red Mills Irish EBF Auction Maiden Hurdle, scoring for local trainer John Murphy and jockey Michael O’Sullivan.

In front from the second last, the six-year-old scored readily by two and a half lengths from Ollie La Ba Ba.

Innishannon-based Murphy reported: “He was always a nice horse and the owners (Threedownoneup Syndicate) are great friends of ours from Downpatrick and have Russell’s Car Sales. Michael gave him a lovely ride, he was really cool and educated him today.”

Impressive Listowel winner Glowing Account was expected to follow up in the two-mile-three-furlong bumper but the 4/9 chance finished a well-beaten fourth as Scamall Bawn made a winning debut.

Owned by Dr K A Roche-Nagle and Mrs Suzanne Roche-Nagle, the homebred Fame And Glory gelding disputed the lead from early in the home straight and took over at the furlong marker to beat Ballysax Hank by two lengths. The 11/1 winner was ridden by David Kiely for John and Thomas Kiely.

John Kiely said: “He is a nice horse who is from a very good family. His dam was a sister to Frawley who did us proud a few years ago. This horse took time but he has patient owners and it was worth it. When you go out first time, you have to educate them and we’ll give him a chance to get over this”.