Price increase

THE price of The Irish Field has increased by 20 cent this week, reflecting an unprecedented rise in the price of paper in the past year.

The cost per tonne of paper has doubled since January this year, and is some 140% higher than it was in April 2021. The company has deployed a range of internal measures to further improve efficiencies in our use of paper, without compromising the quality or quantity of content.

We continue to invest in our print and digital products to ensure that readers get valuable, unique content that informs and entertains. We thank our very loyal readers for your support which we value and appreciate greatly, and hope you understand why we have had to reluctantly increase the cover price.

Connolly’s Red Mills support stable staff at Punchestown

IT was announced this week that Connolly’s Red Mills will sponsor the stable staff yard canteen at the 2022 Punchestown Festival. Every day of the festival, stable staff can avail of a complimentary selection of hot dishes, sandwiches, snacks, pastries, tea and coffee.

Gareth Connolly, CEO at Connolly’s Red Mills said: “We plan to recognise and shine a light on the skills and commitment of the stable staff, who are the backbone of the industry and work tirelessly to provide the best care for the horses that we get to enjoy watching out on the track.”

Racing Victoria eases entry requirements for international travellers

RACING Victoria (RV), the authority responsible for the Melbourne Cup and Spring Carnival, announced this week that international contenders will no longer be subject to a mandatory scintigraphy scan.

The compulsory pre-travel scintigraphy scan was introduced among a number of other new requirements by RV for last year’s Spring Carnival following the deaths of some high-profile international horses in recent years.

The requirement of the scan was criticised by Aidan O’Brien and his son Joseph, with the latter one of only a handful of European trainers to send horses to Australia last year. Joseph reported that his Cox Plate winner State Of Rest needed to be sedated four times in one week in order to meet the testing requirements of RV. The authority says they will now adopt a more targeted approach to the procedure.

Popular jockeys’ agent passes away

EDDIE Byrne, who was Johnny Murtagh’s agent for much of his career, sadly died this week.

Byrne was a very popular figure in Irish racing and proudly worked on Murtagh’s behalf, booking him high-profile rides around the world.

Shadwell ends a fruitful association with Weld

DERMOT Weld is among a number of trainers who no longer has Shadwell-owned horses in his yard following that operation’s rescale. Sir Michael Stoute, Freddy Head, Mark and Charlie Johnston, Brian Meehan and Ed Dunlop are also off the Shadwell roster, it was revealed by racing manager Angus Gold last Saturday.

However, Kevin Prendergast retains horses for Shadwell. John and Thady Gosden, Roger Varian and Jean-Claude Rouget are also among those that have been kept on the roster.