FETHARD TRAINER HARRY Kelly has had some good horses through his hands in recent years such as Moyle Park and Lagostovegas, but he enjoyed the biggest win of his training career with the victory of Great Trango in the feature Galway Shopping Centre Handicap Hurdle at Galway on Saturday.
Having enjoyed no luck in the amateur Flat handicap here the previous Monday, most things fell right for the impeccably bred son of Canford Cliffs here, and the 12-1 shot stayed on stoutly from the final flight to beat Ask Susan by a length-and-a-half.
Having started the week with one win from 29 previous starts, One Cool Poet went three from three to become just the second horse to win three races at a single Galway festival by bolting up in the 1m4f handicap for Kilmessan trainer Matt Smith.
Billy Lee was on board once again as he recorded possibly the easiest of his three victories, picking off his opponents without coming off the bridle and sauntering clear to beat Father Ailbe by five lengths. The son of Urban Poet joined Busted Tycoon in 2013 as the only horses to have achieved this feat.
The Saturday of the Galway festival was a memorable one for Aidan and Donnacha O’Brien as team Ballydoyle had three winners on the spin over the course of the afternoon, and in two of the races they supplied the first and second.
Only four went to post for the Shearwater Hotel 2-year-old maiden, won by 4-6 favourite Emperor Of The Sun who held off stable companion Delta Dawn. The most impressive performance was that of Lancaster House who bolted up on his somewhat belated debut in the 1m maiden, while top-rated Royal County Down just held off stable companion Mythologic in the nursery.
Day six started off very nicely indeed for Tony Martin, as the victory of Mr Everest in the opening O’Leary Insurances Maiden Hurdle provided him and owner John Breslin with their third winner of a memorable week.
Ridden by Davy Russell, the son of Cape Cross was sent on when a gap appeared on the inner after the second last, indeed he might have been in front a little sooner than preferable, but he ran on well up the hill to beat fellow 6-4 joint-favourite Estelle Ma Belle by four lengths.
Justin O’Hanlon; for more visit the Racing Post
