HORSE RACING: MICHAEL KINANE travels to Newbury this afternoon to renew acquaintances with Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson whose Broomielaw has just the fifth start of his career in the featured handicap.
The five-year-old is a son of Rock Of Gibraltar, the superstar miler who carried Ferguson’s colours to seven successive Group One victories during 2001 and 2002. Kinane was on board for six of those seven top-flight wins that illuminated the racing scene before a highly-publicised split between Ferguson and the Coolmore Stud team at the start of Rock Of Gibraltar’s stud career.
He was the epitome of durability, but his son Broomielaw, who races in the colours of Ferguson’s wife, has run just four times in all, but returned from a two-year absence to win at Newmarket last month.
Kinane takes over from Hayley Turner today in the €110,000 John Smith’s Handicap over 10 furlongs, a race that also sees the Paul Flynn-trained Drunken Sailor take his chance.
“I’d by lying if I said I wasn’t very satisfied with bringing him back to win after so long off the track,” Broomielaw’s trainer Ed Dunlop said yesterday. “It’s a tough race – the hardest of his life – and while it seems a ridiculous thing to say about a five-year-old, we’re still learning about him.”
Broomielaw will be Kinane’s sole mount today, but his former Ballydoyle colleague Colm O’Donoghue has a couple of rides at Ayr, including Noel Meade’s veteran Arch Rebel in the Listed Doonside Cup. Arch Rebel returned from a year off to run fifth to Poet at Leopardstown on Irish Champion Stakes day.
O’Donoghue, who won last weekend’s Portland Handicap on Santo Padre, also teams up with Alan Jarvis for Jeanie Johnston in the Group Three Firth of Clyde Stakes, while his Irish weigh-room colleague Chris Hayes is on Cape Vale in the Silver Cup.
The conclusion of Listowel’s 2009 festival sees Crossdresser have his first start since April in the two-mile maiden hurdle.
Crossdresser was banned for 60 days under the “non-trier” rules after his run behind No One Tells Me at the Punchestown festival, with his trainer Gavin Cromwell fined €2,000 and jockey Shane McCann suspended for 21 days. Cromwell was later fined another €5,000 when the horse tested positive for lasix.
It’s a competitive maiden today, and although Honorary Title concedes experience to some of his fancied rivals, Paul Nolan’s Wexford bumper winner could be the best option.
Archie Boy has been a standard-bearer for the emerging trainer Paul Flynn, and Ruby Walsh’s mount can make it five straight wins over fences in today’s novice chase.
Trimbellina should relish a return to better ground in the featured handicap after her good run on heavy at Galway, while Mt Weather can go close for Joseph O’Brien in the seven-furlong handicap.
Zaralabad has also encountered testing ground recently, but a return to the level, and a decent surface, can see Nina Carberry’s mount score in the Listowel climax, the Slán Abhaile Race.
