Big week for Gavin Ryan

Jockey Gavin Ryan and Kildare trainer Mark Fahey combined to win the opening nursery handicap at Gowran Park on Tuesday where Rhythm King scored a 16/1 success.

It was tight at the line as he edged out the Ross O'Sullivan-trained favourite Summer Snow by a shorthead in the colours of owner Clare Lennon.

Immutable was a winner for trainer Joe Murphy and Gary Carroll in the eight-furlong maiden. The Gerard Kerwick-owned two-year-old led at the furlong pole and got the better of the Joseph O'Brien-trained favourite Dark Side by half a length.

Fools Glory was a winner for Andrew Slattery and local trainer Paul McEnery in the first of the afternoon’s eight-furlong handicaps. The 33/1 chance headed Pat Murphy’s front-runner Lucky Queen at the furlong pole to score by a length.

Fozzy Stack and Andrew Slattery took the first of eight races at a rain-drenched Navan on Wednesday where Decorated My Life landed the median auction maiden over the extended five furlongs. The 9/1 chance battled well to see off the challenge of the Jessica Harrington-trained favourite Ardad’s Great by a neck.

Aidan O'Brien and Seamie Heffernan were on the mark on the 14-furlong maiden with Sundial. He made much of the running to win by a cosy two and three-parts of a length from the Joseph O'Brien-trained Uxmal.

The Mouse Morris-trained French Dynamite landed the He’llberemembered Hurdle at Thurles on Thursday. Darragh O'Keeffe made all the running on the smart seven-year-old which beat the Paul Fahey-trained Ballyshannon Rose by a cosy three lengths.

Aidan O'Brien and Seamie Heffernan enjoyed their first winner of the weekend when taking the eight-furlong maiden at Dundalk on Friday with favourite Londoner.

Shane Crosse took the evening’s finale on the Joseph O'Brien-trained Fawkner Park. Patiently ridden, the 11/8 chance came through to head the Aidan O'Brien-trained favourite Fleet Commander a little over a furlong from home and pulled away in impressive fashion to score by an easy six and a half lengths from the Ballydoyle runner.

Saturday proved to be a big day for Ballydoyle, and the team added to their big win at Doncaster with two winners at Leopardstown. Seamie Heffernan rode both winners for Aidan O'Brien, taking the two-year-old maiden over seven furlongs on Mowhawk Chief before landing the very next race, the fillies’ nursery handicap over the same distance, on favourite Delightful.

Paddy Twomey provided Billy Lee with further success as the Ennistown Stud-owned Bua scored a twelve-length success at the Curragh on Sunday. The 5/2 chance led before the two-furlong pole and went right away to win impressively from the Ciaran Murphy-trained favourite Lizzy’s Filly.

Lee was a winner again on the Ken Condon-trained Moss Tucker and he ended the week tied with Colin Keane on the 88-winner mark in the race to be crowned champion jockey.

Seamie Heffernan won the Group 3 Comer Group International on the Aidan O'Brien-trained Emily Dickinson, the strong 5/2 chance bouncing back to winning ways with a taking five and a half-length win over the Joseph O'Brien-trained Baron Samedi.

While a Group and Listed race winning trainer on the Flat, Andy Slattery notched up his biggest jumping success as Plains Indian won the Listed two-mile five-furlong novice hurdle at Limerick on Sunday. Owned and bred by Eithne Thompson, the 5/1 chance led before the second last hurdle under Danny Mullins to beat Gordon Elliott’s even money favourite The Friday Man by a length and a half.

Gavin Ryan bagged his first Group 1 success as the Donnacha O'Brien-trained Proud And Regal won the Criterium International at Saint-Cloud on Saturday.

It was a huge day for the O'Brien clan as father Aidan made history at Doncaster where the Ryan Moore-ridden Auguste Rodin gave the Ballydoyle maestro his eleventh success in the Group 1 Vertem Futurity Stakes and Joseph O'Brien was on the mark, also at Saint-Cloud, as the Dylan Browne McMonagle-ridden Tranquil Lady took the Group 3 Prix de Flore.

Upcoming Meetings

Curragh – Wednesday, October 26 (First Race 12.35pm)

Clonmel – Thursday, October 27 (First Race 1.45pm)

Dundalk – Friday, October 28 (First Race 5pm)

Galway – Saturday, October 29 (First Race 1.08pm)

Wexford – Sunday, October 30 (First Race 1.00pm)

Galway – Sunday, October 30 (First Race 12.40pm)