Doubles for Hogan and Swan
Amateur rider Harry Swan rode his second winner for Gordon Elliott in the space of just four days when partnering the four-year-old filly Speculatrix to land the concluding bumper at Punchestown last Wednesday.
The Gigginstown House Stud-owned odds-on favourite battled well to score on her debut and at the line had a neck to spare over Pat Martin’s The Correction.
Trainer Mouse Morris was among the winners at Thurles on Thursday where Franciscan Rock scored a cosy success in the near three-mile maiden hurdle.
Ridden by Ricky Doyle, the 11/8 chance led after the fifth-last hurdle and made the best of his way home to beat Willie Mullins’ favourite Sir Argus by four and a quarter lengths in the colours of owners Michael O’Flynn and John O’Flynn.
Jaafel notched up his third course and distance success of the current Winter Series at Dundalk when winning the opening claiming race on the all-weather surface on Friday.
A very well-supported favourite, the Denis Hogan-trained five-year-old got the better of Laura Hourigan’s Notforalongtime under Daniel King. Owned by the Playground Syndicate, he scored by a length and a quarter.
Denis Hogan was on the mark again at Naas on Sunday where he was narrowly denied a double. His runner in the two-mile maiden hurdle, Thecompanysergeant, lost by just a head to Willie Mullins’ Bialystok.
However, the Cloughjordan trainer’s fortunes changed for the better thirty minutes later as the Donagh Meyler-ridden Little Mixup scored a clearcut success in the handicap hurdle over the same distance.
A winner for owner Mark McDonagh at the Limerick Christmas Festival and at Punchestown on New Year's Eve, the now six-year-old held a definite advantage at the second-last hurdle and he skipped clear from the final flight to beat the Patrick McKenna-trained Wajaaja by five lengths.
Harry Swan maintained his fine run of form when capturing the bumper on the Gordon Elliott-trained Stellar Story. In the colours of Gigginstown House Stud, the 100/30 chance battled well to beat Willie Mullins’ favourite Ile Atlantique by a head to give Swan his third winner from his last five rides.