Tipperary Review 2008
The most prolific winner at Tipperary this season was undoubtedly Psalm.
The Sadler’s Wells three-year-old filly was successful at the July meeting when she sluiced in over nine furlongs in the Dan Dooley Ford Motor Centre Maiden. The Aidan O’Brien trained filly returned to the track in August and showed real battling qualities to win the Fairy Bridge Stakes, a listed race, worth €70,000. The Anne Marie O’Brien bred filly showed further improvement on Super Sunday when she won the Coolmore Stud Home Of Champion Concorde Stakes in emphatic style. She obviously liked the Tipperary track because she failed to register a win elsewhere..jpg "Psalm - The winner of 3 races at Tipperary in 2008: The Dan Dooley Car Sales Maiden, The Listed Fairy Bridge Stakes and the Group 3 Coolmore Stud Concorde Stakes.")
The classiest horse to win at the track this season was surely Bushranger. He made a successful debut on June 5th. With Wayne Lorden in the saddle he withheld the challenge of Tommy Stack’s Nubar Lady over five furlongs. The runner-up had won the Modligiani Maiden a month earlier. David Wachman sent Bushranger to Royal Ascot for the Windsor Castle Stakes where he was denied a clear run yet was beaten just half a length. The Danetime colt was successful in his next outing at the Curragh in the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes. Johnny Murtagh was on board when this promising colt annexed the Group1 Darley Prix Morny at Deauville over six furlongs. One of the most prestigious races for two-year-olds is the Group1 Shadwell Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket and Bushranger showed his class when Murtagh drove him clear of Sayif. He certainly will be in line for some of the top three-year-old races next season. It all began at Tipperary in June.
The opening race of the season on April 10th was sponsored by Ballyhane Stud and Kevin Prendergast supplied the winner with the Declan Mc Donagh ridden Playdate. The second race on the card went to Aine. She is trained by Tommy Stack who has a great strike-rate at Tipperary. John Oxx introduces some very nice maidens every year at this venue and Kargali didn’t disappoint. The lightly-raced Aga Khan owned colt finished the season with a rating of 107.
Aidan O’Brien is renowned for giving some of his good two-year-olds their initial outing at Tipperary. Grand Ducal made a successful debut on May 23rd and he went on to finish third to Azamour’s half-brother, Arazan, in the Futurity Stakes. He had Drumbeat behind and the latter was beaten half a length by his stable companion Fame And Glory in the Group1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud in November. So the form is good.
When the Ballydoyle trained Westphalia won the Coolmore Hurricane Run Stakes on August 7th, Aidan O’Brien remarked “ this is a talented colt who needs a trip”. He was proved right because he was successful at Doncaster in the Keepmoat Champagne Stakes. His best performance was in the Grade1 Breeders Cup Juvenile Turf when beaten a half length by Donativum.
Another Ballydoyle juvenile worth mentioning is Freemantle. When he was successful in the High Chaparral Maiden he gave promising apprentice Sean Levey his first ever double as he was also on board Psalm.
A large group of supporters travelled from England on August 28th to support owner Margaret Forsyth when her two-year-old colt Senor Mirasol got the better of Nubar Lady in the Danehill Dancer Tipperary Stakes. It was a great occasion for winning trainer Kevin Ryan as it was his first winner at his local track.
National Hunt trainers are very supportive of racing at the Tipperary track and it was great to see Susan Finn win her first graded race when Baltiman defeated Footy Facts and Powerstation to win the O’Dwyer Steel Like-A-Butterfly Novice Chase. The form of the race worked out well with Footy Facts winning at Thurles and Powerstation was unlucky not to win the Listed Cleanevent Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham when beaten by Fair Along.
The Eric McNamara trained Larkwing won the Grade 3 Kevin Mc Manus Bookmaker Grimes Hurdle in July and returned to the track for the Super Sunday meeting where the prolific winning mare Megans Joy proved too strong in the Ballykisteen Hotel & Golf Resort Tipperary Hurdle.
Dermot Weld has a very promising four-year-old in Vital Plot and he proved that when he won the Tipperary Supporters Club Joe Mac Novice Hurdle.
An appropriate winner at the track in July was Sneezy Foster’s Super Gale who triumphed in the Dennis Tarrant & Sons Sand And Gravel S’ Chase. David Wachman had worked for Sneezy and when he completed his term at Enfield he was succeeded by Tipperary Manager Peter Roe who has overseen another profitable and successful season at the track.