Royal colours flying high at Ballybritt

Gordon Elliott won the two feature races at Ballybrit this week, The Galway Plate and the Galway Hurdle.

So far this week at the Galway Races, Summerhill man Gordon Elliott has been flying the colours for Meath with three winners includingthe two feature races at the festival, the Galway Plate and the Galway Hurdle.

Gordon Elliott saddled his first winner of the Galway Festival as the smart seven-year-old King Of Kingsfield comfortably landed the two and a quarter-mile beginners' chase. King Of Kingsfield spent most of last season acting as a pacemaker for talented hurdler Brighterdaysahead but this week he got his chasing career off to a winning start under Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy brought the 7/2 chance to challenge after the final fence and he led in the straight to win by three and three-parts of a length.

Both Gordon Elliott and local jockey Danny Gilligan enhanced their enviable records in the Tote Galway Plate as Western Fold raced to an authoritative success in the standout feature race on Wednesday. It was the trainer’s fifth win in the famed contest in 10 years while the winning six-year-old also provided local jockey Danny Gilligan with his second success. Gilligan, who has only ridden in the race on three occasions, finished runner-up on Elliott’s Duffle Coat 12 months ago. An 11/1 chance, Western Fold was readily adding to his victory in the Mayo National when racing to a four and a half-length win over the Noel Meade-trained 8/1 chance Jesse Evans with 33/1 shot Shecouldbeanything taking third place for Elliott who ran seven in all.

In a post-race interview, Elliott gave his father, who is in hospital at the moment, and his local GAA club Summerhill a mention.

"This race has been the plan for a while so I'm delighted the lads are here, it's a dream for the lads to be here and win the race. My Dad’s in hospital so he'll enjoy watching this and hopefully it will cheer him up. He'll be out, hopefully, for the football in Summerhill on Saturday. He's watching it in hospital so hopefully it gives him a lift."

A runner-up in the race on four previous occasions, Gordon Elliott finally got a winning turn in the Guinness Galway Hurdle on Thursday. It took the intervention of the raceday stewards who promoted last year’s second Ndaawi to first place after he lost out to the Noel Meade-trained Helvic Dream by a shorthead. The latter, ridden by Donagh Meyler, repeatedly lent in on Jack Kennedy’s mount Ndaawi from the final hurdle and after a lengthy enquiry, the placing were reversed.

It meant that Meade had now finished runner-up in both the Tote Galway Plate and the Guinness Galway Hurdle and also that Elliott and his Kerry jockey were winning Thursday’s big race for the first time. However, Noel Meade indicated in the aftermath of the race that he would be appealing the stewards’ decision.

Declan McDonogh was among the winners on the opening day of the festival as he partnered the 12/1 chance It’sneverjustone to take the seven-furlong handicap. Trained in Shropshire by Galwayman David Loughnane, the three-year-old closed on the leaders before the straight and led inside the final furlong to win by a length and three-parts.

In the well-known colours of the Wear A Pink Ribbon Syndicate, Genuine Article made all the running to win the eight-furlong handicap for trainer Gerald Keane on Thursday. Seamie Heffernan made all the running on the 11/2 chance which asserted early in the straight to win by three lengths from the Tom Gibney-trained Imposing Supreme, a 12/1 shot. The Wear A Pink Ribbon syndicate are aslo the owenrs of the talented Crystal Black who in 2024 won the Duke of Edinburgh at Royal Ascot.