Mullingar trainer hopes to kick off new season with a winner at Kilbeggan
Brian Sheerin
The Kilbeggan Racecourse will open their doors tomorrow evening for the first time this season and the seven race card goes to post at 5.15.
Mullingar based trainer Dot Love and her assistant Ciaran Murphy enjoyed a fantastic 2012/2013 National Hunt campaign courtesy of Shadow Eile and Liberty Counsel tasting success at the very highest level.
The conclusion of the Punchestown Festival signifies the birth of the new 2013/2014 National Hunt season, and Love will be hoping Blimey O’Riley can get the stable off to the best possible start in the opening Follow Kilbeggan On Facebook Maiden Hurdle.
Having finished third to Rockyaboya in the Punchestown Charity race last Saturday, Blimey O’Riley has been presented with an outstanding opportunity to get off the mark over hurdles and jockey Andrew McNamara who rode three winners for Love last season will be hoping to ride his first winner of the new season.
Assistant trainer Ciaran Murphy is optimistic about the upcoming season and believes Blimey O’ Riley is among a select bunch of horses that can pay their way throughout the summer for the Charlestown team.
"We have five or six nice horses that we are looking forward to running throughout the summer months," said Murphy.
"We bought some nice horses in Newmarket last year and ran a few of them during the autumn with a view of having them back fresh and fit for the summer.
"They are all back in now and have gained their education in the jumping game so we are very much looking forward to the upcoming campaign."
Noel Meade is another trainer who has enjoyed quite a lot of success at the midlands track having saddled high class horses such as Go Native, Iktitaf, and Athlumney Lad to success in previous years.
Elijah Gardner may not reach the same dizzying heights of those previous tenants in Noel Meade’s Castletown base in county Meath, but he ought to be good enough to land the following Kilbeggan Maiden Hurdle under the guidance of Cheltenham Festival winning jockey, Davy Condon.
Meade has solid credentials of landing a double on the card as former point-to-point winner Thomond is sure to be popular in the betting for the concluding Loughnagore Flat Race.
The five year old son of Definite Article was well supported on his racecourse debut at Fairyhouse but had the misfortune of bumping into a very smart horse in Outlander who went on to record three successive victories in bumpers and ran a credible race in the Grade One Champion Bumper at the Punchestown Festival last week.
Perhaps the soundest investment on what is a typically tricky seven race card is Chasing Shadows for trainer Dessie Huges and jockey Bryan Cooper who landed last year’s corresponding event with Definite Class.
Chasing Shadows put in a respectable round of jumping to finish fourth in a decent looking beginner’s chase at Wexford two weeks ago and can finally get her head in front back among her own sex in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Beginners Chase at 7.20.