Galway Plate preview: Donn McClean best bets
By Donn McClean
18:26 · WED July 28, 2021
Donn McClean has two against the field for the tote Galway Plate including an interesting JP McManus runner.
They reckon that over 40,000 people went to Ballybrit for the first Galway Plate in 1869. That is about 240,000 fewer people than went to Ballybrit to see Pope John Paul II 110 years later – it can hold a crowd all right – but it is 39,000 more than there will be in attendance today.
These are the times through which we are navigating our way these days and, actually, there was atmosphere in Ballybrit over the last couple of days. It’s not the normal Galway buzz, but it’s something. Some people is a significant step up on no people.
RSN927
GALILEO DOWN UNDER. WHY DID HE FAIL?
July 12, 2021 1:17 pm
By Matt Stewart, Racing Editor
The vast contrasts of horse racing all around the world can probably best be illustrated through the hit and miss record of stallions.
A legend in Europe, like
Galileo, was a blip on the radar Down Under, although the perception that Galileo flopped here was probably a tad harsh, according to breeding guru Danny Power.
“Seventeen stakes winners in five seasons. You wouldn’t say he was a failure down here but obviously it’s a contrasting story between what he did here, and what he did there,” Power said of Galileo, who has died in
PUNCHESTOWN TIPS: Four horses to back on Day 2 of Punchestown 2021
Wednesday, April 28 );
16:50 - Louis Fitzgerald Hotel Hurdle
DECIMATION (9/4) is the one for me in this for the powerful De Bromhead/Blackmore combination. Blue Sari is the market leader and based on his beating of The Bosses Oscar at this track last year, he would take all the stopping if not for his inability to finish his last three starts. A horse with letters instead of numbers in their form is one to be avoided for me from a betting perspective. He was pulled up twice at Leopardstown in February and then fell, albeit when going well and looking likely for second place, in the Coral Cup at Cheltenham. Decimation on the other hand is very progressive and is consistent. His form book reads 22212 for his last five starts and his 10-length win over Hallowed Star two starts ago was very eye-catching.
PUNCHESTOWN TIPS: Four horses to back on Day 2 of Punchestown 2021 longfordleader.ie - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from longfordleader.ie Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Donn McClean on the British and Irish jumps scene ahead of the 2021 Punchestown Festival
By Donn McClean
14:29 · SUN April 25, 2021
Donn McClean reflects on the current National Hunt scene in Ireland and Britain ahead of the five-day Punchestown Festival.
Henry de Bromhead’s stable stars paraded at Tramore last Sunday: Honeysuckle, Put The Kettle On, Minella Indo, Minella Times, Balko Des Flos. The Champion Hurdle winner, the Champion Chase winner, the Gold Cup winner, the Grand National winner, the Grand National runner-up.
It is not so long ago that, if Irish trainers as a collective had had that haul, it would have been quite incredible. For one trainer, it was unprecedented.