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Beef Or Salmon gained a last-gasp win.
By Nick Robson, PA Sport
Beef Or Salmon raised the roof at Leopardstown as he recorded a remarkable 10th Grade One success with a last-gasp victory in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup. But the landmark, achieved only by the likes of Moscow Flyer in recent times, looked beyond Michael Hourigan's pride and joy when The Listener turned into the straight fully eight lengths to the good. He had chased home Robert Alner's gallant grey in the Lexus Chase in December and a repeat result seemed on the cards when Daryl Jacob kicked his mount well clear with over half a mile to run. However, Andrew McNamara refused to give in and kept on pushing the 11-year-old - who was sporting blinkers for the first time - in the hope The Listener would tire. A few anxious looks over his shoulder gave the impression that all was not quite as well as it seemed for Jacob on the 9-10 favourite, although he still scrambled over the last with a clear advantage. And halfway up the run-in it became apparent The Listener was running on empty and Beef Or Salmon found more for pressure to win by three-quarters of a length. The winner returned to rapturous applause and there could not have been a more popular result. Forget The Past was a distance away in third, with the winner's stablemate Hi Cloy even further behind in fourth, while the novice Patsy Hall fell five out. An emotional Hourigan said: "We always thought he had a chance up the straight and his heart is in the right place. "He really stuck at it and his jumping was as good as it has ever been. "I said it would take him a while to get going but once he did, he really picked up. "We just needed the other horse (The Listener) to tire and luckily he did. "But it wasn't until they were halfway up the straight that I thought we would win. To finally get the 10th Grade One win is amazing and we will go to Cheltenham again with him." McNamara was also full of praise for the veteran: "I didn't think we could win turning for home but he never gives in and as soon as I saw The Listener begin to tire in front I asked him for one more effort." Dorset-based Alner was gracious in defeat and refused to criticise Jacob for setting too strong a gallop. "I wanted him to get him into a nice rhythm and get him jumping and that is exactly what he did," he said. "If we were to run the race again I wouldn't change a thing. "Daryl said he gave him an even better feel today than he did in the Lexus and they didn't go a silly gallop, the horse just took him that far clear. "He just got tired after the last which he was entitled to do. "Everything went according to plan apart from the fact that we got caught 50 yards from the line. He will go to Cheltenham now."
