Nic Doggett provides an overview of the key things to note on Thursday.
Tactics key but Adelaide River can bounce back
The BOYLE Sports Meld Stakes takes centre stage on Thursday, with the nine-furlong Leopardstown Group 3 scheduled for 19:10.
Last year’s winner Snellen is back to defend her crown but has a 3 lb penalty to carry in what looks a slightly deeper renewal in terms of numbers; she beat Purview – who has won his last three starts - by a short-head last term, but faces a sterner overall test here.
This race looks one for grabbing by the scruff of the neck, with a Timeform pace prediction of ‘uncontested’ meaning it’s hard to know who will want to go forward. Isaac Newton left his race in the stalls last month and is a leading player on form, but the three-year-old has never raced near the pace.
Fellow three-year-old Geryon has raced prominently in the past, but he has improved of late (less keen) for being held up, so it’s unlikely connections will want to change that. For all he will appreciate the ground, he looks opposable.
Cowardofthecounty wasn’t ideally placed in a race that turned into a bit of a sprint last time, so similar tactics might leave him vulnerable, a comment that also applies to Syzgy who was progressive in handicaps last term but this looks a step too far.
Clear top on Timeform’s weight-adjusted ratings is Adelaide River. He shaped well at the Curragh on his reappearance in May but went backwards at Royal Ascot and still needs to prove that he has returned from Australia a better/the same horse than when he left at the end of 2023.
Having said that, his Group 3 win here came on quick ground when he made all, and as a horse who stays much further, it would be folly for Dylan Browne McMonagle to not make use of his stamina. This looks a good opportunity.
Joseph O’Brien to land opening maiden again
Leopardstown’s opening race (16:20) has been won in recent seasons by two-year-olds with the benefit of two runs under their belt already, and – with the exception of Amo Racing newcomer Not You Too (representing last year’s winning yard) and fellow debutant This That - the experienced horses look the ones to focus on once more.
Pink Venom improved from first to second starts, having made her debut in a hot maiden here, but the pick is another Jospeph O’Brien runner - Star Of State - who caught the eye on debut at Fairyhouse earlier this month.
The State Of Rest filly attracted support at biggish prices and shaped well, the penny really starting to drop late on having been forced to switch early in the straight.
“Sure to improve and looks a banker for a maiden at the very least” according to the Timeform race report, which also highlighted the fast-finishing final furlong (which earned her a ‘Sectional’ flag), and this looks a good stepping stone to bigger things.
Flags as far as your eye can see
There’s also a ‘Sectional’ flag horse in action at Hamilton earlier in the day, with Jannas Journey expected to take plenty of beating in the Every Race Live On Racing TV Handicap (16:00), but I’m as interested in the same owners’ Doon The Glen who runs in the following Bowel Cancer Screening Handicap at 16:35, a race his stablemate won 12 months ago.
Doon The Glen went off too fast under a less experienced pilot at Ayr on Monday, but Paul Mulrennan takes over in the saddle which looks a positive; he was on-board when the horse won at Newcastle in March 2025.
The Timeform pace prediction is ‘weak’, with only A Lady Forever set to contest the early lead, and Doon The Glen is fancied to see off the 2022 winner of this race Rain Cap.
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