Dan Briden takes a look at some choicely-bred juveniles appearing on both sides of the Irish Sea over the Easter period.
The two-year-old scene comes to life over the Easter period, with a clutch of races for juveniles in both Britain and Ireland.
Aidan O’Brien unleashes his first two-year-olds of 2026 in the opening 5f maiden at the Curragh - a race won by Meditate and Porta Fortuna in recent seasons. Typically, both are very well related. Ryan Moore’s choice is New Yorker, a No Nay Never son of the yard’s Cheveley Park Stakes winner Fairyland. She was sharp enough to make a winning start over 6f in early May of her two-year-old career and hails from a speedy and precocious family (Dream Ahead, Land of Dreams, Sahara Star etc.)
Stablemate and second string Confucius fetched just the 1.7m guineas at auction last autumn and is himself a No Nay Never son of a Cheveley Park Stakes winner, this time Jessica Harrington’s Millisle. Although it’s a pedigree hardly lacking for speed, it perhaps isn’t as precocious a family, with many of the faster sorts on the page coming to hand from the summer onwards. Still, he is quite clearly putting his hand up at Ballydoyle to emerge this early in the season.
Robson de Aguiar has gone close with his first two-year-old runners at both Naas and Doncaster. He is also double handed here with the first string looking to be the David Egan-ridden Edward Thatch, a well-named son of first-season sire Blackbeard, who had his first winner over in France last Sunday. Ironically, Edward Thatch hails from a Coolmore line that includes the likes of smart miler Aloft and that one’s talented and speedy mother Dietrich.
Stablemate New Mexico is the first representative of his first-season sire Perfect Power. Whereas Edward Thatch sold for €70,000 as a yearling, this colt went for 105,000gns when purchased by his trainer last autumn. There isn’t a huge amount going on in the immediate family, with the line tracing back to an old Wills family that included smart performers such as Ardkinglass and Succinct, while Gimcrack Stakes winner Sir Gerry also features.
The sole member of the field with prior experience is Michael Mulvaney’s Lars Soldier, who wasn’t unbacked when showing up well for a long way until fading out of contention inside the final furlong when fourth of eight in the opening two-year-old event at Naas. His experience will obviously give him an edge here, but he faces some well-related newcomers and it’d be a shade disappointing if the standard he sets, such as it is, proves good enough to foil them.
Michael O’Callaghan is more than capable of readying a newcomer to strike and saddles Two Brigade, an Invincible Army half-brother to fair sprinter Catch Cunningham. O’Callaghan actually trained one of his siblings, the 24-race maiden South Shore Island, though the extended family does at least contain top-notch speedball Battaash and Britannia winner Defrocked.
One other worth a mention is the Johnny Murtagh-trained Santorini Storm. He is a Soldier’s Call brother to World of Darcy, who made an impressive winning debut in early May of his two-year-old campaign at Pontefract before chasing home Elite Status in the Listed National Stakes at Sandown. Although Murtagh rarely has his youngsters at concert pitch first time out, a good showing from Santorini Storm still wouldn’t surprise.
The restricted maiden at Musselburgh on Saturday doesn’t make quite as much appeal on paper, but there are still one or two of interest.
Richard Hannon’s The Kalonji Man bids to step up markedly on his modest debut effort in the Brocklesby, while James Owen sends out his first two-year-old runner in Tricky Jenny, an Ardad filly from the extended family of Hardwicke Stakes winner Indian Creek. Charlie Johnston’s Super Alpha is a Bated Breath from a good Juddmonte family that, while not out-and-out speedsters, tend to come to hand pretty quickly. He is evidently showing plenty of his father’s raw speed to be seen out so soon.
One other to mention is the Rebecca Menzies-trained Adonius. A £32,000 son of Soldier’s Call, he is a half-brother to Golden Paradise, who made a winning start as a two-year-old last April. It’s a successful Australian family beyond that which traces back to multiple Group 1 winner Canny Lass.
Menzies wouldn’t usually be the first port of call for a two-year-old newcomer, saddling only one successfully so far in her career, but she has been well-backed this season and has a solid bunch of youngsters. Given that, it will be interesting to see if they prove a more formidable force than has previously been the case. Adonius is certainly bred to hit the ground running.
The novice contest at Bath on Sunday sadly won’t feature Dei Gratia Regina, who is well worth looking out for when she does eventually appear. However, it looks a potentially warm race with several good yards represented.
Richard Hannon made the perfect start to the 2026 season when landing the Brocklesby with A Bear Affair and the first of his two entries here is Paper View, a Lucky Vega half-brother to very useful multiple winners Artistic Rifles and Balty Boys. Although his pedigree is more geared towards requiring at least another furlong, Paper View obviously commands respect given the yard’s two-year-olds are clearly forward.
Should he not run, it seems like stablemate Rollthedicebaby will be the one. She is a Soldier’s Call filly from the good sprinting family of No Half Measures, Kachy, Chil Chil and Salt Island while smart miler Beat The Bank also features.
Clive Cox has introduced plenty of nice youngsters over the years at Bath and has entered Sky Secret here. He is a €42,000 A’Ali colt whose siblings have achieved little between them, but his dam hails from the fine ‘Swiss’ sprinting family, with grandam Swiss Lake actually winning the Lansdown Stakes on this card way back in 2002.
The excellent Eve Johnson Houghton enjoyed another successful year with her two-year-old team in 2025. One of the star turns was Havana Hurricane and she has entered Taranis here who dons the same silks as last season’s Windsor Castle winner. A 13,000gns purchase, he is out of an unraced half-sister to French 7f 2yo Group 3 winner Laulne. Also in the family are 7f/1m Group 3 winner Purr Along and 5f Listed winner Katawi.
Perhaps the most interesting entrant of them all is Hugo Palmer’s Wait Geordie, a Mehmas colt who cost £50,000 as a yearling. He is the first foal of the sharp and speedy Miss Jingles, herself a sister to Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner Mischief Making and Windsor Castle winner Sound And Silence (debut winner over 5f in April). He is bred to be precocious and comes from a stable that enjoyed a very solid 2025 with its juvenile brigade.
Dowman may well be George Boughey’s first two-year-old representative of the year. He is a Sioux Nation son of a fairly useful speedster who was herself a half-sister to Acomb Stakes winner Treaty of Paris. The extended family is an old Pendley/Harris line that includes names such as Leporello, Poppy Carew and Stotsfold.
Adam Kirby rode Stotsfold to all of his big-race successes, and the rookie handler has entered a couple here off the back of his Bill The Bull finishing a good fourth in the Brocklesby. Mystical Magical is a Starman filly from a solid family, while Postcard is an Earthlight filly from the noted sprinting family of Abbaye winner Gilt Edge Girl and Flying Childers Stakes winner Godfrey Street.
Rod Millman has shown time and time again that he can produce a good two-year-old from minimal outlay. He has a couple of entries here, with £16,000 Ubettabelieveit filly Devon Angel the pick of them on paper as the daughter of a precocious two-year-old.
Although it’s unlikely all of the above will stand their ground at the declaration stage, it still appeals as a race to watch closely with a view to the coming weeks.
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