13:35 Down Royal

Monday 6 May 2024

All13:3514:1014:4515:2015:5516:3017:05

Ballygowan Opportunity Maiden Hurdle

Off time: 13:35 | Winning time: 4m 8.8s

Old Port^h1¹¹³

Age: 6| Weight: 11-12| J: Philip Byrnes| T: C Byrnes

11/4

Useful Flat winner. 6/1, fell fifth in novice hurdle at Punchestown (16.7f, soft) 113 days ago. Hood on 1st time. Player on his Cork third.

Form: 3UF-

Edge Of Darkness⁹

Age: 4| Weight: 11-6| J: Philip Donovan⁽²⁾| T: D Hogan

20/1

Fairly useful Flat winner, making GB/IRE jumps debut. Twelfth of 16 in handicap (40/1) at Navan (13f, good to soft) 9 days ago.

Form:

Garrick Painter¹⁰

Age: 4| Weight: 11-6| J: T P Harney⁽⁴⁾| T: N C Kelly

125/1

Fairly useful Flat winner. Twelfth of 15 in novice hurdle (28/1) at Downpatrick (17.8f, good) on NH debut 10 days ago.

Form: 0-

High Honour^t⁴⁹

Age: 4| Weight: 11-6| J: John Shinnick⁽⁴⁾| T: D Kinsella

66/1

Fairly useful handicapper at best on Flat. Making GB/IRE jumps debut. Seventeenth of 19 in handicap (125/1) at the Curragh (8f, heavy) 49 days ago. Tongue strap on.

Form:

Zero Fighter¹²

Age: 4| Weight: 11-6| J: Gary Noonan⁽²⁾| T: E D Delany

40/1

Modest winner at 7f on Flat. Fourth of 16 in juvenile hurdle (33/1) at Bellewstown (17f, good to soft) on NH debut 12 days ago.

Form: 4-

Giant Haystacks¹⁷

Age: 5| Weight: 11-4| J: Sean Cleary-Farrell⁽⁴⁾| T: Barry J Fitzgerald

11/1

Twice-raced maiden. Fifth of 15 in novice hurdle at Ballinrobe (17.6f, soft, 7/1) 17 days ago. Probably has races in him.

Form: 55-

Gustavo Goodway²⁰

Age: 6| Weight: 11-4| J: C Owens⁽⁴⁾| T: P J Rothwell

125/1

Twice-raced maiden. 200/1, eleventh of 18 in novice hurdle at Naas (19.3f, soft) 20 days ago.

Form: PP/4390-

Kalsman^h¹⁰

Age: 6| Weight: 11-4| J: Alex Harvey⁽⁴⁾| T: L Lennon| OR: 85

50/1

Poor maiden. Fourth of 7 in novice hurdle at Downpatrick (18.8f, good, 100/1) 10 days ago.

Form: U7U004-

Le Coq Hardi¹⁷²

Age: 5| Weight: 11-4| J: Mike O'Connor| T: H De Bromhead

5/2

Promising sort. 25/1, fourth of 22 in very good novice hurdle at Punchestown (16.5f, soft) on hurdles bow 172 days ago. More to come and this is easier. Lots to like.

Form: 3/34-

Nemo⁶³

Age: 7| Weight: 11-4| J: Carl Millar⁽⁴⁾| T: G Elliott

7/1

18/1, fifth of 7 in novice hurdle at Leopardstown (20f, heavy) on NH debut 63 days ago, going in snatches.

Form: 5-

Pahlavi³⁰³

Age: 7| Weight: 11-4| J: Shane Fenelon⁽⁴⁾| T: J J Hanlon

16/1

Modest hurdler. 33/1, good fourth of 12 in novice hurdle at Bellewstown (16.8f, good) 10 months ago.

Form: 454/3C4-

Shinnhill⁵⁰⁵

Age: 7| Weight: 11-4| J: Gavin Brouder| T: N McKnight

80/1

Conduit gelding. Half-brother to 3 winners, including useful hurdler/chaser Bobo Mac and fairly useful hurdler/chase winner Shumaker, stayed 2¾m. Dam unraced.

Form: F3F5/

Dromineer Smurphy^t¹⁸

Age: 4| Weight: 10-12| J: Peter Smithers⁽⁴⁾| T: C Collins

50/1

10/1 and tongue strap on, third of 10 in claiming hurdle at Clonmel (18.7f, soft) on NH debut 18 days ago.

Form: 3-

Kartel And Co¹²

Age: 4| Weight: 10-12| J: C G O'Dwyer⁽²⁾| T: P J Rothwell

300/1

Twice-raced maiden. 100/1, fourteenth of 16 in juvenile hurdle at Bellewstown (17f, good to soft) 12 days ago.

Form: 00-

Mordor¹⁷

Age: 4| Weight: 10-12| J: Danny Gilligan| T: G Elliott| OR: 125

11/4

Respectable third of 16 in juvenile hurdle at Limerick (16.9f, heavy, 6/4) 17 days ago. Claims on pick of his form but others might improve past him.

Form: 305B3-

Ballinearla Girl^h1²⁰⁷

Age: 5| Weight: 10-11| J: Shane O'Callaghan⁽²⁾| T: E Doyle

50/1

Twice-raced maiden. Off 6 months. Makes hurdles debut. Hooded for 1st time.

Form: 44-

Buttoned Up¹⁵

Age: 6| Weight: 10-11| J: Jake Coen| T: Peter Fahey

50/1

Sixth of 15 in novice hurdle (100/1) at Tramore (16.6f, good to soft) 15 days ago.

Form: P5P96-

Drum Roll²⁵

Age: 4| Weight: 10-5| J: Conor Smithers⁽⁴⁾| T: P Nolan

125/1

Eighth of 13 in juvenile hurdle (33/1) at Limerick (16f, heavy) 25 days ago.

Form: 7U8-

African Lady¹²

Age: 4| Weight: 10-5| J: Conor Stone-Walsh⁽²⁾| T: G P Cromwell

50/1

Thirteenth of 16 in juvenile hurdle (9/1) at Bellewstown (17f, good to soft) on NH debut 12 days ago. RESERVE.

Form: 0-

Non-Runners

March Law¹⁸⁵

Weight: 11-12| Age: 6

T: M J Smith J: J Smith

Whatsanotheryear²⁰

Weight: 11-4| Age: 5

T: P J Flynn J: Aidan Kelly

Wardens Whisper²⁰

Weight: 11-4| Age: 5

T: P J Rothwell J: Reserve 1

Sarrealta

Weight: 10-11| Age: 5

T: Peter Fahey J: Reserve 3

Forecasts

Le Coq Hardi (5/2), Mordor (11/4), Old Port (11/4), Nemo (7/1), Giant Haystacks (11/1), March Law (12/1), Pahlavi (16/1), Edge Of Darkness (20/1), Whatsanotheryear (25/1), Zero Fighter (40/1), Buttoned Up (50/1), Kalsman (50/1), African Lady (50/1), Ballinearla Girl (50/1), Dromineer Smurphy (50/1), High Honour (66/1), Shinnhill (80/1), Drum Roll (125/1), Garrick Painter (125/1), Gustavo Goodway (125/1), Kartel And Co (300/1)

LE COQ HARDI offered plenty to work on in a hot Punchestown novice hurdle in November and is hard to get away from in this company with improvement likely. Mordor and Old Port are dangers.