Rory For St Leger Glory

All roads lead to Limerick this weekend for the final of the Irish St Leger.

Irish St Leger
This has been one of the more popular events so far this year in the ante-post market with the worst result for us being Tyrur Tommy! With six inside seeds in the final the trap draw is going to be vitally important.

The Owen Mckenna trained Offshore Bound was the lucky dog to get handed the red jacket in the decider. This son of Headbound and Inshaarla looked to stumble slightly upon leaving the boxes in the semi-final which cost him a length or two, he used the draw to his advantage around bends one and two avoiding a little bit of trouble on the outside.

Offshore made hard work of qualifying here but is a big player based on the draw in the final. The winner of this semi-final, Skywalker Rory, is the youngest in the line-up but is maturing nicely for his new connections. This fellow was bought off a fantastic debut in the Red Mills unraced in Kilkenny back in May and has since mixed with the best in the business.

Rory has received a different trap draw in every round of the Leger, he has ran from four, two, one, five and he now races from six in the final. I thought Rory really came of age last week. He showed great determination to get to the first turn in front keeping his line ok from five before cutting the corner.

He did post the fastest sectional of the semi-final so we are hoping for a repeat performance in the final.

Tyrur Tommy has another bad draw this week in five, he will be a bad result for the firm if he wins! You can never discount a Tyrur runner in these big finals, PJ Fahy would dearly love to add the St Leger to his long list of achievements. Speaking to PJ before the Derby started he was very bullish about this lads chances, he wasn’t too far off the mark as the dog could have reached the final with a bit of luck.

The trap draw is not as bad at a second glance for Tommy, the dog on his inside will be looking for the rails so there is a chance he could get a run.

Peregrine Falcon was a comfortable winner of his semi-final, “fast away, always lead” are his comments! He is after becoming a true professional at the boxes since switching to Limerick, so his supporters will know their faith on the run to the bend. Falcon runs from trap three in the final, and it’s worth noting he produced his best sectional and winning time from this box in round two.

Jaytee Valencia has found a new lease of life since returning to Paul Hennessy’s kennels after a small stint in the UK, he is known as an early pacer but is staying on stronger over the past few weeks.

The last but not least of the finalists we have to talk about is current Champion Stakes title holder Sidarian Vega. His form has been up and down since his Champion Stakes win but is still a big player. If he is to win he is going to have to find a smash break somewhere.

His last victory came in the first round of this year’s Derby, but cannot be written off. Graham Holland has been winning all before him and is seeking his first Leger! I’m going to give my preference to Skywalker Rory, the draw isn’t ideal but as I said he is maturing all the time and can reward his connections on Saturday night.

Blue Is The Colour In Trim
After being withdrawn before the opening round in Edenderry, Blueview Charlie makes his return this weekend in the Gilroy Cup in Trim. Charlie was Mr Consistent last year, with wins in both Clonmel and Limerick and he will be the main attraction on the card.

There is no doubt Charlie will start red hot favourite and barring accidents should go all the way. The bitch stake here looks between Ocean Hannalora and Corrupt Committee who meet in the opening round. This course will have a bearing on where the Cup goes! While in New Ross they have assembled two nice All Age events, The Corn Ros Mhic Treoin is the main attraction.

Mulboy King makes a quick return to action after his great victory in Glin. He is positioned nicely down the bottom end of this Cup, Foot Solution can give him most to think about in the bottom half. Sky Lord is an interesting runner in the top half of the draw, he caught the eye in the first round of the trial stake in Galway and Oranmore last year but was withdrawn after his first run.

Going by his connections and breeding this dog must have a chance. He could make a name for himself here. His litter brother Cuban Casino looks his biggest danger. I’m going to go for Sky Lord to land the spoils here. Trainer Dennis “Skinner” O’Driscoll has a great record in this field and he is coming back this year with a live contender in the All Age Bitch stake, Balllyverry Baby.

Baby is going for her second win of the season and in turn putting one paw forward for her place in the Champion Bitch stake in Clonmel. She looks the one to beat on her running in Kilflynn. Blue Abella and Tuscan Flavour will be the ones who could make life difficult for the West Cork runner.

All ante-post betting for the aforementioned stakes are all available on www.Boylesports.com as well as a number of other competitions taking place on each side of the Irish Sea. Updated betting for the Derby and Oaks is available each week throughout the 2015/16 coursing season.

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