DENIRO SHINES IN LEGER SEMIS AS STARS ALIGN FOR DECIDER

Peter Farrell

With just two to qualify from each of the three semi-finals, there was little margin for error in the 1XBet Irish St. Leger 550 at Limerick Greyhound Stadium on Saturday night, however, the action didn’t disappoint.

After Ballymac Deniro’s record-breaking performance seven days earlier, the semi-finals had plenty to live up to, but they duly delivered as three outstanding contests set the stage for a cracking €30,000-to-the-winner decider next weekend. Once again, ‘Deniro’ stole the headlines as he continued his assault on the Classic with a sparkling opening semi-final success, going some thirty spots quicker than fellow winners Bockos Gold and Getup The Boy.

KENNEL COMPANIONS ADVANCE

Ballymac Deniro’s second-round performance will live long in the memory and it was no surprise to see Liam Dowling’s star promoted to the head of the outright betting as a result. Favourably drawn as the sole wide seed in the opening semi-final, more of the same was expected from the son of Ballymac Finn – Ballymac Arminta and, although he failed to match his record-breaking figures, he was arguably even more impressive on this occasion as he came from off the pace to win with authority. There was reason to believe Solo And Go would benefit from a switch to trap five after some sluggish starts from the inside, and this proved the case as he broke smartly alongside Singalong Magic before showing the superior early dash to lead into the opening bend. Ballymac Deniro was improving all the time on the outer but was forced to settle for second, while further back, opening-bend traffic effectively ended the qualifying hopes of the Graham Holland pair, Roaming Shelby and Slippery Felix. Ballyhooly Bruno, meanwhile, was already left with too much to do after a sluggish exit from trap four. With Solo And Go holding a length-and-a-half advantage entering the back straight, the race was beginning to develop into a battle between kennel companions as Ballymac Deniro loomed large on his outside. The pair went toe-to-toe down the back and reached the penultimate bend in tandem, but it was here that the 4/7 favourite began to turn the screw. Sweeping to the front around the bottom bends, ‘Deniro’ drew clear with every stride up the home straight to cross the line three and a half lengths to the good in a fast 29.50. Behind the winner, the battle for the remaining qualifying position went right to the wire as Singalong Magic finished at speed for Pat Buckley. Solo And Go was running on empty by this stage, but he had just enough in reserve to hold on by a short head and deservedly book his place in next weekend’s decider.

GOLD REMAINS ON-TRACK

Bockos Gold may not yet be at his razor-sharp best, but he continued his bid for back-to-back Classics with another powerful off-the-pace success for the Jolly-Good-Company-Syndicate and Graham Holland.

The reigning Irish Derby champion has developed into a seriously strong runner in recent months and he needed to call on those reserves once again in the second semi-final as he wore down longtime leader and 22/1 outsider Drombeg King. Evan McAuliffe’s ‘King’ pinged the lids from trap four and, with Skywalker Bruno stepping right, Bockos Gold briefly looked in trouble in the early exchanges. However, the heavyweight handled the situation expertly, taking a step out himself to find room to manoeuvre before showing good early pace to follow Drombeg King into the back straight. Further behind, significant traffic saw Skywalker Bruno and Swords Diamond badly hampered, effectively ending their qualifying hopes, while Drombeg King pressed on with a three-length advantage. Bockos Gold immediately began to make inroads, although Highbury Days was also catching the eye as he swept past Hackney Plan before moving up to challenge his kennel companion approaching the penultimate bend. It was here that Bockos Gold’s professionalism came to the fore as he bided his time behind Drombeg King, allowing himself room to negotiate the corner without checking his stride. Safely around, the son of Coolavanny Hoffa – Newinn Cuckoo began to turn the screw, edging closer around the final bend before unleashing his now customary late charge up the Limerick hill. Drombeg King battled gamely after a terrific performance, but the 6/5 favourite proved too strong in the closing yards, getting up to score by half a length in 30.02.

BRILLIANT FROM BOY

The last of the three semi-finals saw an extraordinary performance from Getup The Boy, who recovered from a hefty opening-bend bump to secure his place in another major final.

Trained by Mark Robinson for Daniel Ornstein, Getup The Boy had been caught late in both previous rounds, but confidence remained high in the top-class tracker, reflected in his starting odds of 6/5. Drawn in unfamiliar territory in trap six, he had work to do after a moderate start, while Droopys Winsome pinged the lids from four before immediately darting left, leaving both Bills Harbour and Lennies Eddie short of racing room on the run-up. As the tightly packed field converged on the opening bend, Getup The Boy was showing terrific early speed on the outer, only to take a hefty bump from Droopys Winsome that almost knocked him off his feet. His recovery was exceptional, however, as he quickly regained his stride and shot clear of the pack to lead Bills Harbour by a couple of lengths entering the back straight. Behind the front two, Lennies Eddie and Ballyea Warrior were disputing third, with the latter gaining the upper hand approaching the penultimate bend, but Getup The Boy was already beginning to put his stamp on proceedings. Maintaining a strong gallop, he extended his advantage to four lengths around the bottom two bends and, with a clear run to the line, a place in the showpiece was firmly within his grasp. Having been denied late in the previous rounds, the son of Ballymac Cashout – Peckies Flyer saw out the trip strongly on this occasion, powering up the home straight to score by five lengths in 29.79. The remaining qualifying position went to Lennies Eddie, who once again arrived with a wet sail to book his place in another Classic final for Paul Hennessy. All told, an exceptional final line-up brings together an Irish Derby champion, an English Derby champion, a Juvenile Derby winner, a Kingdom Derby winner and the track record holder over course and distance, setting the stage for a fitting conclusion to the Classic.

The trap draw for the final of the 1XBET Irish St. Leger was made shortly after and is as follows :

T1 - SOLO AND GO

T2 - BOCKOS GOLD

T3 - LENNIES EDDIE

T4 - DROMBEG KING

T5 - GETUP THE BOY

T6 - BALLYMAC DENIRO

*****

COMPETITIVE SEMI FINALS OF LIMERICK & CLARE GOBA

The semi-finals of the Limerick & Clare GOBA A2 525 featured on the undercard, with Hollyhill Stacey (4/1) going narrowly quickest as she held on gamely to deny the fast-finishing Kevinsfort Hardy.

Drawn in six, the Paraic Campion-trained runner emerged from a level break to show outstanding early speed on the outer, opening a five-length lead over Kevinsfort Hardy down the back straight. Owned by Gerard Gubbins, the daughter of Serene Ace – Hollyhill Cassie saw her advantage halved by the three-quarter mark as her nearest challenger began to close, but despite Kevinsfort Hardy’s determined late charge, ‘Stacey’ dug deep to hold on by a neck in 28.81.

In the second semi-final, Snuggie Battie made it back-to-back wins for Breda Casey and Myles Cummins, although he had to work hard to follow up his 28.62 success last time out. Despite breaking well from trap one, the son of Jacob Tashadelek – Miles Girl was outpaced in the early exchanges as Lucky Darragh shot clear from five to establish a four-length advantage. The 11/4 second favourite began to close down the back straight, however, before producing a powerful finish to sweep past Lucky Darragh and draw two and a half lengths clear in 28.83.