Bannon rides 1st winner

On his fourth bumper ride Paul Bannon (22) from Skryne got off the mark when 33/1 shot Mental Strength (first start since pulling up in a point-to-point in March 2013) surprised in the Thanks To Our 10,000 Plus Followers On @fairyhouse Twitter Flat Race.

Bannon held the Turtle Island gelding up at the back, but the six-year-old wouldn't switch off at the slow pace and he got to the front and indeed ran off the bend past the stands.

He really got rolling down the back straight, soon built up a sizeable lead, and one only had to listen to commentator Dessie Scahill to form the view that his rivals may have allowed the outsider too much rope.

It was apparent at the two furlong pole that Mental Strength still had more to give and try as Liz Doyle's Burrows Lane might, he couldn't reel in the Gillian Callaghan runner, two and a half lengths splitting them at the line.

"Paul is with me about six months. He rides this horse out every day and knows him inside out," explained Mrs Callaghan.

"He took the bull by the horns and gave him a great ride. Hopefully he'll get more opportunities now.

"We thought this horse would win his point-to-point but he got an injury and we gave him plenty of time. We always thought he was a good horse and he's proved it now."

Meanwhile Bannon said: "I was with Robert Tyner for about two years and I learned a lot there."

Pearse Callaghan, owner of Mental Strength, is a brother-in-law of the trainer.

(AM & EM)