Glor Na Mara does it at last

Glor Na Mara landed his first win at the 16th time of asking when coming home clear in the one mile maiden at Dundalk.

The three-year-old trained by Jim Bolger and ridden by Kevin Manning was once rated 113 primarily due to a host of placings in Group races as a juvenile. His mark had slipped to 88 tonight after a thus far uninspiring campaign.

Manning’s colt travelled strongly and when asked for his effort a furlong out he sprinted away to win comprehensively by three-and-three-parts-of-a-length at odds of 11/4 from market leader Azores (9/4 to 11/8 in the morning and 11/10 to 10/11 on course). His ability shone under the floodlights tonight.

Unraced 66/1 shot Alheera ran a notable race to finish third for trainer Sarah Dawson and jockey Fergal Lynch two-and-a-quarter-lengths back.

Kevin Manning said: “I was very impressed with him tonight. He travelled so well and put the race to bed in a few strides.

“He showed what he has been showing at home and maybe the step up in trip to a mile was a help.” Gaiety Theatre on debut for James Ryan attracted support from 50/1 to 33/1. She finished fifth after making headway in the final furlong. She was found to be lame post race.

Michael Graham