Keane off the mark for 2021 on well-backed Falak

The well-supported Falak (12s this morning, returned 5/1) took the Crowne Plaza Hotel Dundalk Handicap (Div I) giving Colin Keane his first winner of the new year.

The dual champion had his mount prominent throughout and led over a furlong out before running on to score by two lengths from Danehill Quest (13/2) with the 10/3 favourite Nightly Wailing a further neck back in third.

The successful 8-year-old gelding by Teofilo had won on the Flat and over hurdles for Gordon Elliott before joining John McConnell over a year ago. He was rated 79 in this discipline only 18 months ago and had dropped all the way down to a rating of 54 here.

Winning trainer John McConnell said: "He has his own little niggly issues but is genuine and likes the surface. He stays well so Colin made plenty of use of him up the straight.

“I wish we could go to Wolverhampton or Newcastle for some more two-mile races as there are not too many of them here.

“That’s job done for now and he will probably mix it over the summer. He has form on slow ground but from what we see I think we will be keeping him to good ground on the turf as he has a real daisy cutting action. I don’t think I’d be running him on real heavy ground.

“He’s a fun horse and probably needed to come down a bit in the handicap on the Flat. I still think there is a bit of room for improvement on the Flat.

“Chasing is another option but there again it would be nice to be able to go to somewhere like Cartmel or Perth.”

Additional reporting by Alan Magee