Clonmel's six race meeting today was abandoned after just three races following two nasty incidents in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden Hurdle (division 2).
Two horses slipped up independently during the race, but tragically, the second, The Adare Man, was in front when suffering a broken leg and was put down, with the race at his mercy on the downhill bend to two out,
Earlier in the race, Rest My Case slipped up on a stretch of ground half a furlong further away, and brought down two other runners, City Hall and Academy Jo.
Following the race, a delegation of jockeys including senior jockeys Conor O'Dwyer, Barry Geraghty and David Casey met with the stewards and the meeting was abandoned in the interests of safety.
The race itself went to Paul Nolan's The Roney Man under John Cullen.
Nolan reported 'the ground was too heavy for my horse and John said he wasn't doing a stroke in front.'
The opening Clonmel Mares Novice Hurdle went to John Murphy's Shouette, gaining an overdue win, under David Casey.
The well bred daughter of Sadler's Wells tracked leader Drumbug before progressing to lead before two out, staying on for a nine length win over Tiarella.
Murphy later reported 'she was a little weak but is going the right direction now and stays well.'
He added 'I put in a new one mile uphill gallop last year and it has been a great addition to my facilities.'
Tony Mullins' Bye Day landed the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden Hurdle (division 1) under Paul Carberry.
Mullins was absent but was represented by assistant Peter Daly who stated 'he stays well and loves that heavy ground but we always thought he was more of a chasing type.'
