Cherry Bloom (second left) © Photo Healy Racing
The first division of the Book Tickets Online @Fairyhouse.ie Handicap saw Cherry Bloom gain a second career success at odds of 7/1.
Ridden by Bill Lee for his sister Gillian Scott and the Cherry Bloom Syndicate, the four-year-old tracked the leaders and came through a gap inside the final quarter-mile to give chase to the front-running Florence Thompson
The winner gradually wore down that longstanding maiden and got on top in the final 50 yards to win by half a length.
Lee, completing a double after Matt Connor earlier, said: “It's nice to get. We bought her a while back when she was rated a lot higher, she had a few niggles but this year she's been running consistently.
“She ran well in Dundalk (beaten a nose there in April) and didn't run a bad race the last day.
“We went a good gallop today and I was able to sit in a nice position. She travelled well turning in and I always had something to aim at.
“She's a little leery when she hits the front so it was good to have something to aim at and she did it well.
“She was going to get her turn, she just wanted a little bit of luck today and she's done it well.”
Quotes from Gary Carson
