Creek bidding to open account at Navan Cypress Creek has a long way to go to live up to the exploits of his Irish Derby and St Leger-winning brother Capri, but he holds strong claims of getting off the mark in the Adrian Fox Memorial Maiden at Navan. Aidan O’Brien’s three-year-old by Galileo has been a slow learner but there were signs last time of it all coming together. Cypress Creek found maidens over seven furlongs and a mile a bit sharp but stepped up to a mile and a half last time out, he fared much better. In finishing second to an odds-on stablemate in Southern France, he showed his turn was not far away and he finished in front of Jim Bolger’s National Security who takes him on again. Stablemate Giuseppe Garibaldi sets the standard with a rating of 96. Adrian Keatley will be hoping for better from the highly-regarded London Icon in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Race. An impressive winner of his second start at Naas last year, he began this season with Classic aspirations but a defeat at Naas first time out, albeit giving away plenty of weight, was then followed by a disappointing effort in the Tetrarch Stakes. Gerard Mosse was over for the ride that day and is back again to partner this colt, who holds an entry in the St James’s Palace Stakes. Paddy Twomey’s Editorial won his only start to date and could be anything while Ger Lyons’ Bobby Boy has shown a good level of form in two starts to date. Sheila Lavery’s Magnetic North is another to consider in what may prove to be a hot little race. Lyons will be hoping for better from the expensive Overcoming on his handicap debut in the Royal County Handicap. The China Horse Club paid 340,000 euros for the son of Kodiac and he has won one of his three starts to date. With a run under his belt, he can be expected to take a big step forward.
