Madam Celeste makes winning racecourse debut for Lyons at Dundalk

Madam Celeste stayed on nicely under Colin Keane to get off the mark at the first time of asking in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden at Dundalk.

A well bred filly, by Galileo out of Queen Mary winner Signora Cabello, the Newtown Anner Stud owned juvenile appears to have a nice blend of speed and stamina.

Briefly looking in trouble over over two furlongs out as Colin Keane got lower in the saddle, the eventual winner picked up well to head leader Raknah inside the final furlong.

Only getting the hang of things late on, she stayed on to win by a length but looked a filly that will be even better with the benefit of that initial outing.

Assistant trainer Shane Lyons said: "Ger (Lyons) is adamant to get these two-year-olds out for a run before he puts them away, so they know their job for next year.

"The penny was only dropping at the backend of the turf season. Obviously, she is a Galileo and is telling us that she wants nice ground and this is the first mile race that has come up for fillies, so we had to grab it with two hands.

"Win, lose or draw, she was going for a good break after tonight. We are delighted to tick the box and she will have a good break. She will come back mid-spring onwards hopefully for a nice campaign.

"She is entered in the Irish Oaks and she has the breeding for a mile and a-half, She has got that out of the way and I'd say she is a mile and a-quarter filly and she'll tell us what she wants to do then.

"She showed a bit of class - Colin (Keane) loved her the way she jumped. She was very, very green, but he said he was always confident that she was going to win because she was giving him that willing feeling.

"We brought her here early and put her in the parade ring and brought her onto the track, and the penny drops very quickly. When she came into the parade ring for the real deal, she knew what she was there for. She's a quick learner."

Additional reporting by Michael Graham