Attraction put her name in the record books as the first filly to capture the
English and Irish Guineas and in the process the brill iant daughter of Efisio
maintained an unbeaten career record of seven.
Making all under Kevin
Darley, the 2/1 fav was tackled fro m the two furlong pole by Alexander Goldrun
but she had plenty more to offer in the closing stages and crossed the line a
length to the good.
Winning trainer Mark Johnston described the achievement
as 'incredible and fantastic,' and he was overjoyed that his ch arge had
cemented the tag he'd put on her as the best he's ever trained.
'A lot of
thinkin' and drinkin'' would have to be done a ccording to Johnston before
future plans would be finalised although Royal Ascot is on the agenda where she
could even contest the J uly Cup.
Elsewhere the Ballydoyle operation was in
form as they registered a treble, highlighted by the very impressive front run
ning display of Powerscourt, an emphatic 6L winner of the Tattersalls Gold
Cup.
Aidan O'Brien revealed afterwards that the plan h ad been to come here
for this Group 1 event before taking in the 1m 2f Prince Of Wales at Ascot, but
that there were a lot of routes open for the colt.
He also praised Jamie
Spencer for 'a super ride,' on a classy individual that loves fast ground.
Livadiya, r unner-up yesterday, ran the race of her life to again claim the
second berth here.
Similarly Meath made every post a winning one in the
Group 3 Gallinule Stakes, finding plenty for pressure to see off Cairdeas by a
1 1/2L. Ladbrokes removed the runner-up from Epsom Derby betting.
Oratorio
showed a willing attitude on his debut, battling back to regain the lead after
being headed two out in the opening maiden before staying on well to assert for
an easy 2 1/2L win.
O'Brien described this son of Danehill as a 'gran d
straightforward horse who will have no problem stepping up in distance,' whilst
his words on Derby hope, Yeats, were that 'everyth ing should be fine.'
A
real cavalry charge for the sprint h'cap saw the thirty runner field split into
two groups and indeed it w as difficult to determine exactly what was in front
until Europaea led under 1f out up the centre.
Riding his first Curragh
winne r, Rory Cleary was aboard Christy Donoghue's long absent 20/1 shot.
Previously trained by Seamus Fahey, the McDonagh H'cap was ment ioned as a
target for the 5yo.
Many seemed to think Ivowen had held on under Pat
Smullen in the 1m 4f h'cap but the photograph cl early showed that Royal
Alphabet had grabbed a share of the spoils in the hands of Tadhg
O'Shea.
Aussie, Kerrin McEvoy (23), numb er 2 jockey to Godolphin, had his
initial success in Ireland on his first visit when keeping Sugarhoneybaby going
long enough to sec ure a neck victory in the 1m h'cap.
Successful handler,
Noel Meade was an absentee, opting for Croke Park instead, but the filly who
was losing her maiden tag, ensured that 72 investors shared in a Jackpot pool
that swelled to E73,063.00.
It was a case of t hird time lucky for John
Joseph Murphy's Liss Ard in the closing maiden, Danny Grant's mount holding off
well-backed fav, Ebaziyan b y a 1 1/2L.
