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Progressive Hillsdale bags back-to-back wins

Hillsdale and Keith Donoghue Hillsdale and Keith Donoghue
© Photo Healy Racing

Hillsdale produced a fine leap at the last as he recorded a cosy success in the opening Jossestown Handicap Chase at Clonmel this afternoon.

The Philip Dempsey-trained gelding had come good in style over fences at Naas last month and went to post 7/4 favourite to follow up today.

Keith Donoghue ’s gelding made a mistake three from home, when improving to challenge, but soon pulled his way to the front.

The Westerner gelding was in control in the closing stages and a big jump at the final fence sealed matters as he recorded a seven-and-a-half length win over Cheerful Chap

Dempsey said:- “It took him a long time to settle down and learn about racing.

“He was a bit of a lunatic but lately he’s started to settle into it, and he was very good there bar the third last. He stepped into the ditch but hopefully he’ll learn from it.

 

“We’ll probably keep him to around this trip. I thought before that we might step him up for something like a Leinster National but we won’t do anything too drastic.

 

“We’ll give him one more run and then go to either Fairyhouse or Punchestown.”

(Quotes by Alan Magee)

About Gary Carson
Gary started out as a trainee/assistant journalist with the Sporting Life newspaper and has worked in the racing industry for over 25 years. He has been with the Press Association since 2013 and won the Irish Field Nap Table in 2016. He enjoys working with horses and trained his own horse, Mamaslittlestar, to win a point-to-point in 2019.