Swagman prevails in thriller The seven-furlong maiden at Naas produced a cracking three-way finish with Swagman just grabbing the spoils at the line. Jack Cleary took the mount on the Aidan O'Brien-trained colt who had been third on debut at the Curragh behind Hotazhell. He moved up to dispute at halfway on the Wootton Bassett colt but the 15/8 favourite was headed a furlong-and-a-half from home by Mano Chicago. He rallied to challenge again inside the final furlong and it turned into a three-way go with Viking Invasion joining the party. Swagman just prevailed by a head late on as only a nose split Viking Invasion and Mano Chicago. Newcomer Truth Be Told was an eye-catcher as he finished strong in fourth. Stable representative Chris Armstrong said:- “He had a lovely run the first day at the Curragh and he's come on nicely since. “He's a lovely horse and we're probably going to see the best of him next year. He'll appreciate going up a bit further and he handled an ease in the ground nicely. “He might go for something like the El Gran Senor Stakes at Tipperary (August 9th) and then we'll go from there but he's a horse to look forward to for next year. “It's nice to give Jack a winner, he's a big part of the team and at this time of year they all get their opportunities. “We thought he was going to be a horse that would take a little bit of time. “Ryan was happy with him in the Curragh but felt he was raw and he was still plenty raw there, the penny was only dropping in the last half furlong with him. He'll be a nice middle distance horse for next year.”
