Townend successfully switches to Lombron The Ballymacarbry Beginners Chase at Clonmel was reduced to just eight runners with four absentees including likely favourite Rath Gaul Boy (lame) and Paul Townend successfully switched to the front-running Lombron. The Willie Mullins-trained Turgeon gelding was sent off the 1/2 favourite and apart from diving at the fifth last fence, put in a fine round of jumping. The odds-on shot was joined by Western Fold as the pair stretched clear approaching the straight and he got on top from before the last to score by two and a quarter lengths. There was a gap off 11 lengths back to Maidenstreetprince in third. Townend said, “He had the rating to win but I'm not sure he had been running to that, and he made me work for it today. "He made one mistake at the first fence up the back straight, but the fence stewards were actually in front of it as we rounded the bend. They ran out of the way, but I'd say he had one eye on the orange jackets and I asked him at the last second. "He was fine though; we got away with it and his jumping was brilliant on the whole. "He regressed after he won his maiden and never got to where I thought he'd get to over hurdles, but he jumps fences so well that he should do well." Quotes by Tom Weekes
