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- Meade another for across the card double
Donal Murphy
Meade another for across the card double
Wingingit and Shane Foley lead home Grey Waters and Mearu
© Photo Healy Racing
After dead-heating in the opener at Down Royal with Silken Thomas Noel Meade was the second trainer to complete an across the card and codes double, as his Wingingit took the Leopardstown Handicap (Eoin Doyle earlier achieved the same feat).
The three-year-old daughter of Helmet went up six pounds for winning at Navan last month, and she had to contend with top-weight today.
Available at 9/2 last night, she eventually went off the 5/2 favourite, and was settled towards rear by Shane Foley.
She was pushed along from four furlongs out and soon began to make progress. The chestnut filly was ridden on the outer in fifth with a furlong and a half left to go, and swept through to lead inside the final 150 yards, going on to score by a comfortable length and three parts. Grey Waters finished second under Wayne Lordan for Joseph O'Brien at 16/1 (from 20s), while Mearu (7/1) was another length and a quarter back in third with Ronan Whelan in the saddle for Jim Bolger.
Meade, who was recording his eleventh winner of the month, said afterwards: "There is a three-year-old handicap worth E50,000 at Navan (on June 3rd) but I was worried that she would not get into it.
"She was very buzzy but is so relaxed and laid-back now. She is very clear winded and is so easy to train. She did only one piece of fast work since her last run.
"She could go for that race in Navan now."
Additional reporting by Alan Magee