She's A Star and Sean Flanagan jump the last© Photo Healy Racing
She’s A Star is certainly living up to her ambitious name at present and the Noel Meade trained mare made it four wins from five career starts when overcoming trouble in-running to beat eight more experienced rivals and win the Barna Recycling Rated Novice Hurdle at Galway today.
The daughter of Well Chosen was held up by jockey Sean Flanagan and despite racing quite keenly, arrived with her challenge at the second last flight. However she suffered interference after that obstacle but sill continued her forward momentum to edge into contention, on the outer jumping the last. On the run-in, She’s A Star battled gamely to beat Oathkeeper by a neck.
Former Champion Trainer Meade was delighted with the performance and later stated “she’s only around 15.1hh but is gutsy and I was very impressed because of what happened at the second last and had to come around the outside.
“She is quite ‘pooped’ (tired) after it and will need plenty time before her next run. I’d say a bigger track would suit her better as she’s small and isn’t able to take that bumping around on small tracks.
“Fair play to her, she has an engine but we can’t get her to just drop the bridle and settle at home. She has run five times, and won four now and you’d love to think she could be good enough to run in the Mares Novice Hurdle at Cheltenham. Next, we’ll give her a month or six weeks and see how we go from there.”
The winner carries the colours of trainer Meade’s unrelated neighbour Philip Meade, who owns Meade Potato Company which, according to the winning trainer, “is a huge business selling potatoes - the biggest business in north Meath and a big employer in the area.”
By Tom Weekes
