Meade pleases local owners to complete Cork brace

Noel Meade won race three at Cork for Gigginstown House Stud with Eurobot , but the Tu Va handler relegated the leading owner to the runner-up spot when bringing up a double at the Mallow venue in the Follow Us On Facebook INH Flat Race through the Mark O'Hare partnered Behind The Curtain (100/30 into 11/4 favourite).

In Gigginstown's maroon and white Barry O'Neill was looking good for much of the straight on Henry de Bromhead's Falco De Candale Aa .

However Behind The Curtain poked up his inner late on to gain the day by a neck, with a length to Lady McCabe in third.

Gigginstown also had the fourth past the post, Ennemi Public , a length and three parts back.

"It is great to win for local people (the Crooked Crew Syndicate). I said if this fella doesn't win, I might never get out of Cork - it might be worse now!" surmised Meade.

He added: "We loved this lad all last year and we thought he had a big chance in the Land Rover Bumper but he went lame a couple of days before it and never got a chance to run. We have just been struggling to get him right all year and even now he is only barely there.

"I think he is a nice horse but he is light and weak."

Meade went on: "Mark (O'Hare) said he was hanging in and away from the other horses but once he got to the rails he was a lovely ride and was grand. He said he was lucky the gap came.

"I didn't really think any further than today but he is a weak horse and maybe we might just give him one more run in a winners' bumper. It might be no harm to wait to go jumping until next year but we'll see how he comes out of today."

Miss S. Lynam, rider of The Dude Abides , trained by Ms Margaret Mullins, reported to the Stewards' Secretaries that her mount gurgled.

(TW & EM)