Poignant win for Rory Cleary and family Rory Cleary was seen at his strongest when forcing Thatwilldoso up in the final stride to win his late brother's race at Roscommon, the Sean Cleary Memorial Handicap over a mile and a-quarter, for the second year in a row A three-time winner last season, the daughter of Berkshire, owned by the ThatWillDoSo Syndicate, had been unplaced in three previous outings this term but, as a consequence, had dropped back to her last winning mark. Pushed five wide turning for home, she soon moved into contention and battled on well to foil Flying Fortress by a short-head. "This was the plan and it was important,” said winning trainer Kevin Coleman. “She wasn’t coming into form and we gave her a run last week over a mile-and-five and she stayed the trip. “It was a good run the last day and she likes this track, she needs an uphill finish and she needed every bit of it. “It’s an important race to win for the jockey and I go back a long way with the Clearys. Tom and Kathleen ran the pony racing for long enough back in the early 2000s. We’re around a long time. “It’s not a big race, but it’s an important one to win for them. “Plans don’t often come off, but the filly was tough at the line and Rory knows her so well. “It’s great for Rory, Tom and Kathleen and for Paul. It’s great for them all.” Additional reporting by Gary Carson
