Thornton escapes with just bruising Andrew Thornton was lucky to escape with just severe bruising after his mount Reckless Lad became upset in the stalls at Fairyhouse yesterday evening. The incident occurred prior to the Like Fairyhouse On Facebook Handicap with the Pat Martin-trained gelding eventually coming through the front of his stall. Thornton, who enjoyed his finest hour at the Co. Meath track just over two years ago when successful on Lion Na Bearnai in the Irish Grand National, was taken to Blanchardstown Hospital for xrays but his agent Ruardhri Tierney reports this morning that the tests came back clear. "Andrew is badly bruised but there are no broken bones. He's obviously quite sore and was in a lot of pain going to the hospital. "He'll be out of action for a few days but hopefully not too long," said Tierney. The seven-furlong race was won in impressive fashion by Hi Emperor (13/2), although there was a Rule 4 deduction of 10 cent in the euro to all winning bets as Reckless Lad was 6/1 at the time of withdrawal. Martin's assistant Bernard Caldwell reported yesterday evening that Reckless Lad appeared okay although likely to be a bit stiff this morning.
