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Mark Nunan

Mark Nunan

Johnny Barry the man to follow in Limerick's hunter chase

Fri 27th Dec 2019, 14:57

         Samurai Cracker and Johnny Barry Samurai Cracker and Johnny Barry
© Photo Healy Racing

Jockey Johnny Barry won the Earl Of Harrington Memorial Maiden Hunters’ Chase for the third time in the last four renewals of it when Samurai Cracker (12/1) was four and a quarters too strong for fellow Northern raider Winged Leader (6/5 fav). Super Citizen (9/2) was the same distance away in third place. The winning six-year-old, by Mr Dinos, was making his first start under Rules having won a point-to-point at Mainstown in January and been second three more times ‘between the flags'since then.

Winning trainer Caroline Mc Caldin said: "He won his point to point but has been second and second and second. He always had ability but we were just unlucky everywhere we went we kept running into one.

"He is a big horse and is one of 12 horses I have in training. I'm point to pointing mainly but have a couple of others for the track and my previous winner was with It'll Do Rightly who won at Catterick (in December 2017)."

"I'm based at Dromara, Co Down and it took three and a half hours to come down."

Regarding plans she quipped "I'm going to take him home and scratch his ears!"

Additional reporting by Thomas Weekes

About Mark Nunan
Mark has followed racing since he was a teenager and worked for many years as a broadcaster with the Irish version of Racecall. He joined the Press Association in 2019 and is also a contributor to the Racing Post. A native of Kildare, he now lives in Sligo.