The Reaper booked his ticket to York when he came out best in a thrilling finish to the feature sprint at Cork under Johnny Murtagh.
Third to last weekend’s Dubai Golden Shaheen winner Krypton Factor at Meydan in January, the four-year-old was sent off a 10-1 chance for the Listed Cork Stakes and battled bravely to the line to hold the determined challenge of Experience by a short head.
“I’m delighted with that as he deserved it, he had been knocking on the door. He went to Dubai and collected a few cheques, his form was rock solid over there. He will go for stakes races now,” said winning trainer Ger Lyons’ brother Shane.
“I’m delighted for his owner Sean Jones, who is our main owner. He should have an awful lot of fun with this fellow. He will go for the Group Two Duke of York Stakes next on May 17.”
Murtagh was completing a double initiated by Slade Power, who looks set for better things after an impressive success in the Mallow Town Summer BBQ Evening July 13th Handicap.
The Edward Lynam-trained colt was held up in rear early and quickened takingly when switched towards the stands rail with over a furlong to run. Going away at the line, the winning margin of a length and a quarter over Nini OK probably does not do justice to the superiority of the 6-4 favourite.
Lynam said: “We always liked him and we think he is a very good horse. He is a very bubbly type and we only do half speeds with him at home.”
Jessie Harrington and Fran Berry also hit the target with a double, completed by the facile victory of 9-10 favourite Absolute Crackers in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden. She was sent to the front from the off and wasn’t unduly troubled to beat Teofolina by two and a quarter lengths.
The trainer said: “She deserved to win it and she did everything we wanted her to do. She is crying out for further and will run next in the Salsabil Stakes (Listed), a three-year-olds race at Navan.”
Harrington introduced a sharp juvenile in Liberating (6-1), who was always up with the pace under Berry in the other Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden and readily saw off favourite Infanta Branca by two and a half lengths.
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