Irish trainer targeting Cheltenham to avoid Willie Mullins
The Meath trainer won the 2023 Plate Handicap Chase with Seddon, which was his first Cheltenham Festival winner. He has also tasted a number of other victories at some of the famous racecourse's other meetings.
Intense Approach won a Novices' Hurdle at the venue last October and looks set to run at the same meeting this year. McConnell also landed a £100,000 handicap chase with Moon D'orange in January of this year at Cheltenham.
And he has a team lined up for the Showcase meeting, which takes place on Friday, October 24 and Saturday, October 25.
"I have a vague team (in mind) - obviously, Intense Approach who won last week could go there. Lieutenant Mayne might go. They have loads of options," McConnell told Irish Racing.co m.
"I'm going to try and convince Tommy (McGeough, owner) to take Mrs Mc Go to Cheltenham with us in October. I think there is a three-mile race there for her.
"The Cheltenham October meeting is a beautiful meeting and it beats running into Willie (Mullins) here in Navan!"
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish trainer targeting Cheltenham to avoid Willie Mullins
Willie Mullins is set to send a number of horses to Cheltenham's opening meeting of the season as he targets more success in the Cotswolds. The Meath trainer won the 2023 Plate Handicap Chase with Seddon, which was his first Cheltenham Festival winner. He has also tasted a number of other victories at some of the famous racecourse's other meetings. Intense Approach won a Novices' Hurdle at the venue last October and looks set to run at the same meeting this year. McConnell also landed a £100,000 handicap chase with Moon D'orange in January of this year at Cheltenham. And he has a team lined up for the Showcase meeting, which takes place on Friday, October 24 and Saturday, October 25. "I have a vague team (in mind) - obviously, Intense Approach who won last week could go there. Lieutenant Mayne might go. They have loads of options," McConnell told Irish m. "I'm going to try and convince Tommy (McGeough, owner) to take Mrs Mc Go to Cheltenham with us in October. I think there is a three-mile race there for her. "The Cheltenham October meeting is a beautiful meeting and it beats running into Willie (Mullins) here in Navan!"
The Irish Sun
17 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Former champion jockey Tommy Murphy dies in hospital aged 88 as Aidan O'Brien mourns loss of ‘incredible man'
FORMER champion jockey Tommy Murphy has died in hospital aged 88 - as Aidan O'Brien mourned the loss of an 'incredible man'. The talented Flat rider - who also won at Cheltenham Festival - was assistant to the legendary Vincent O'Brien. 2 Former Irish champion jockey Tommy Murphy died in hospital aged 88 2 Aidan O'Brien has paid tribute to Tommy Murphy, calling him an 'incredible man' who taught him so much Credit: PA His passing comes as British racing mourns the loss of legendary trainer Bill Turner after injuries he suffered in a 'freak accident'. Dual Classic-winning rider Murphy, who took top honours in the jockey standings in 1978, died at a hospital in Cashel, Ireland, on Wednesday. Ballydoyle boss O'Brien, who took over from his predecessor but is no relation, retained Murphy's services at the famed yard. He said he was an invaluable asset at the beginning of his career and proved 'irreplaceable' over the years. O'Brien, regarded by many as the greatest Flat trainer ever, told the Racing Post: "Tommy was an unbelievable horseman, jockey and person. "He was an incredible help to us when we came to Ballydoyle in 1994. "He taught everybody here so much about so many different things. "Even when he retired, he came in all the time to give everyone advice and guidance. He was one of those irreplaceable men. "He was a great rider, too, just an incredible and special man. Andrew [Tommy's son and head lad at Ballydoyle] is in charge of the Giant's Causeway yard, where all our main horses are kept. "We'll miss Tommy terribly. "He lived here for a long time, until he went into hospital. "We had a lot of great memories going racing with Tommy. "We had unbelievable days with him and always had dinner on the way home after racing. "(My children) Joseph, Sarah, Ana and Donnacha were always with him from the time they were babies and grew up learning from him about horses and life." Murphy, who was born in Wexford, rode his first winner in 19654 and moved to England soon after. There, he became a jockey for a number of trainers, including four years with the Duke of Norfolk. He hit the big time in 1970 when he won the Galway Hurdle and backed it up again two years later. His two Classics came in 1977 when he won the Irish 2,000 Guineas on Lady Capulet and Irish St Leger with Transworld. Then in 1978 he won what is now the Supreme Novices' Hurdle at Cheltenham Festival aboard Noble Life. His final winner came in 1981 and soon after that he became permanent fixture at Ballydoyle. Photos showed him patrolling the Ballydoyle gallops, keeping a keen eye on the army of top thoroughbreds pounding the track. Punters were quick to pay their respects, with one writing on X: "Tommy Murphy, former Classic-winning champion jockey, Ballydoyle linchpin and ever-present great of Irish racing has sadly passed. God rest him."
Irish Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Top horse trainer Jessica Harrington shares how she coped with cancer diagnosis
Top horse trainer Jessica Harrington has opened up about how she coped with her devastating cancer diagnosis. In 2023, Jessica revealed that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2022. The Cheltenham Gold Cup-winner is now two years cancer free and the 77-year-old opened up about how she got through her cancer treatment, even during her toughest days. She told the Irish Mirror: 'I'm great. I'm two years coming up. And I feel great, and I'm very lucky, and I know, and it just shows that, you know, if you put your head down, take the treatment - it's not nice, but I always got up every morning, worked away - and be positive. 'I think you have to be positive. Anyone who talks to me and they said, how do you get through it? And I said, 'Okay, you need some support. Family is a great support. Friends are a great support'. 'But at the end of the day, it's up to you. Your attitude, I sort of felt like, you know, if I feel miserable, this thing will get a hold on me. I almost treated it like it was alive." 'It sounds very strange,' she told us at the launch of this year's Irish Champions Festival. Jessica praised staff on the oncology ward for having to 'put up with grumpy old people like me'. 'You know, the treatment I got was amazing. And the people, those people in those oncology wards, are just amazing. Those nurses are just amazing, you know, and what they have to put up with grumpy old people like me,' she said. Jessica joined Aidan O'Brien for a star-studded Irish Champions Festival launch earlier this week at The Leinster in Dublin. Speaking about what horses will race from her yard that weekend, she said: 'I know we will have a few that weekend. I'm not sure. I'm not certain what yet. You know, time will tell. 'We're still six weeks out and a lot can happen in six weeks. Yeah, I'm kind of hoping that I might have Hotazhell there, but he ran Saratoga and it just depends, he could easily turn up there, which would be very exciting. Jessica Harrington had huge praise for staff working in oncology wards in Ireland 'And I'll have various other ones in this handicap and that handicap. I ran a nice two-year-old the other day, Suspicious Minds. There will be horses there but at the moment it is still evolving.' The festival kicks off on September 13 in Leopardstown and will finish in The Curragh on the following day. Now in its 12th year, the Irish Champions Festival offers over €5 million in prize money and 17 exhilarating races, with six Group 1 races among the two-day race programmes. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
