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Well handicapped Jacksonslady looks the ideal candidate in Galway Plate

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The Tony Martin trained Quick Jack, winner of the Connacht Hotel Handicap last year, is one of the leading fancies for next week's Guinness Galway Hurdle.

By George McDonagh

THE €20,000 increase in value of the Tote.com Galway Plate next Wednesday has led to a high quality entry which includes Alderwood, Savello, Ted Veale and Spring Heeled, all previous Cheltenham festival winners.

The Willie Mullins trained Boston Bob (11-10) is the top weight for the €220,000 feature, but that is still seven pounds below the rating achieved following his defeat of First Lieutenant in the Punchestown Gold Cup of 2014.

Rebel Fitz is the fly in the ointment among the top weights. In five runs at Ballybrit, Michael Winters’ stable star has won four times and finished runner up in the other. Now a ten-year-old, Rebel Fitz took the 2013 renewal of the Galway Hurdle from Cause Of Causes, but has had some niggling injury troubles in the past 15 months and hasn’t seen racecourse action since last October.

Tony Martin’s pair of Savello, which returned to winning ways last time, and 2014 festival winner Ted Veale will find the two and three quarter mile trip taxing their stamina, while of the cross channel raiders Jonjo O’Neill’s Its A Gimmie ran a fine race when runner up to another cross channel entrant Brave Spartacus in last Saturday’s Summer Plate at Market Rasen. If the latter turns up, a fast tempo is assured from flag fall.

The David Pipe trained Dell Arca though is worth a closer look although he has only ran three times over fences, winning a class three event at Uttoxeter last time in late May. However, it is his length and a half defeat by Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Coneygree at Newbury last November that is the stand out form, even if a 22 runner cavalry charge that the Plate is will be a far cry from a five runner field irrespective of who wins it.

Alelchi Inois has been towards the head of the ante post market since the entries were revealed and this economic jumper is a dual course winner over the two and a quarter mile trip. He returned to action for the first time since last November with a defeat of Bayan when well supported for a conditions hurdle at Cork three weeks ago.

Pulled up twice in graded company late last year, underfoot conditions would not have suited Alechi Inois then and he will be a live player along with his stable companion Ballinaslow, which caught the eye behind Ravished in the recent Midlands National at Kilbeggan.

Third off a similar mark behind Road To Riches in last year’s renewal, all his racecourse wins have come on right handed tracks. Back down to the same mark as in 2014, Ballinaslow would have been closer to the winner but for getting into the bottom of the final fence and losing momentum in the process. He can go close.

The one to concentrate though is the Phillip Dempsey trained Jacksonslady whose mark of 141 leaves her just four pounds higher then when a battling nine length third in the 2013 Plate behind ‘handicap snip’ Carlingford Lough.

A closer examination of the JP McManus owned mare’s form though tells us that she runs well fresh, therefore an absence since beating Upazo by five lengths at level weights over two miles at the Punchestown festival is not of great concern. A winner over the course and distance in the Latin Quarter Chase at last year’s meeting, she was ridden then by Barry Geraghty, who is now the retained rider for the McManus operation.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Connacht Tribune

Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents

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Galway's Aaron Niland is chased by Cillian O'Callaghan of Cork during Saturday's All-Ireland Minor Hurling semi-final at Semple Stadium. Photo: Stephen Marken/Sportsfile.

Galway 3-18

Cork 1-10

NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.

The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.

Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.

Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.

Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.

Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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CITY TRIBUNE

United wary of the threat from Treaty

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Galway United’s goal scorer Stephen Walsh gets to grips with Wexford’s Hugh Douglas during Friday's First Division tie at Eamonn Deacy Park. Photos: Joe O'Shaughnessy,

GALWAY United need to guard against any kind of complacency when they make the short hop down the M18 this Friday to take on Treaty United at the Markets Field (7.45pm).

The game is a meeting of the two form teams in the division, and as in previous meetings between the sides, will have an additional edge given the number of former United players in the home side’s ranks, and the pair of Limerick lads playing for United.

There might have been just the eight meetings between the sides since Treaty became the latest iteration to represent Limerick in the League of Ireland in 2021, and while United have yet to lose to the men in the candy-cane strips, there has never been more than a goal in four of their eight wins.

The most recent of those was back in February, when Rob Slevin scored the only goal of the game in Eamonn Deacy Park after a tough battle against a side who made a slow start to the season, before finally finding their groove in the past month.

Having taken just three points from their first six games before finally getting a win against Longford Town, they reverted to type with just one point from their next three games, but are now on a run of four wins on the spin, scoring 12 goals and conceding just one.

Their most recent win was a 3-0 victory away to Longford Town last Saturday, and they could have won by double that against the only side to have beaten United this season. That in itself is a warning.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.

Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App

Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.

Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite  HERE.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

 

 

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CITY TRIBUNE

Devon crowned Women’s Connacht Cup champions

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Luke Byrnes (centre) ceebrates with Paddy Gannon (left) and Sam Omokua afetr scoring his second goal aganist St Bernard's. Photos: Joe O'Shaughnessy.

Soccer Wrap with Mike Rafferty

While the Salthill Devon men’s team might have lost their grip on the Connacht Junior Cup that they held for two seasons, the club’s women’s side have picked up the mantle and on Sunday last in Headford were crowned provincial champions with a 4-3 win over Manulla.

Following midweek wins for Maree/Oranmore and Knocknacarra, the stage is now almost set for the semi-finals of the Michael Byrne Cup with Salthill Devon meeting St Bernard’s on Sunday in an outstanding quarter-final, with the winners advancing to a semi-final against Maree/Oranmore, while Colga will face Knocknacarra in the other last four contest.

Just one league issue remains to be decided, with the Championship runners-up position up for grabs, as Dynamo Blues have to win their two remaining games in order to overtake Colemanstown United who have finished their programme.

WOMEN’S CONNACHT CUP FINAL

Salthill Devon  4

Manulla 3

Ellerose O’Flaherty scored twice as Salthill Devon were crowned provincial champions with a win over a Mayo side who were losing in the final for the second year in succession.

Backboned by a number of players who previously had League of Ireland experience with Galway WFC, Devon suffered an early set back when Jess Nolan put Manulla ahead, before O’Flaherty levelled matters with a cracking finish on 20 minutes, which was quickly followed by a long-range free-kick from Aoife Walsh.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.

Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App

Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.

Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite  HERE.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

 

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