'We came here quietly confident' - progressive Hanalia has her finest hour as connections eye Group 1 target next

Under a fine ride from Shane Foley, the Aga Khan's Hanalia pounced late to earn her biggest payday when landing the Group 2 Moyglare Blandford Stakes for Johnny Murtagh.

The daughter of Sea The Stars showed a liking for this trip when landing the Naas Oaks Trial in June, and the return to it saw her bounce back to her best as she overhauled front-running Wingspan and favourite Purple Lily close to the line to score by a neck. Foley timed it well and proved an able deputy for rider Ben Coen, who is sidelined through injury.

Murtagh said: "I thought she had improved from her last run here a couple of weeks ago. I might have left her one gallop short with an eye on this race, although I did nearly think that she would win the last day! This is her ideal trip and the drop of rain helped, so we came here quietly confident.

"Shane gave her a great ride. She can be keen and she needs to get settled early. I told him the more relaxed she is, the better she will finish. She has a good turn of foot when she relaxes. Hopefully she can go on now and we will probably go for a Group 1 next. She's in the Prix de l'Opera and hopefully that's the next target."

Hernon has the Spirit 

French-based Irish trainer Gavin Hernon landed a lucrative pot when the €250,000 Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes went the way of Spirit D'Or in the hands of Ronan Whelan.

Hernon was not present for this triumph, but Whelan revealed the back story between him and the trainer. 

He said: "I got a good kick out of that. Gavin and I worked together at Jim Bolger's many years ago, that's where the connection comes. He rang me during the week and we had a chat about whether it was worthwhile bringing her over. We went through it and we both concluded it was worth it and it's a great pot to get. I'm grateful to Gavin for not forgetting me after all these years."

He added: "I watched her videos and spoke to people involved. She is a forward going filly. Noel Meade's filly went along in front and I literally could not have wished for a better set-up. The last furlong was a bit of an unknown but she was tough."

Alfie set for the big time

Ger Lyons saddled the opening-race winner for the second time over the weekend as the Colin Keane-ridden My Mate Alfie overcame top weight for victory in the Bold Lad Handicap.

Lyons said: "He's a lovely horse. He has an entry in the Ayr Gold Cup but I've been training him for the future. He did it well, he's just a good horse. Whether he is a Group 1 sprinter, I don't know, but I think he will definitely mature into a better horse."

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Lake Victoria maintains unbeaten record in Moyglare Stud Stakes as favourite Bedtime Story finishes last 

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