The market gave a reliable guide as the 'babies' opened the turf Flat season at Naas. Kevin Prendergast has his name plenty of times on the roll of honour for the two-year-old curtain-raiser and he did it again today with the Pivotal filly, Moonlight Bay in the Irish Stallion Farms E.B.F. Maiden.

The Alan Harte silks may be better known in the point-to-point fields with some high-profile youngsters, but here Pat Smullen donned them on the Adrian Keatley-trained Royal Diplomat (5/2 into 6/4 favourite).

He did very little wrong off the front end but he obviously bumped into a smart type in the Chris Hayes-ridden Moonlight Bay (4/1), as she was much the strongest close home for a two and a half length win.

Prendergast also owns Moonlight Bay in partnership with Norman Ormiston, and he said: "She probably handled the ground better than most of them. She was bred at Lumville Stud which is one of Sheikh Hamdan's studs in Co. Offaly, and they run a good outfit there. Hopefully she goes on from this."

(AM & EM)