Kent & Townend on the mark with Tea

Thanks For Tea got off the mark on her third start over fences as she ran out a comfortable winner of the Limerick's Live 95FM Mares Beginners Chase.

Twice successful over hurdles last summer, the Edmond Kent trained seven-year-old finishing third on her debut over fences at Wexford in June, before going down by a just a head on her next start at the same venue.

Available at 11/10 last night, the daughter of Shantou opened on-course at evens, before going off the 9/10 favourite.

Settled in mid-division by Paul Townend, she was fifth with a circuit to race. She took closer order on the outer approaching the straight, and was pushed to the front after the last, going on to score comfortably by three and three parts of a length.

Isabelle Liberty (6/4) finished second under Jack Kennedy for Gordon Elliott, while Troubled Soul was a neck back in third under Davy Russell for Denis Hogan.

Edmond Kent said afterwards: "She deserved that as she had a race taken off her in the Stewards' Room last year. Paul (Townend) gets on well with her."

Additional reporting by Thomas Weekes