Larkin delighted to land Molony Cup

Lizrona made her first venture into handicap company a winning one when she landed the Molony Cup over an extended three miles in Thurles.

The 20/1 shot came under a drive from Sean O'Keeffe after the second last, but responded generously and made good headway from mid-division.

The long run to the last played to her strengths as she made relentless progress to lead approaching it.

She was strong on the run-in as she increased her advantage to come in by four and a half lengths from Goodnightngodbless (16/1). Quarry Lil (25/1) and nicely-backed Arverne (11/2) finished third and fourth respectively.

Eric Larkin, saddling his first winner since the 2017/18 season, said: "I live down the road in Kilsheelan and was in the army with the late Jack Griffin who was married to Trisha Molony (race sponsors and racecourse owners), so this is a lovely race to win with a lovely trophy too.

"She was running over 2m4f and just needed a trip. Sean said she was on her head early on and needed the trip. I don't know where she'll run next but the handicapper will probably destroy her!

"My last winner was actually here (in 2017) and I only train two horses. I'm retired from the army and only train as a hobby but would like to get a few more horses. There are so many trainers around my area though, with so much choice."

The Molony Cup dates back to 1957.

Additional reporting by Tom Weekes