Murtagh completes cross-card treble

Trainer Johnny Murtagh completed an across-the-card treble at Killarney today as his Sassified scaled the heights of the Carrauntoohil (45-75) Handicap, adding to earlier winners at Dundalk.

Murtagh's Puerto De Vega and Safecracker were winners for jockey Shane Kelly at Dundalk and at Killarney, Sassified, a son of Excelebration, improved on four previous efforts when scoring by a length and a quarter from Dagoda for the Mainlymedics Syndicate.

Winning jockey Niall McCullagh steered Royal Diamond to win the 2012 Irish St Leger for trainer Tommy Carmody and assistant Murtagh, then still race-riding, and today stated: “Johnny is making a great fist of training, he is a gifted trainer and is doing very well. I was delighted to get a winner for him on the day.

“The first-time cheekpieces, the little bit of juice in the ground the drop back to a mile all really helped and I'd imagine a mile and 100 yards at Galway will be right up his street.”