Toe The Line right on her game

Toe The Line and Fran Berry were as smooth as any punter would like a 4/6 shot to be when obliging in the Irish Stallion Farms European Breeders Fund Fillies Maiden at Roscommon.

The sweet travelling Shantou filly, owned and bred by Alan Lillingston, always looked a likely winner in the straight, in this mile and a half contest, but Berry was happy not to unduly exert the bumper winning five-year-old.

The response he got when asking Toe The Line to go and win her race was generous and she extended away inside the last to account for Dancingwithangels by four and three parts of a length.

John Kiely has care of Toe The Line for Mr Lillingston, a stalwart of the game, and he reflected: "At last she succeeded. She promised a lot – she wasn't in that league at Killarney but I was happy with the way she ran.

"It wouldn't have been the strongest race here but it's behind her now anyway.

"Her owner isn't here – the journey would have been a bit far for him to come.

"He was a brilliant horseman in his time – cross country and everything.

"He was a very dedicated steward after that and it is a privilege to have a horse for him. I used to admire him when I was a young fella though of course I'm nearly as old myself.

"Hopefully she might progress towards black-type on the flat before we think of hurdling." (DM & EM)