Pincheck (nearside, Colm O'Donoghue) got up to beat Captain Hardship (centre)© Photo Healy Racing
The former Luca Cumani runner Pincheck made a winning start for Jessica Harrington to bring up a double for the Commonstown handler and jockey Colm O'Donoghue in race two at Leopardstown, the Mortons Coaches Maiden.
This Invincible Spirit colt was well-touted going off a 3/1 chance on his first start for 187 days.
O'Donoghue, half-an-hour earlier a winner on the two-year-old, Brother Bear, had to get after Pincheck in the straight, and then had to thread a passage to deliver his challenge.
He managed to do all this in sufficient time to get the Jon Kelly-owned Pincheck up to beat Captain Hardship by a neck.
"Colm gave him a bit of time and then he got stopped on his first run but he got going again. He's a beautiful big horse," explained Mrs Harrington.
"The owner Jon Kelly is from California, and he's part of five horses that came from Luca Cumani."
(AM & EM)
