Tom Mullins' Fosters Cross turned the biggest race on day one of the Galway Festival, the carlton.ie/galwaycity (QR) Handicap, into a procession with a fine front-running display.
Colin Motherway was allowed to dictate a steady early gallop and gradually wound up the tempo approaching the home turn.
The 10-1 chance shot well clear approaching the home straight and though Cry For The Moon and Table Mountain gave chase, they were four lengths down at the line.
It took Dermot Weld until the third race to get off the mark at this year's Festival, landing the claregalwayhotel.ie EBF Maiden with a very promising colt in the shape of Riviera Poet
Always nicely placed under Pat Smullen, the 2-1 chance swept alongside odds-on favourite Learn on the turn for home and ran on strongly to score by a length.< Lovers Peace (11-2) reeled in Gentleman Duke to land the galwaybayhotel.com Handicap for trainer Edmond Kent and jockey Danny Grant, finishing well to score by a length and a quarter.< Good Shot Noreen gave Tommy Stack and Wayne Lordan a winner in the claytonhotelgalway.ie Handicap, the 7-1 shot coming home with a real rattle to beat Lake George by a length and a half.
Paul Carberry got proceedings at Ballybrit under way with an all-the-way win on Virgil Earp in the HotelMeyrick.ie And The ghotel.ie Novice Hurdle.
Though there appeared to be plenty of challengers at the second last, nothing was travelling as well as Noel Meade's 9-1 chance and he came home three and a half lengths in front of Devil's Elbow < Carlingford Lough belied his relative inexperience when landing the salthillhotel.com Handicap Hurdle.
John Kiely's 12-1 chance was having only his third start over timber, but ran on strongly after the turn for home for Mark Walsh, coming home three and a half lengths in front of Tajweed
