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Gary Carson

Gary Carson

Alive back on top for McNamara

Thu 7th Mar 2019, 16:03

Still Alive and Darragh O'Keeffe Still Alive and Darragh O'Keeffe
© Photo Healy Racing

Still Alive bounced back to form when running out a cosy winner of the Killinan Handicap Hurdle at Thurles.

Andrew McNamara 's charge had won at Limerick over Christmas but was well held at Clonmel a couple of weeks later.

The five-year-old went to post a 10/1 shot today and travelled smoothly through to lead at the second last in the two-miler.

Darragh O'Keeffe asserted on his mount before the last and kept him up to his work in the closing stages to record a five-length win.

"Anything he did during the winter was a bonus because he loves that ground. Hussle Up was one of the ones to beat but with the claim he was actually better off from Limerick,” said McNamara.

"I had a great jockey on board and I think he is going to be a star. He had ten winners ridden before the weekend so I was watching him at Leopardstown and if he rode one more winner he'd be gone for today but I was delighted he didn't ride a winner at the weekend!

"He will go to Mallow for an amateur jockeys' handicap hurdle in a fortnight's time and will be campaigned for the summer and he will also go back on the flat."

(Quotes by Tom Weekes)

About Gary Carson
Gary started out as a trainee/assistant journalist with the Sporting Life newspaper and has worked in the racing industry for over 25 years. He has been with the Press Association since 2013 and won the Irish Field Nap Table in 2016. He enjoys working with horses and trained his own horse, Mamaslittlestar, to win a point-to-point in 2019.