Fairyhouse Wed, 8th Feb, 2023  Velvet Elvis that's a relief for a small yard like ours as Derek (Kierans) is our biggest spending owner but the two horses he has with me (Velvet Elvis and Hartur D'arc) had flop simultaneously this season. We had very high hopes for both at the start of the season and we've done all the tests going, but had no answers and you are scratching your head. It was a 100 percent recovery mission here and we're definitely on the way back which is good.

Limerick Tue, 31st Jan, 2023  Youralwaysdreamin It is great to get that and good to have those races for him. He was probably lacking in confidence and, for whatever reason, didn't seem to be in love with it on his last two runs. Today's race was better than running in a maiden or with top weight in a 0-109 handicap and we'll see what happens now if an offer comes in. Michael (O'Dowd, owner) couldn't be here today as he is at a funeral, but either way he'll be happy.

Clonmel Tue, 17th Jan, 2023  Grange Island Riding Rebel Fitz and For Bill were great thrills and while I haven't been riding as much on the track recently due to a lot of injuries, my kids love it. My son Dylan has been pony racing champion for the past two years and is a class act but I'll definitely be finished by the time he gets his license!. Fair play to Mikey, by God he is still able to ride them and there's nothing wrong with his bottle! He got great jumps out of him. I've been lucky with Mikey recently with two point-to-point winners but it is a long time since he rode a lot for me. He was out for a long time having had a bad fall but is back as good as ever. This horse was disappointing in very deep ground at Limerick and I was hoping he'd finish in the first five or six. He is a funny horse at home - he works great for the girls but mightn't go at all for the likes of me. He cost the price of a good horse in the early days and it is great for his owner Martin Fleming today, as he has been in poor health. He was due to come this morning but wasn't feeling well enough - he is a dream owner and you'd like to see he him have some luck.

Punchestown Sat, 31st Dec, 2022  Little Mixup He missed a year with an injury and it took a while for him to get into gear. I’m delighted for Mark and Lorraine (McDonagh). To be fair, after the injury Mark offered me the horse to keep. I put him away for a year and when I got him back I told him he was ready to go again if he wanted him back. It’s great that he’s stuck with him and hopefully he’ll win again. It was a great performance under the weight. He’s only 15.1 and the jockey couldn’t claim in the race. He’ll have to go up a grade now and he might be better in a better race with a lighter weight. He jumped super and Tommy gave him a lovely ride.

Leopardstown Thu, 29th Dec, 2022  Shewearsitwell It was very good, she wasn't very brave over her hurdles so I was very happy the last hurdle was taken out twice,. I thought going down the back she wasn't going to race much but once Paul got after her she just kicked into gear. She improved and enjoyed herself then. Paul said they went a right good gallop and he was at his best just trying to keep her in touch with the race. She was losing a half length here and there at her hurdles which wasn't good for her but she eventually got it right and when it came to staying she outstayed the rest of them.

Limerick Tue, 27th Dec, 2022  Little Mixup He was very professional in doing things, handled the ground well and jumped well so it makes my job a lot easier when those things are in your favour. They quickened off the hill and it took him until we straightened up to get going.

Punchestown Sun, 20th Nov, 2022  Shewearsitwell I don't think the mare helped Paul at all in the first mile, she got herself out of the race,. Paul said he tried to get her back interested again and get her on an even keel. He took a chance coming through the inside and it worked but he had to take that chance to get through. She was a great help to him from the second last hurdle, over the last, and she just really put down her head in the last 50 yards. I didn't think with 100 yards to run she'd get back up but she was very brave when push came to shove. She stays well and I'd imagine now that she's qualified we'll have to have the final as our main aim for the season. I'm not sure we need to run here again. We'll have a look at what her likely weight would be in it. It's very seldom I have a runner in that race and I don't feel any need to run her again before it.

Curragh Wed, 26th Oct, 2022  Global Equity it was a bit of fun and nice to do it with a few college pals. She (Global Equity) was favourite for a reason and everything went to plan and she got the job done. I was out for three months during the summer as things began to go well, but that’s the ups and downs of the game.Hopefully we can get a winner over jumps soon and just get back into the routine of it. I’m studying Accountancy and Finance in UL (University of Limerick) and I’m in my final year.

Gowran Park Fri, 30th Sep, 2022  Troubled Times said Curling. She's a lovely filly. They bred her (owner Willie Cleary) and it's massive that she's after getting black-type. Her bumper form worked out great and there were excuses the last couple of times. Derek was brilliant on her. He said he had walked it and saw a strip of ground down the inside. We don't tell him what to do!. She'll go back over hurdles now. I'll try and win a maiden first and I won't over-race her, she's been on the go a good while. I'd say it was probably too sharp for her the last day and she needed the run the time before. We'll look for a two-and-a-half mile maiden somewhere.