Gallery: Locals blossom at Bellewstown Summer Festival

There was plenty of success enjoyed by Meath trainers and jockeys as the Bellewstown Summer Festival.

Robbie Colgan provided Westmeath trainer Adrian Murray with another two-year-old winner as Lady Craftsman landed the opening eight-furlong fillies’ maiden on Thursday at the famous track where racing has taken place since 1726. The 8/1 chance led two-furlongs from the finish and held the John McConnell-trained Tartarghan by three-parts of a length.

Navan-based Pat Martin won the opening division of the eight-furlong handicap for older horses with What Adday. Ridden by Dylan Browne McMonagle, the strong 4/1 favourite hit the front with over a furlong to race and gamely held off Tom McCourt’s 6/1 chance Rampage to score in the Martin’s own colours.

Luke Comer won the 14-furlong handicap with the Chris Hayes-ridden Oranmore. An 8/1 chance, he scored by three and a half lengths from the Cormac Farrell-trained Fire Coral, a first success for the seven-year-old which is owned by Comer and was also bred by him.

Gordon Elliott added to his winner at Tipperary a couple of hours earlier as the Harry Swan-ridden Party Central won the concluding 12-furlong amateur riders’ race. The Bective Stud-owned 4/6 favourite had plenty in hand as she beat Noel Meade’s Jesse Evans by three and a half lengths.

At Bellewstown on Friday evening, there was a familiar outcome to the opening eight-furlong claimer as Naul trainer James McAuley landed a 1-2 in the race. But it was 15/2 chance Sunday Sovereign that came on top in the hands of Billy Lee, the six-year-old making all the running and easily holding the Shane Foley-ridden 13/8 favourite Bringsty by four and a quarter lengths. I

Indeed, a host of locals made it to the winners’ enclosure and also on the mark was Tom Gibney who saddled Imposing Supreme to win the handicap over the same distance. Ridden by Gavin Ryan, the seven-year-old grey led passing the two-furlong pole and came home a two and a quarter-length winner from the Gavin Cromwell-trained Breezy Zoff at odds of 5/1. John McConnell continued the trend of nearby success as Mythical Phoenix won the five-furlong maiden.

In the trainer’s own colours, the Donagh O'Connor-ridden 7/2 chance led over a furlong from the finish to beat David Marnane’s Double Jabbed by a length and a half. Ado McGuinness and Clonalvy’s Adam Caffrey won the handicap over the same distance with the 14/1 shot Zig Zag Zyggy which pipped Matthew Smith’s 12/1 chance Eruption by a head. Gavin Cromwell and Conor Maxwell combined to win the opening leg of the 12-furlong handicap with 5/4 favourite Final Orders.

The CMD Syndicate-owned seven-year-old made plenty of headlines over jumps last season and he had loads in hand as he scored by two and a half lengths from the Tom McCourt-trained Glyde Ranger. The Tote Galway Plate is next for the winner. Bellewstown’s own Robert Whearty took the second leg of the same race on the Gerry Keane-trained Franno. The strong 7/2 favourite, owned by Patrick Mulligan and Eva Forde, beat Luke Comer’s 20/1 shot Hot Lady by a neck, the winning jockey’s second winner of the week.

Local success was very much in evidence as the three-day July festival at Bellewstown drew to a close on Saturday evening. The Noel Meade-trained Charlie Luciano rattled off a hat-trick of wins over hurdles when winning the two-mile one-furlong novice hurdle under Liam McKenna.

The 5/2 chance got the better of Gordon Elliott’s 4/1 chance Calico, ridden by Ben Harvey, by half a length. Harvey was in the number one spot himself 35 minutes later after the John McConnell-trained Encanto Bruno landed the maiden hurdle over the same distance. A 1/2 favourite in the Derek Kierans colours, the dual bumper winner made a victorious start to his jumping career as he beat the Gavin Cromwell-trained Dutch Shultz by an easy 13 lengths.

The father and son team of Matthew and James Smith took the three-mile handicap hurdle with the Killian McDonnell-owned Dartan. The 4/1 chance impressed with a three and a half-length win over the Ray Cody-trained 11/8 favourite Easy Fella. Fittingly, the fixture finished with yet another local success as 1/4 favourite scored a runaway success in the bumper. Ridden by Alex Harvey, the four-year-old won by all of 14 lengths to complete a double for John McConnell.