TWIRL TURNS THE TABLES AHEAD OF LIMERICK OAKS SHOWDOWN

Peter Farrell

The semi-finals of the J.P. & Pauline Ryan Memorial Limerick Oaks continued to deliver fiercely competitive racing on Saturday night, with Arrow Twirl the latest to press her claims ahead of next weekend’s decider.

Owned by Andrew Lawlor, Arrow Twirl (7/2) had yet to get off the mark in the earlier rounds of the 2026 renewal, though her ability was evident when finishing a solid third behind Badly Behaving seven days previously. As only a March pup, improvement was expected, and she duly delivered, securing a fifth career victory while reversing form with last week’s rival and posting the fastest time of the two semi-final winners.

Drawn in trap three, the strapping 69-pounder had been reliable on the early sectional clock throughout the competition and again broke sharply from her middle berth to dispute the lead with Burgess Bonnie. Showing marginally in front at the opening bend, she opened up a three-parts-of-a-length advantage down the back straight, with Badly Behaving soon improving into second. At that stage Lennies Madge, once again slowly into stride, began to build momentum and swept into third. Arrow Twirl extended her lead to just over a length approaching the penultimate bend but drifted slightly wide between the final two turns, allowing Badly Behaving to gain ownership of the inside rail. It ultimately made no difference, however, as the daughter of King Sheeran - Annual Review regained her composure to stay on strongly up the Limerick hill. Crossing the line a length and a half clear, Badly Behaving held off the late thrust of Lennies Madge, who was again eye-catching in defeat for Lee Craze. The time was 28.47.

DETERMINED POPPET PREVAILS

In the second semi-final, Magical Poppet continued her assault on the Limerick Oaks with another polished performance for Donal and Pat Guilfoyle.

A winner of her opening-round assignment in a brisk 28.54, she was narrowly denied in the second round when Badly Behaving held off her late advances. She was not to suffer the same fate this time, however, powering to a sixth career victory for connections. Sent off the 11/8 favourite ahead of Youandme Babe (7/4), ‘Poppet’ showed best at traprise but was immediately challenged by kennel companion and litter sister Magical Hope. As the pair disputed entering the back straight, the Thomas O’Donovan-owned Rossa Abi made rapid progress along the inside and narrowly led rounding the bottom two bends. Magical Poppet, a proven strong stayer, was not finished. Quickly regaining parity, the daughter of Dorotas Wildcat–Magical Poppy upped the tempo on the hill to prevail by half a length from Rossa Abi, who lost nothing in defeat. The final qualifying position went to Magical Hope, completing the line-up for what promises to be a top-class final in seven days’ time. The time was 28.59.

ZENITH SETS KILCOLGAN STANDARD

The supporting act on the card was the semi-finals of the Kilcolgan Castle A3 525, where Zenith Glory set the standard by building impressively on his swift 16.39 return trial last time out.

Trained by Corona Ryan for Birol Nadir and Paddy Kehoe, Zenith Glory wore the black jacket and flew from traps before quickly securing the inside rail. Holding a three-length advantage into the back straight, the 2/1 chance soon doubled that margin approaching the three-quarter mark and it became clear the son of King Sheeran - Glory Ruth was a class above his rivals on this occasion. Though Rallying Syd made good late headway in the closing yards, the outcome was never in doubt as Zenith Glory powered to a two-and-a-half-length success in a smart 28.73. Corona Ryan wasn’t finished on the night as she also claimed the concluding race on the card, a D3/4 750. Represented by Beaming Bronco (1/1) in this instance, the even money favourite claimed a two and a half length success over Listen Poppy, in 42.75.

While Paul Hennessy was luckless with Youandme Babe in the semi finals of the Oaks, he did record a good victory in the second semi final of the A3 with Darocketman. Sent off at odds of 9/4, Darocketman was forced to play second fiddle behind the fast-starting Coolowen Atom in three. However, the son of Ballyhimikin Jet - Affane Maisie began to turn the screw passing the 750-yard box and although running very wide off the final bend, kept enough in reserve to fend off the late surge of Ballyelan Brandy in second. The time was 28.99. Incidentally, the Kilkenny handler was again on the scoresheet with Jaykay Fly in an A2 contest in race six. It was a much more straightforward contest with the son of Serene Ace, owned by Carol O’Riordan dominating throughout to win by eight and a half lengths, in 28.69.

BLITZ GOES QUICK

Elsewhere on the card, there was an explosive performance from the Pat Buckley-trained Glengar Blitz as she produced a career-best effort.

The Bradley Canty-owned May ’24 whelp looks to be building towards a tilt at the upcoming Con & Annie Kirby Memorial and advertised her wellbeing with a commanding display in an Open 525. Breaking sharply from trap three, the daughter of Glengar Bale - Stream Of Sydney quickly asserted and opened a three-length advantage over Highview Ben. Although the latter kept tabs on the leader throughout, he never made any inroads on the impressive Glengar Blitz up front. She crossed the line with three lengths to spare in a rapid 28.39.