Cheltenham Festival 2025: Three things we learned on Wednesday
WHAT IT MEANS: Syndicate member Larurence Byrne celebrated after Lecky Watson & Sean O'Keeffe win the Grade 1 Brown Advisory Novice Steeplechase for the Slaneyville Syndicate & Willie Mullins. Pic: HEALY RACING
Ballyburn was the best novice hurdler last season and was expected to dominate the novice chasing division with similar ease this year.
Although slightly underwhelming in his two winning efforts prior to the Festival, he was heavily backed at very skinny odds before the Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase and started at 4-7.
It was clear early on that his jumping was problematic and when he lost his place following a bad mistake at the seventh fence the writing was on the wall for his supporters. He jumped noticeably slowly at several of the remaining fences before labouring home in fifth of the six finishers.
Lecky Watson under Seán O’Keeffe was getting on with things meanwhile. O’Keeffe had him handy, wide enough to see his fences and he jumped well, took it up three out and stayed on well up the hill for a very uncomplicated, and unexpected victory, for his trainer at least.
Speaking after the race Willie Mullins said: “We had a good team of horses there and I’d have probably put him in fourth of our team. Ballyburn was gone early — he wasn’t travelling in my mind, then he made the bad mistake. The game was up early for him, I thought.”
O’Keeffe’s CV includes a win on Galopin Des Champs, no less, in the Martin Pipe Hurdle four years ago and Mullins had the warmest praise for him yesterday. “Seán comes in and rides out most days, there’s plenty of horses to go around. He’s a very quiet, understated rider but he gets the job done and is very good over a fence.” The original Lecky Watson was quite good with a fence too. He plied his trade as a seed trader in exotic corners of the world until malaria put a stop to his gallop and he settled down and bought Altamount House near Tullow in Carlow where he planted the stunning gardens that still thrive today.
So, it’s no surprise that his owners, the Byrne family, hail from the same neck of the woods. Lar Byrne, like Seán O’Keeffe is no stranger to Cheltenham glory having owned the dual champion hurdler Hardy Eustace.
Another member of the family is the Portlaoise Parish Priest, Monsignor John Byrne whose prayers were answered in no uncertain terms.
Sometimes happenings are so extraordinary that even a prayerful intervention from Monsignor Byrne couldn’t explain it.
In the two-mile Champion Chase, Jonbon, like Ballyburn earlier, lost his race through a poor jumping display although his rider, Nico de Boinville apportioned some of the blame to the enforced standing start.
“We were stood up against the tape, the tape pinged back, and I’d say he might have just lost his sight slightly,” he said. “He’s some horse to still finish second.” Finished second, that is, to Marine Nationale who took advantage of a fall at the last by Quilixios to power up the hill for an 18-length win. Forty minutes later Jazzy Matty, who was purchased inexpensively at the Caldwell dispersal sale last year, stayed on courageously to land the Grand Annual by a length and a half from last year’s victor, Unexpected Party for new trainer, Cian Collins.
Marine Nationale and Jazzy Matty were the two horses Michael O’Sullivan rode to victory on the opening day two years ago. Extraordinary happenings indeed.
Seán Flanagan, Marine Nationale’s rider, found the right words: “I’m only the man that steered him round today. Michael is the man who made him what he is. He’ll never be forgotten for that.”
