logo
Jack Kennedy records first win since injury break

Jack Kennedy records first win since injury break

The former Irish champion jockey broke his leg for a sixth time in November and despite making it back for the Cheltenham Festival in March, he has been on the sidelines again since, missing showpiece meetings at Aintree and Punchestown as well as the conclusion of the 2024-25 Irish season.
Kennedy was out of luck with his three rides on his long-awaited return at Tipperary on Tuesday and also failed to trouble the judge on his three mounts at the same track on Thursday, but struck gold in Wexford's opening Shamrock Enterprises Maiden Hurdle.
He said: 'That's brilliant and I didn't have to wait too long, so it's great.'
The Gordon Elliott-trained Kamikaz Du Plessis was an 11-8 favourite having gone down narrowly on his debut under rules at Ballinrobe in late May and rewarded his supporters with a near four-length verdict.
Kennedy added: 'He is a very slick jumper, he travelled well and was probably borderline keen early, but once we on a little bit he was perfect then. He is a nice horse and hopefully there will be plenty more to come with him.
'He stayed on well in Ballinrobe the last day, so we were hoping the two-and-a-half-mile trip today would suit him.
'He probably put the race to bed fairly easy and I was probably there a bit soon on him. He was green and just ran around a bit, but he is a nice horse, I got a nice feel off of him, so hopefully he can go forward.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Celtic land narrow win, testimonial man misses penalty, Hearts prevail in Spain
Celtic land narrow win, testimonial man misses penalty, Hearts prevail in Spain

Scotsman

time2 hours ago

  • Scotsman

Celtic land narrow win, testimonial man misses penalty, Hearts prevail in Spain

How Scottish clubs fared in friendly matches ahead of new season Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Celtic posted a 1-0 victory over Queen's Park in their first pre-season match of the new campaign. Manager Brendan Rodgers fielded two different teams in each half at the City Stadium against their Glasgow rivals, with captain Callum McGregor, midfielders Arne Engels and Luke McCowan plus centre-half Auston Trusty the only recognisable first-team players in the squad. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad That quartet played the first half, in which young Irish striker Johnny Kenny fired the visitors ahead from close range against their Championship opponents in the 19th minute. Callum McGregor has a shot at goal during Celtic's match against Queen's Park. | PA Goalkeeper Ross Doohan made his first appearance for Celtic since returning to the club from Aberdeen earlier in the summer and he played 63 minutes of the match. An interested spectator at Lesser Hampden was Japanese defender Hayato Inamura, who earlier in the day completed his transfer from Albirex Niigata in his homeland. Inamura, who can play left-back and centre-half, has penned a four-year deal with Celtic. New striker Callum Osmand was also in attendance. At Rugby Park, Kilmarnock were the victors against near rivals Ayr United in Rory McKenzie's testimonial. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Kilmarnock's Rory McKenzie with family at full time during his testimonial match. | SNS Group The first half was goalless, with McKenzie missing the chance to open the scoring on 43 minutes when his penalty kick was saved by Ayr keeper David Mitchell. Killie took the lead just moments into the second period when Greg Kiltie capitalised on a poor clearance from Mitchell to net the only goal of the match. It was new Kilmarnock manager Stuart Kettlewell's first chance to run the rule over his squad. Hearts win in Spain In Spain, Hearts ended their pre-season training camp with a 3-1 win over Crawley Town. Strikes from James Wilson, Alan Forrest and an own goal at La Finca gave Derek McInnes' men the win over their English League Two opponents. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The Jambos played two different XIs to give all of the squad valuable game-time ahead of their Premier Sports Cup opener against Dunfermline Athletic next weekend. After the match, Hearts head coach Derek McInnes confirmed that defender James Penrice is very close to joining Greek side AEK Athens. ​'AEK have met our valuation,' McInnes said, 'which is brilliant money back and a great opportunity for James. In an ideal world, I'm just in the door and I've wanted to work with him for a while, but sometimes you've got to be fair. He deserves credit. He was outstanding in a tough season last year. It is a fantastic opportunity for him. Obviously it still needs to be concluded, but he looks to be on his way.'

Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas
Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas

South Wales Guardian

time9 hours ago

  • South Wales Guardian

Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas

A comfortable Gowran winner on his racecourse debut last month, Daytona was sent off the 4-5 favourite for trainer Aidan O'Brien and jockey Wayne Lordan, with the result never really looking in doubt. Daytona initially looked a little green when given the signal to go on by Lordan, but he was too good for North Shore, pulling three and a quarter lengths clear with the minimum of fuss, earning a 20-1 quote from Paddy Power for next year's 2000 Guineas. Stable representative Chris Armstrong said: 'Jack (Cleary) gave him a lovely introduction in Gowran where for a first timer and he was impressive. He's come along lovely at home since then, but he's still fairly raw. 'They went along at a nice pace and he travelled into it really strong, but when he got there he was still very babyish. 'He has the makings of a lovely horse and next year you could see him over a mile and a quarter. 'He could be one for something like the Futurity or Golden Fleece. He's a horse to look forward to. He'll develop physically, he's a fine big imposing horse and he's by that sire Wootton Bassett.' This mile race is part of the new 'Smullen Series' which consists of 18 middle-distance races for two and three-year-olds and honours the late Irish champion jockey who enjoyed Derby glory with Harzand. Smullen was O'Brien's brother-in-law and Armstrong added: 'It's a lovely new series that they've introduced and all these new series initiatives help the programme. 'It's named after a legend and Aidan picked this race out straight after Gowran for him. He's delighted to win the first running of it and hopefully we can win a few more of them.'

Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas
Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas

Rhyl Journal

time9 hours ago

  • Rhyl Journal

Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas

A comfortable Gowran winner on his racecourse debut last month, Daytona was sent off the 4-5 favourite for trainer Aidan O'Brien and jockey Wayne Lordan, with the result never really looking in doubt. Daytona initially looked a little green when given the signal to go on by Lordan, but he was too good for North Shore, pulling three and a quarter lengths clear with the minimum of fuss, earning a 20-1 quote from Paddy Power for next year's 2000 Guineas. Stable representative Chris Armstrong said: 'Jack (Cleary) gave him a lovely introduction in Gowran where for a first timer and he was impressive. He's come along lovely at home since then, but he's still fairly raw. 'They went along at a nice pace and he travelled into it really strong, but when he got there he was still very babyish. 'He has the makings of a lovely horse and next year you could see him over a mile and a quarter. 'He could be one for something like the Futurity or Golden Fleece. He's a horse to look forward to. He'll develop physically, he's a fine big imposing horse and he's by that sire Wootton Bassett.' This mile race is part of the new 'Smullen Series' which consists of 18 middle-distance races for two and three-year-olds and honours the late Irish champion jockey who enjoyed Derby glory with Harzand. Smullen was O'Brien's brother-in-law and Armstrong added: 'It's a lovely new series that they've introduced and all these new series initiatives help the programme. 'It's named after a legend and Aidan picked this race out straight after Gowran for him. He's delighted to win the first running of it and hopefully we can win a few more of them.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store