Champion jockey Paul Townend will miss Easter Monday's Boylesports Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse.
Townend has been ruled out of Monday’s action, and the big race ride on Agusta Gold, after sustaining a foot injury in a fall at Fairyhouse on Sunday.
He was subsequently taken to hospital in Blanchardstown for X-rays and last night the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board’s senior medical officer ruled him out of Monday’s programme.
“Paul Townend is waiting on a further scan to assess a foot injury sustained at Fairyhouse this afternoon and he will not be riding at Fairyhouse tomorrow,” reported Dr Jennifer Pugh.
Missing out on the most valuable race of the year in Ireland will sting, although the results of that scan could also have a major impact on Townend’s chances of retaining the jockey’s championship.
On Sunday a double prior to his fall from Egality Mans put him 10 winners ahead of Rachael Blackmore (95-85) for the season
However, should he face some time on the injury sidelines it would rejuvenate Blackmore’s chances of securing what would be a historic jockey’s title when the season ends at Punchestown on May 1st.
She has half a dozen rides on Monday including being declared for the Willie Mullins-trained Robin De Carlow in the National.
However, Mullins now faces having to shuffle jockeys for his five runners in the big race.
It was a much better Easter Sunday for another rider, Jody McGarvey, who enjoyed the greatest day of his career at Fairyhouse when riding a Grade 1 double.
The 30-year-old from Coleraine in Co Derry, who teams up with the English raider Jerrysback in the National, had previously ridden a single top-flight winner back in 2017.
However, in less than a couple of hours he struck twice at the highest level and from either side of the financial spectrum too.
The bargain-basement £600 buy Skyace completed a fairytale outcome for her syndicate owners by beating of trio of Mullins runners in the Irish Stallion Farms Mares’ Novice Hurdle, a race won in 2019 by no less than Honeysuckle.
Later McGarvey donned the silks of his regular employer, JP McManus, on the Mullins-trained Janidil who led home a clean-sweep for the champion trainer in the Underwriting Exchange Novice Chase.
McGarvey’s weekend purple patch also extended to landing Saturday’s Easter festival feature, the Rybo Handicap Hurdle, on McManus’s Hearts Are Trumps.
“For someone like me who doesn’t get the opportunity to ride high class horses as often as you’d like you’ve got to try and make the most of them. It’s nice to show you can compete at that level as well as the rest of the lads,” he said afterwards.
Skyace’s unlikely victory was spectacular vindication for her trainer ‘Shark’ Hanlon who had confidently labelled her a “certainty” before the race.
It was the Co Carlow’s first ever Grade 1 success and he said: “Everyone wants to have one Grade 1 winner and for me it’s great.
“I think it’s great for racing as anyone can see now that you can buy a horse cheaply, get a syndicate together, and have some fun.
“I thought that she couldn’t get beat. I knew she came home out of Cheltenham very well.”
Janidil's surprise 12-1 success was the centrepiece of a Willie Mullins four-timer completed in style in the bumper by the odds-on Dark Raven.
His rider Patrick Mullins had earlier stepped in for the ride on Asterion Forlonge once Townend had been stood down for the day. However, Asterion Forlonge could finish only third as a 7-4 favourite.
“He [Janidil] likes this track having won a hurdle here. It’s great for Jody to ride a Grade 1 double on Easter Sunday and I’m happy for all connections,” Mullins said.
