LAURA GALE, trained by Sean Treacy, made virtually all to complete a hat trick of wins this season in the three mile Valnet Tractors Handicap hurdle at a well attended Kilbeggan last evening.

Tommy Treacy, nephew of the winning trainer, sent the Strong Gale mare off at a good gallop from flagfall and shrugged off the challenge of Wild Country with a good jump at the final flight to score by three lengths.

She's a nice consistent type and jumped well today. I will run her in a two mile five furlong handicap hurdle (£15,000 added prize money) at Galway on the Saturday of the Festival and then give her a break before going chasing," said Treacy.

Noel Meade and Paul Carberry combined to record a double initiated with The Bould Vic in the opener and completed with Legitman, who came from well off the pace to land the Leinster Petroleum Handicap Hurdle.

Tommy Treacy was lucky to escape uninjured after his mount Nannaka fell when lying third at the final flight and tragically the Paddy Mullins trained six year old mare had to be destroyed.

The combination set out to complete a treble in the penultimate Elan Beginners Chase, but their charge Swinger fell early in the contest with victory going to the Willie Murphy trained Beet Statement, who scored snugly by one and a half lengths.

. Trainer Dick Allay was delighted to hand over £50 to his Scots born colleague Linda Perratt in the unsaddling enclosure at Musselburgh yesterday after the Monkton Hall Colliery Handicap won by the former's horse King Of Show.

Allan, who also owns King Of Show, believed that his five year old had been caught on the post by the fast finishing Leading Princess, trained by Miss Perratt.

The photo finish revealed that King of Show had held on by a whisker and thus defied a 7lb penalty for his shock 50 to 1 success at Ayr four days earlier.

"With 20 yards to go I felt King of Show was going to win comfortably but when the other one arrived on the scene I had my heart in my mouth," he said.