ALL TO PLAY FOR IN DINNY MACKEY MEMORIAL

Peter Farrell

The semi finals of the Dinny Mackey Memorial A3 525 served as the highlight at Thurles Park on Saturday night and there was little to separate both semi final winners as both Borna Thyme and Carneys Goldmine scored impressively.

Indeed, the card kicked off with the opening semi final and this saw Ruairi Dwan’s Borna Thyme (Skywalker Canny - Candanchu) justify his 6/4 billing. Well supported in his last two starts, ‘Thyme’ broke well from trap five to post a 1.70 sectional and in doing so, this enabled him to shoot into a two length lead over Ducks Ina Row in second. The latter pushed the leader all the way thereafter and really upped the ante in the closing stages, however, ‘Thyme’ pulled out all the stops to get back to winning ways and win by one and a half lengths. A thrilling contest saw the clock stop in a brisk 29.06, with Goldmine Duke securing the all-important third qualifying position.

The second semi final saw Carneys Goldmine (Cabra Firmino - Goldmine Lily) go just one spot slower as the Dick Purcell-trained runner won for the third straight outing. Jointly owned by Purcell alongside Francis Tobin, this is an ultra-consistent blue and he justified his 5/4 billing with a strong display from trap six. Showing big power to stay on stoutly and record a two length victory over Holiday Beebee, the time was 29.07 with Carneys Firmino taking home third. Indeed, connections hold a strong hand heading into the decider as they account for fifty-per-cent of the field.