Horse In Focus - Shinrock Paddy

Shinrock Paddy

• Shinrock Paddy [1] won on his first start of the season in the Tipper Road Hurdle at Naas on Saturday over 2m 4f, beating the well regarded Son Amix [2] by over a length, while giving him 20lb. It was an impressive performance and could be the start of a great season.

• This 6yo gelding is owned by Barry Connell and bred by Cecil Ashe. He was bought as a foal for £10,000 and £8,500 as a yearling. He was then bought for the bargain price of EUR 4,000 as a 3yo in Goffs June National Hunt Sale in 2007. His dam was an unraced half-sister to 2m4f hurdle winner Joe Di Capo and is out of a family of the smart Irish jumper up to 2m2f, Colonel Yeager.

• He won his only point to point in Monksgrange on heavy ground in March 2008 by a distance. The Deploy gelding, out of an Arts Theater mare, then made his racecourse debut in October 2008 at Gowran Park [3] and won the bumper there on good to yielding ground.

• He then made the trip accross the water for the big Cheltenham Open meeting in November and won the Listed bumper there on soft going. He didn't run again until the festival bumper in March at the Cotswolds but could only finish 8th to the mighty Dunguib [4].

• The next season he started off his hurdling career in fine style by winning a maiden hurdle at Punchestown [5] in October 2009. In December he went to Navan [6] for the Grade 1 Barry & Sandra Kelly Memorial Novice Hurdle and won that impressively by a massive 15L's. After that performance he went on to Cheltenham Festival in the spring for the Grade 1 Albert Bartlett Novices Hurdle but was very disappointing and he was pulled up.

• He has been lightly raced and is well looked after in Paul Nolan [7]'s yard in Wexford. He was always highly thought of in the yard and according to his trainer, he is "back on track now and will come on for that run."

• He will now go for the Grade 1 Hatton's Grace Hurdle at Fairyhouse [8] at the end of the month and that should be a race to savour.