Few stables have a history quite like Currabeg’s and John O’Donoghue is urging the public to come and see it for themselves on Saturday. The trainer is the current incumbent in the yard previously used by John Oxx, from which he sent out almost 2,000 winners including 37 Group 1 triumphs – with Sea The Stars among the horses who were based at the facility. O’Donoghue has been based there since the autumn of 2021 and this is the first time he has hosted an open morning as part of HRI’s Meet the Trainer series, an event he is looking forward to. “We’ll have one lot of horses riding out on the Curragh and then come back in for a show of a couple of two-year-olds, and a couple who have run well this year,” he said. “We’ll have a dentist and a farrier in to show demonstrations of what they do, and some jockeys will be with us as well - Ronan Whelan, Nathan Crosse, Gary Halpin and Andrew Slattery. “There will be refreshments available and we have a nice area in the yard, an owner’s lounge we built last year with a bar area and seating available, for people to enjoy.” Those who attend will also have the opportunity to hear stories from Oxx about the history of the ground they will be standing on, which carries prestigious weight. “Mr Oxx is going to come up on the morning and say a few words to talk us through the development of Currabeg,” he said. “He took it over form his father and we are in the newest part of Currabeg. He was quite pioneering, he had a treadmill and different vet facilities on site when they developed it - even though the yard is more than 50 years old, it was like the Ritz in those early days. “We are lucky to have it. Yards like that don’t come up too often – we only have 35 horses but we couldn’t turn down the opportunity to be based there.” O’Donoghue has had a frustrating summer on the track, with just a couple of winners and plenty of places, while plans to run Ice Jet in the G2 Beresford Stakes at the end of the month have been put on hold after a below-par display in the “It has been backs against the wall with an awful lot of seconds and thirds, we have hit the crossbar on several occasions,” he said. “We had a good season last year with 10 winners, the year previous we had the Royal Ascot second. “We’ve only had 35 runners this year but we have a lot of quality two-year-olds so we are looking forward to seeing how they progress. “We’ve a nice filly who was third in a trial last week, owned by Sven Hanson, who is a prominent owner/breeder in France who sends us quite a few horses. “She’s a Starspangledbanner filly, I’d be hoping to win her maiden and we might look at a nice race for her at the back end. It’s the right time of year as she likes soft ground.” To sign up for John Donoghue’s open morning, click here.
Menu
.png "O'Donoghue set for open morning this weekend")
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)