Never say die attitude gets Irish Moon home at Te Rapa

The grit and determination that has epitomized the career of top sprinter Irish Moon was to the fore again on Saturday when he captured the Team Wealleans sponsored Open sprint at Te Rapa.

Surprisingly it was the six-year-old’s first win of this campaign and came after arguably his worst performance when he beat only a handful home in the Gr. 3 Darley Plate at Ellerslie. Trainer Ken Kelso, who prepares the O’Reilly gelding with wife Bev, wasn’t concerned about that result and was confident of a good showing from his charge.

“He just didn’t get any luck at Ellerslie as he had to work overtime from a bad draw,” he explained.

“Michael (Coleman) came back in and said just forget the run so we were happy to press on as he had bounced back well in his work.

“He had a bad draw again on the weekend and was carrying a big weight but he loves it at Te Rapa so we were expecting him to go a good race.”

Kelso was full of praise for his charge who has now won seven races and finished in a dividend bearing place in fourteen of his 21 career starts.

“He has been a model of consistency throughout and has a terrific record for a horse that had a wind operation before he had his first start,” he said.

“That consistency has made it tough for him though as he has had to carry big weights in most starts but you know when he is right he is a tough horse to roll.

“He looked beaten coming to the line but you can always rely on him to give you his all so he managed to get his nose in front when it mattered.”

Kelso will now wait to see how the gelding comes through the race before deciding on whether he has another start in this preparation before heading to the spelling paddock. – NZ Racing Desk