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Turf stakes yield riches to Irish

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

By John Manley

The grass was especially green for a trio of trainers who saddled their charges to victories in six-figure stakes races over the weekend. David Carroll started 1998 hoping that Keene Dancer would make a dent in the Triple Crown races, but that did not come to pass. Plan B is now in effect and paid off handsomely when the son of Seattle Dancer took the $201,800 Kent Breeders’ Cup Stakes on the turf at Delaware Park by three lengths on Sunday. Pat Day joined the colt to travel the nine furlongs over firm ground in 1:50.3. The Kentucky-bred is owned by Fredericks & Tri County Farm. Keene Dancer now has six wins in 13 starts and earnings of $442,464. Carroll is a native of County Meath.

Noel Hickey has something of a personal money tree in Buck’s Boy. The 5-year-old gelding crossed the border to Canada, where he won the $219,400 Hong Kong Jockey Club trophy Stakes at Woodbine. Buck’s Boy crawled through slow early fractions, then sprinted to the finish, where he had two lengths on Crown Attorney, the runner-up. Earlie Fires handled the reins. Buck’s Boy finished the 11 furlongs in 2:15.2 on firm ground. He is owned by the Quarter B Farm of Illinois, and was bred by Hickey, a Cork native, who also stands the sire, Bucksplasher, at his Irish Acres Farm in Ocala, Fla. Buck’s Boy has now won 12 of 22 career starts, with earnings of $888,530.

Soviet Line continues to plug away at the ripe old age of eight. Kiaran McLaughlin brought the Irish-bred gelding to Chicago, where he prevailed by three-quarters of a length over Fun to Run in the $150,000 Robert F. Carey Memorial Handicap at Hawthorne. Shane Sellers had the honor of escorting Soviet Line around the course in record time of 1:33.2 for a mile. Gainsborough Farms owns Soviet Line, which is closing in on the million dollar mark in earnings. After 13 wins in 40 starts, he has amassed $952,085. McLaughlin’s parents came to America from Belfast.

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