Frances Crowley and Ruby Walsh both achieved milestones in their respective careers on the newly-laid track at Tramore yesterday.

Oakler, given a superb ride from Garrett Cotter won the featured Bank of Ireland Handicap Chase and provided former amateur champion Crowley with her first success since joining the training ranks.

The eight-year-old gelding, carrying the colours of Joe Crowley, father of the successful handler, hugged the rail from the third last and stayed on well to score by five lengths from Merry People with Sup A Whiskey a further half-a-length adrift in third.

"I'm glad my first winner is owned by my dad and hopefully it's the first of many more to come," remarked the winning handler who has a string of 60 horses at her Piltown base including 20 flat inmates.

Earlier Walsh, who was crowned amateur champion for the second successive time on Monday, opened his account in the paid ranks when scoring on Datem in the opening Richardson Brokers Maiden Hurdle.

Owned by Dr Imelda Ryan, wife of the Irish Horseracing Authority's marketing director Matt Mitchell and trained by Ted Walsh, father of the 19-year-old winning rider, the 7 to 1 chance held off Leap Your Man and Mick Murphy by three-parts-of-a-length.

"It's nice to provide him with his first winner but I didn't think this fellow would be the one for his first as I thought the ground had gone too soft for him," remarked Walsh Snr.

In the concluding bumper 16 to 12 chance Squaw Winter came home two lengths clear of warm favourite Janiste but rider Gerry Kearns, who partnered the winner, weighed in two pounds light and was disqualified for failing to draw the correct weight promoting the Paul Lenihan-trained and ridden market leader to first place.