Sallie's Girl and Oa Baldixe, from opposite ends of the financial scale, shouted winter potential for Noel Meade and Paul Carberry when they scored at Fairyhouse yesterday.
The vastly improved Sallie's Girl won first time of asking over fences when she doled out a three-and-a-half length defeat of her market rival, The Dell, in the Mulhuddart Chase. She could return to Fairyhouse for the Drinmore Chase this month.
Sallie's Girl cost a mere Gns1,700 as a three-year-old and has never impressed on the home gallops, but she never ceases to amaze Meade with her transformation on the track.
"She is desperate lazy at home," Meade smiled. "I promise you she wouldn't beat the dog on the gallops, and she got tired here because she's so lazy."
In contrast, Oa Baldixe cost a whopping 1.3 million French francs (£155,000) 13 months ago after putting a Longchamp Group Three on his CV and broke his duck over hurdles at the second attempt with the minimum of fuss.
"He wasn't well when he first ran for us so we decided to geld him and leave him as a novice," Meade said. "He's in the Royal Bond Hurdle, but could run at Navan on Troytown the day before that. That will be a great confidence booster for him." Leaderman kept the Christy Roche yard ticking over with a second success in four days in the novice handicap hurdle.
The season's leading rider, Barry Geraghty, made it 31 for the term on Market Lass in the handicap chase, and Tara Sound was too good for China Tealeaf in the handicap hurdle.
Champion amateur rider Philip Fenton landed the bumper on the Frances Crowley-trained favourite Native Titan but was afterwards hit with a two-day whip ban.
