The Tote staff at the centre of last weekend's threatened strike action at Naas yesterday voted unanimously to accept the Irish Horseracing Authority's amended package.

Pickets had been planned for the unveiling of the new Autotoe system at Naas on Saturday but five hours of negotiations between the IHA and SIPTU on Friday evening caused the industrial action to be postponed.

After a meeting yesterday, the SIPTU spokesman Liam Peppard said: "We have a deal. The broad principles have been agreed and it has been accepted unanimously. A few bits and pieces have to be tidied up but everyone is happy in so far as they can be."

In separate events, the Turf Club's Appeals and Referrals Committee yesterday turned down two appeals. Permit holder Iggy Madden had his appeal against the 42-day suspension of his horse Deirdre's Pet at Roscommon on May 17th rejected and also turned down was his appeal against a £500 for using the racecourse as a training ground. Conor O'Dwyer picked up a seven-day ban on Deirdre's Pet in the race.

Jockey Ciaran Dunne had his appeal against a two-day ban for careless riding picked up at Dundalk on May 21st turned down.

Gary Stevens got his British career proper off to a flying start at Sandown last night when recording a first and last-race double. The American, three times winner of the Kentucky Derby, has come to Britain to ride as stable jockey for Michael Stoute, and at Epsom yesterday expressed the desire to ride her for the remainder of his career.

And he couldn't have written the script better himself as he drove the Ben Hanbury-trained Asef Alhind to victory in the Addlestone Claiming Stakes over a mile and followed up with a last-race winner on Stoute's Cloudy Sky in the Bookham Maiden.

Settling Asef Ashind in third place as Secret Tango made the running, Stevens kicked his mount to the front on the approach to the final quarter mile and the combination held the challenge of No Extras by a length and a quarter.

Rowaasi put up a breath-taking performance in the listed National Stakes over five furlongs and booked her place in Royal Ascot's Queen Mary Stakes. Representing the same connections as last year's winner, the ill-fated Bint Allayl, the 6 to 5 favourite powered to a six-length victory over Fairy Gem and left trainer Mick Channon dreaming of better things to come.