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Always wore a pin stripped suit , a short man had a beard and wore glasses , I gave him a lift the odd day he always seemed to be walking near the track. I think he liked his drink I was just wondering if anyone remembered him ,long since dead I'd say though I could be wrong...
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well before my time, Workrider
the only fella i remember was a fella from Cork called Brian I sat beside his sister on the Cork Dublin train once, and she was a lovely girl |
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This guy was a lovely fellow always polite and well dressed and usually first into the parade ring...
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Raymond was his first name. Yes I remember him.
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That's him alright .
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Raymond Gallagher, a very nice man of whom I have fond memories mixed with sadness at his decline. He worked for the Irish Times for many years alongside the long-serving Michael O'Farrell. He was knowledgeable and a great enthusiast. He developed a problem with alcohol and became progressively less reliable. I can't recall exactly when he lost his job with Irish Times. For many years he continued to be a regular in the press-room and in the parade-ring. Despite his lack of employment, he would duly write down extensive notes on his large-format press race card. He was not good at looking after himself. In his later years, his mind began to go. A tragic case. He was in his late 70's when he died around four or five years ago.
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Many racing folk were kind to Raymond. Tony O'Hehir, in particular, used to go out of his way to give him lifts to the races and did his best to keep him on the straight and narrow. Often, Raymond would attach himself to winning owners, in the hope of getting asked along for a celebratory drink. He had a particular fondness for the old-school Anglo-Irish owners, and would tag along with them to the bar. I also have a vivid memory of him drinking champagne by the bucketful with Robert Sangster and entourage at Phoenix Park in the 1980s. For a long time he was "a character", but it was grim, depressing and tragic in the end. He was kind to me in my youth. RIP
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Nice words alans.
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Thanks Alans that was a lovely piece , that's him to a tee R.I.P..
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The Phoenix Park was a very sociable meeting in the 80s, they used to have a jazz band wandering about. I remember seeing Oliver Reed dancing on a table at the end of the meeting and then it would be across to the nearby pub to finish the evening. I think it was called the Halfway House. Lester would often be over riding for M.V.O'Brien
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Halfway House literally 100 yards from the gate to the races,as well as the wandering jazz band you could have a brass band in the bandstand near the parade ring.
Went to my first ever flat meeting there as a young boy many moons ago,loved the place. |
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Goot thread lads, especially Aland.
I moved to near the Phoenix Park area in 1994 and the racecourse had closed. There was a nightclub called The End in The Inn in the Park It burned down before I got a chance to visit. The course got very overgrown very quickly. |
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First, thank you for the kind remarks above. The loss of Phoenix Park was, to my mind, one of the worst things to happen in Irish racing in the last 50 years. It was a magnificent track in every respect, save for the peculiar alignment of the grandstand and finishing-post (though that arguably added to its charm), and of course it was ideally located on what was back-then virtually the edge of the city but within easy reach of the city centre. I always thought it was a more uniquely "Dublin" track than Leopardstown. Even though it had a reputation for glamour, it was a place enjoyed by the everyday punter. Vincent O'Brien left an enormous legacy to Irish racing, it's a shame that the circumstances of his business at the time didn't allow for the continuation of racing in a unique and wonderful setting.
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Took my now wife of 41 years to her first ever race meeting there and lo and behold a Mick O'Toole runner set a World record for the 6 furs that day...Monroe , Montiverdi , etc , Castrol Cup And the Rank Hurdle ah the memories , and of course the one and only Raymond walking around the parade ring.. I had my first horse make its debut there and even though it finished last i felt like a winner..
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Good memories workrider! Miami Springs was the Micko horse I think, ridden by Lester, is that right?
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Wondering about the accuracy of my memory now, because I've checked the records and it was the tragically-late Tony Murray who rode Miami Springs to his biggest win at the Park, the Matt Gallagher Sprint 1979.
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Miami Springs it was , I seem to remember it was a low key Sat meeting there again that's from memory and I sometimes question mine..
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Was that the Gallagher that was going to be the saviour of the track, a builder ?
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Workrider, Matt was the father, he made a fortune as a builder and property developer in the 1960s, he died around 1974, and son Patrick inherited while still in his early-20s. Patrick, who was closely involved with CJ Haughey and Haughey's chief bagman Des Traynor, expanded the business rapidly. His acquisitions included the Phoenix Park Racecourse from the Arnott and Peard families. He was in the process of refurbishing the track when his empire collapsed in 1982. MV stepped in to save the day; he, John Magnier and Robert Sangster roped in others such as Stavros Niarchos, Danny Schwartz (a Frank Sinatra associate!) and Jean-Pierre Binet to finance the project, but the whole thing unravelled by the end of the 80s. There was an ill-fated bid to gain a Casino licence before the track was sold for building development. Gallagher later had a spell in prison in Belfast for fraud offences and died quite young (mid 50s I think).
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I was amazed they let it go especially Vincent and John who seemed to win the big race there most days, Sadlers Wells spring to mind, some of their best horses made their names there ..Dodgy place for a photo finish many a time I got it wrong, S.McGrath and George always worth a look with their sprinters .Desert Call been a fav of mine carried huge weights in handicaps..
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Was managed for years by Johnathan Irwin who went on to found the charity "Jack and Jill Foundation".
Irwin also credited with bringing the Cartier Million race here as well and also himself and MVOB instrumental in the reopening of the track in 1983. |
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He was 80 last week Punchestown . Some money back in the day when you think about it...
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Workrider, re your surprise about them letting it go. I'm sure J Magnier regretted it afterwards, Aidan's juveniles would have cleaned up there, just as Vincent's had done before. Late '80s though, things were not going at all well, the Maktoums had emerged with huge spending-power, Sangster's wealth was beginning to erode, MV was getting old, the overseas partners were not so keen, Classic Thoroughbreds plc was a disaster, the Irish economy was in tatters, there was even talk that Coolmore was under pressure from AIB, it was just before Sadler's Wells saved their bacon, Phoenix Park was collateral damage, very sad.
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I was there the day an apprentice girl jockey (Joanna Morgan for Hugh Nugent IIRC) beat Lester Piggott in a driving finish which was huge headlines back then.
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Alans yes there was many different things developing back then that few knew about, I suppose the fact it actually closed was a real shocker for Dublin racing fans even though the threat had been real for years the final nail it the coffin was still a shock for many .
Punchestown I was there that day and I was also there the day it closed , I think Christy Roache rode the last winner it was number 11 and a filly if I remember correctly .I can still feel the numbness as I waked out those gates for the last time... |
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Well remembered workrider! Last winner Wild Jester, Christy Roche for Pat Flynn, DK won the Cartier Million with Rinka Das (MJ Kinane) beating Kooynonga who turned out to be top-class for Michael Kauntze. MV had a winner on the day, so too did Michael O'Brien, John Oxx and former England footballer Francis Lee. It really was the end of an era..
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Kooyonga, that should read, won the Irish 1,000 Guineas and Coronation Stakes the following year, won the Eclipse at four, Warren O'Connor beating Cauthen on Opera House.
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Nice thread lads.
First racecourse I ever visited was the Phoenix Park as an 8 year old. My dad and 2 uncles who were racing nuts took me. Still have the memory of Lester Piggott flying in to ride one of Vincent's. Might have been Try My Best but not 100 %. A real shame that the course closed. |
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Michael Kauntze was married to Tom Dreaper's daughter Eve. Anyone know why he gave up training at a young age and what is he doing now?
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I think it was finance and lack of good horses .
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mrcombustible, Michael retired in his mid-50s, so he would be around the 80-mark now. He was, as you say, Jim Dreaper's brother-in-law. He was a former Ballydoyle assistant trainer. Basically he felt he was losing a battle against better-resourced stables, several of his leading owners were elderly, he was unhappy at getting only moderate horses from Sheikh Mohammed, Mitsuo Haga, the Japanese guy who owned Kooyonga, got out of racing in Europe after that. He and Eva went to live in Wexford, I'm not exactly sure what he did afterwards, I imagine he was reasonably well off. Incidentally, the couple's daughters Sophia and Nina both rode winners in the 1990s before he gave up.
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Reading workrider's comment now I think there's no contradiction between what he says about finance and what I say about him being reasonably well-off. Workrider is correct, but the point is that Michael was an intelligent man and understood that if he continued he would most likely end up broke.
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Thanks Alans, you are very knowledgeable on Irish Racing.
I think you may have a connection with Kells if you are who I think you are. |
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You're on fire mrcombustible!
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Maybe 'workrider' and 'alans' should combine their memories. Get all the facts 2gether and get it into print. Makings of a very interesting book. The park was so close to the city ye could throw in a chapter or two about the fashion stakes and other shennanigans. Plenty ale was downed surely. Were ladies allowed into the races in those days?
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Now now Jay, I think a certain Mr **** is who you are looking for...
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I can't believe they blocked the name that starts with a Y and ends with a S...Whatever next, Joyce will be on the banned list soon if that's the case..
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i made no contribution to this thread but i have to say its one of the best iv seen on the irish forum. also nice to see some of the old stalwarts popping in to give their piece . I didnt know Mr Gallagher but im sure he would be happy to be remembered with such fondest.
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Raymond Gallagher was his name.
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These big screens nowadays in use, they'll work even in strong daylight, it's a pity they werent out in the era of the Phoenix Park, because it would have helped the racecourse as the finish, well the view of the finishing line was peculiar.
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