Anyone remember the Irish Times Racing Journo called Gallagher

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

This guy was a lovely fellow always polite and well dressed and usually first into the parade ring...

Raymond was his first name. Yes I remember him.

That's him alright .

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.

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

Nice words alans.

Thanks Alans that was a lovely piece , that's him to a tee R.I.P..

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

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.

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.

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.

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..

Good memories workrider! Miami Springs was the Micko horse I think, ridden by Lester, is that right?

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.

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..

Was that the Gallagher that was going to be the saviour of the track, a builder ?

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).

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..

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.

He was 80 last week Punchestown . Some money back in the day when you think about it...

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.

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.

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...

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..

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.

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.

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?

I think it was finance and lack of good horses .

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.

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.

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.

You're on fire mrcombustible!

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?

Now now Jay, I think a certain Mr **** is who you are looking for...

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..

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.

Raymond Gallagher was his name.

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.

Cmom the Town it was such a funny angle I doubt even a big screen would have got it right....I can still see and hear Sonny Molloy with his prices up for doubles . Angel Cardaro rode there one day and I remember going down to the rails to watch him and boy was he some sight , right up the neck of the horse. Even though CASH was riding for Vincent , Angel was something special...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmXEAfa8-2A

Irish Champion Stakes 1986, John Reid winning on Park Express (among other things the dam of New Approach). Cordero rode Triptych into third, the next year she came back and won the race, ridden this time by Tony Cruz

Paul Kimmage has another meet-up with the Coolcullen maestro JB on todays sindo. Raymond Smith another great journalist of past times, any memories?. Didn't know that Cash Asmussen rode around the Phoenix Park. Was there a specialist jockey for the PP? as like today we have Ascot Frankie!. It was such a unique track. Maybe C Roche or Johnny Roe great champions or the runaway Buster Parnell!! Any thoughts lads/ they say there is a book in every one well i'm certain there's a few books in workrider.  Is 'alans' already in print?

Christy rode the park well Jay, Cash on the other hand was poor there and the critics were loud in their jeering , critics been punters , no journo would dare!. Buster rode a horse called bunkered who was one of the best named horses of all time . The Tudor type grandstand was something else , I remember one day been in the owners bar as I had a runner and meeting my boss , his words to me were, I think I'm paying you to much...

Bunkered by Entanglement out of Golf Ball.
I think trained by Bertie Kerr

Hope he was paying you plenty and looking after your pension too.
Bunkered and Buster !!!! well its brilliant, but ironic too with the manner of the exit/escape. Bertie Kerr was very good I would put him in the same basket as Con Collins, sharp shrewd operator.

Bertie Kerr, an outstanding footballer with Bohemians in his youth, had an astonishing record as a bloodstock agent, his brother Kevin was a leading trainer, and his nephew Bert also trained successfully, but has been better known as an agent and managing director of family firm Kerr & Co, the first truly Irish bloodstock agency and still going 100 years later.

Well said 'alans' you are a fountain of knowledge. All very interesting.

Bertie had many a good sprinter that ran in the Park...

Workrider would have a better idea of this than me, but I would guess Phoenix Park was fairly straightforward from a rider's point of view, it was a level track, very fair, a manicured racing surface, well maintained under the direction of Teddy Tighe, a first-rate racecourse manager and a lovely man. Teddy and his ground staff took great pride in the appearance of the place.

Alans , never knew Bertie played for Bohs , as a Rovers fan he was gone down in my estimation...

When will people be let back racing?hopefully all the on course bookies will be back and give a bit of value.Would be nice to be heading to Ballinrobe tomorrow evening.

Yes workrider, just to be clear (because it can get confusing with Bertie/Bert) this was the original Bertie, Bohs and Ireland, he played, I think, on the very first League of Ireland team, and was certainly a member of the first Ireland team who competed at the Paris Olympics in 1924. Younger brother Kevin, a Classic-winning trainer, also played for Bohs. A great Dublin sporting family.

Cloone I got a ticket for the Curragh on Sat so looking forward to that...

Alans that Kerr family are dropping like bricks as far as I'm concerned ... .Rovers and Bohs tomorrow night in Dalymount..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkhIdEygm_I    a nice vid of Saddlers Wells including his win in the IRISH Champions STAKE IN Phoenix park. The rest is history

Watched it film did a lot of overlapping which i think took away from it Frank, anyway a super horse..

Recognised his face  from being in the ring back in the day when I saw his face here,I just never knew who he was or that he was a Journalist as I thought he worked for HRI or something similar.

Punchestown , I walked the track there today , looks brilliant all the fences took down and stacked away for next season...

Workrider,believe it or not I drove by the old gates into Phoenix Park racecourse about 5 hours ago (they are nearly facing Blackhorse Ave),the walls are still there in that area as well  and the bit of  circular grass where the horses used to run into after the finishing line that looped around the back of the course is still there

Amazing , I must pop up and have a look myself soon..

A marvellous thread. I have the most wonderful memories of the Park from my Dad bringing me there with his pals in the early seventies, meeting up in the Half Way beforehand, cycling/walking there myself in mid 70's. The Park was such a wonderful race track, combing 4 different stands catering to different groups although the track finish was impossible to judge, albeit Terry Rogers et al were always prepared to make a market on the photo. It had a wonderful atmosphere given it always attracted a crowd but the old parade ring/winners enclosure, the band stand over the tote building, the pre parade ring had such wonderful charm amongst the trees. Darkie Prendergast and the flying five furlongs, Cloonlara, Ballad Rock, Godetia, Sir Hugh Nugent, Bertie Kerr, Seamus McGrath, Johnnie Roe, Buster Parnell, a young Christy & David O'Brien, Vincent, Lester, Cash (you woudnt ride Kathy Barry per one racecourse character) Classic Thoroughbreds, Homer Scott later years with those bumper winners with Liam Marks. Partricks days opening day of the Flat season. Mick o'Toole, Joanna beating Lestwe by the narrowest margin. Finally Lester in all his might on Commance Run. Of all the racetracks the Park would be dearest to me and its demise was a sad indictment on those who mismanage the sport here

Brilliant piece Observeriri ...Cloonlara and Ballad Rock another McGrath rocket , ah the memories...

Regarding the McGrath stable, Greg Magee was assistant trainer in the eighties, tall ginger guy. Anyone know where he moved to after Seamus Mcgrath stopped training?  His brother Colm worked in the shipping department of the BBA Ireland before moving to SIS when they started in the mid 80s

Standing in the Tote Q for payout after the race and the anticipation of the Tote dividends, hand written with chalk on tiny chalkboards.....

Paul Jarman,John Corr,Annacloy,Ray Carroll,J Oxx senior,a very young JP Murtagh in the Agha silks,Seamus McGrath,green,red seams and cap,Mike Murphy disguised doing his wind up TV show

punchestown, a few interesting names from those days! I guess Paul Jarman was one of the last Australians here during that period (Ron Quinton and Wayne Harris a good bit later obviously. Garnie Bougoure, Pat Glennon (subsequently the great Sea Bird's jockey), Bill Williamson and Des Lake I suppose the best of them. And of course MV brought Neville Sellwood over to ride Larkspur in the Derby, 1962. Tragically Sellwood was killed in a fall in France later that year. I remember John Corr well (English-born I think) from the time he rode for Stuart Murless in the 1970s, he won a National Stakes on Pampapaul. Rode for Seamus McGrath and/or Micko I think.

Was Greg Magee a Son of Don Magee assistant Manager of the INS....

Just to clarify don't think Lake was the best of them, but that group of four were superior to others. My father and grandfather were great Garnie fans, and along with Lester and Scobie he was one of the first jockeys whose name I knew as a very small child.

alans,A distinct memory for me would be Rod Quinton riding in the old Sheik Mo colours for John Oxx top weights in handicaps at the Park also those White with sideways green diamond for Hugh Nugent or the Bertram Firestone colours with a young MJK in full cry bearing down on the winning post.


Clutching your small yellow Tote ticket with the little needle holes telling you race number and your horse number.

very good Punchestown, when I was a very little person I used to wander around picking up discarded tote-tickets and checking the race and horse numbers for winners. I found a couple in my time. In pre-decimal days. if my memory is correct, yellow a half-crown (2s6d), green 5 shillings, pink 1 pound. After decimal they became 20p, 50p and £1, so the minimum bet was increased, 20p being the equivalent of 4 shillings. My first understanding of the concept of inflation!

Some nice footage of last couple of Heinz 57 races on you tube if anyone interested.

I remember Rod alright Punchestown another Aussie . Many a car stopped on the Ashbourne Rd to watch the races, the thing was the nearer you stood to the rails you couldn't tell what was in front and were dependent on the comm..

WR no relation to Don Magee

Okay .

Have great memories of the Park in the early/ mid sixties .  I was working/living in Dublin, and seldom missed a Park meeting .  Not the best track in the country horse wise , but made up for that in atmosphere . Garda band there often , added a lot to the atmosphere .

My wife ( girl friend then) used to travel down to any Saturday meeting then with the late Sean Graham ( who was not allowed a licence in the south and had to bet under the name of a southern bookie friend  , Peter Fitzimmons) .

Great to recall all the great horses and Jockeys who graced the Park . An uncle of mine knew Bertie Kerr well , and that yielded an occasional well priced winner . George McGrath rode most of those Kerr winners as I recall .

The non Irish jockeys were often in the limelight , some for good reasons , and a few did not distinguish themselves for whatever reason .

Garnie Bougoure , Ron Hutchinson , Bill Williamson , the inevitable brilliant Lester , were better than most of the Irish jockeys at that stage , but Johnnie Roe and Liam Ward upped the game for the locals , George McGrath also pulling his weight . All change these days , overall we have the best in the world combining flat and NH.

Losing the Park and Baldoyle left a big hole in the Metropolitan racing scene , although Leopardstown is among the best tracks in the world and a joy to visit .

The then bookies contributed a lot to racing back then , lots of characters about .  Cannot say the same for current crop who seem to spend most of their time consulting computer screens .

Never understood why the Park was allowed to wither and die , it was a national institution, and maybe should have had a preservation order on it . Never saw anything but happy people at the races in the Park , sad demise in national terms .

My lasting memory of the Park was watching the epic Grundy / Bustino King George there  on a blistering hot July  Saturday meeting  , the racing world stopped for a short never to be forgotten moment that day .

Kelly I often had a bet with Peter , many a bookie wondered were he got the readies from,I think you provided the answer. I know his Son he sold the pitches said it wasn't worth his while. One of the first to have a lady stand up and call the odds, I think it was his daughter . Peter was a lovely man and always had a smile on his face...

workrider , eventually Sean got a licence in his own name , probably around the start of the seventies from memory .

Unless i am mistaken I think I saw Peter Fitzimmons about 5 years ago at Leopardstown , betting .

I also saw Billy Savage there betting , he used to travel with Sean back in the sixties . Sean and he were cousins .

Some nice memories in your post yesterday Kelly echoing how a good few of us feel about the Park.

My lasting memory was a horse called Say Cheese for Mick O'Toole winning the opener the first time I attended.

Kelly it must have been his Son you saw I think he's dead longer than that sadly...

peter passed the 13 th of nov 2016.workrider an absolute gentleman to his fingertips. i remember chatting him in punchestown around 2014, he told me that the doctors had given him till the previous christmas. he defied them . i remember his brother pat. a very colourful thetrical bookmaker with gold sovereign rings and very well turned out. i think his nickname was the count. the ring was full of colourful charachters. a more gentle time

Yes he was Ambush, always had a smile and never moaned when you took a few quid off him..R.I.P.

I must have seen him not long before he died .  Definitely him I saw , at leopardstown , not sure how long ago it was .

Great read lads thankyou.

Hadn't read this thread but I must say some information, great reading. I often attended Phoenix Park in the 70s. Poor enough viewing if I recall but very convenient to the city. One point alans(28th June) John Corr was from Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. I believe his family had a shop there. I often wondered what happened to him.

no-won-sun, thanks for that correction re John Corr. Thought he was English-born, perhaps because he rode for Jack Ormston at one stage. I know he won on Ormston's great old warrior Le Garcon D'Or, winner of 30-something races. Michael Clower (ex Sporting Life/Racing Post journalist) knew John from a spell when he rode in Kenya in the 70s, (that's where MC was based before coming to Ireland) I think I remember the pair meeting at Leopardstown around 15 years ago, and that John was on a visit at that stage, so I assume he loved abroad

I've just looked up Le Garcon D'Or, what a horse, he won at least once every single season between 1960 and 1972. 34 races in all. Jack Ormston was a former champion speedway rider, trained in Yorkshire, gambling yard, died 2007, aged 97

I remember waiting for him for a shilling win double and he duly obliged, a fortune to a young lad like myself in those days , reading the Independent the next day a lovely photo of him winning at one of the Scottish tracks possibly Hamilton over 5 furs, he was the Mr Dependable of horses and was about 10 or 11 then. R.I.P. Le Garcon D'dor..

Cracking thread all. Mostly all before my time but still a fascinating read.

Alans - Your mention of Le Garcon D'Or and its 34 wins has made me wonder about Irish records pertaining to career wins. Which horse holds the record, be it flat, NH, or indeed a combination of both?

We used to have several threads of this quality on the go at the one time a few years ago along with the latest information/tips for the days meeting about to happen from people who knew their onions from their scallions.


What a waste of resources.

Hello monarch, very interesting question and surprising there is so little detail available generally

As is typically the case, my knowledge of these things is indebted to the late Tony Sweeney, Ireland's foremost turf historian

He referred to a horse called The Admiral, winner of 53 races between 1889 and 1899, 47 of them over jumps.

Nancy Till won 40 steeplechases between 1862 and 1867

The 1796-foaled Jerry-Sneak won 48 races. He won 15 in 1803 alone.

Modern-day records I'm not so sure of, but suggest Limestone Lad as a possible candidate 35 wins (29 hurdles, 4 chases, 2 bumper) from 65 races

One other thing. British turf historian John Randall has detailed that the longest winning streak in Irish racing was compiled by Filch, who won 20 consecutive races 1778-80, including two Jockey Club Purses and two King's Plates at the Curragh.

Alans - Many thanks for your prompt and informed reply. Jerry-Sneak's 15 wins in a calendar year is quite remarkable.

I suspect you are on the money regards Limestone Lad being the modern-day record holder. A record that will last for some time I would imagine, considering how horses are campaigned now. What a hardy horse Limestone was. His 1999 stats of 15 runs with 10 victories is testament to that.

Again, many thanks for the reply. You have saved me hours of Googling !!

No problem monarch, actually Tony Sweeney and old Irish Racing Calendars beat google where Irish racing history of 18th/19th century is concerned!

Great thread