Horse Racing Tips: Mick Fitzgerald's Best Galway Plate Day Picks

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01 August 2023

Horse Racing Tips: Mick Fitzgerald's Best Galway Plate Day Picks

Mick Fitzgerald’s Horse Racing Tips

17:10 – Genuine Article
17:40 – Winter Fog
18:10 – Youcrackmeup
18:40 – Ciel De Neige(each-way)
19:15 – A Law Of Her Own
19:50 – Tag Man
20:20 – Shanwalla(each-way)

*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.

Ground conditions will play a huge part in how races play out at Ballybrit this week with soft ground the likely order of the day. Trying to find the right contenders that handle the ground is very important and hoperfully they can then get into contention.

Dermot Weld loves a Galway winner and Genuine Article can kick Wednesday off for Weld supporters. The 7lb claimer Connor Stone-Walsh is booked to ride and he has been picking up some good rides from a variety of trainers. His claim will help reduce the weight on this Killarney maiden winner who handled soft ground as a two-year-old. He looks win material in the opener.

This is an amateur riders’ maiden and Winter Fog represents the top team of Willie and Patrick Mullins. Winter Fog is rated 148 over hurdles so has to be a player in a contest like this.

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This progressive three-year-old ran out a four-length winner for trainer Jessie Harrington and jockey Shane Foley on Monday night. She’ll carry a penalty for that win but with no concerns about the ground, she has to be of interest again.

The Galway Plate is the feature race of the night and Willie Mullins’ runner Ciel de Neige is proven on soft ground. The recetn form figures are not ideal, but the jockey, Mark Walsh is in red-hot form. This son of Authorised loves soft ground and is proven on slow ground.

He didn’t seem to enjoy the Aintree Grand National fences but was still in with a chance when unseating his rider two out. Gabby’s Cross won the Galway Blazers Handicap over this trip last year and last year and has to be respected as does emphatic Punchestown winner Kilcruit with Paul Townend on board for Team Mullins.

Sam Ewing is booked to ride for Peter Fahy on A LAW OF HER OWN and this daughter of Lawman is attractively handicapped. After three runs in maiden and then Listed hurdles, her run behind Liberty Dance at Thurles gave an idea of her capabilities. Off an opening handicap mark of 116 this looks a really good starting point for her handicap career.

Owner Roger Brookhouse won the Galway Blazers with Gabby’s Crosslast year and loves a winner at this meeting. Tag Man who was a winner at the Punchestown festival last year when winning a bumper. He has kept good company but has not managed to win his maiden hurdle yet so this looks a really good opportunity for him to do that now.

A winner at this Festival in 2021, PJ Gilligan’s runner is still well handicapped and had a good comeback run at Tipperary when second to Watch the Weather over 2m 4f . With the expected improvement from that run, the Gilligan family could be in the winner’s enclosure again at their local track.