David Jennings Why Irish Writers Putting the Boot in on Cheltenham Is Outrageous After-Timing

4 Tuesday, March 17, 2020 racingpost.com THE TUESDAY COLUMN David Jennings Why Irish writers putting the boot in on Cheltenham is outrageous after-timing PATRICK McCANN (RACINGPOST.COM/PHOTOS) FTER-TIMING has coverage on live television included always been rife in social butterflies with microphones racing. Epatante was flaunting champagne, fashion, A sticking out like a sore diamond jewellery and luxury motor thumb in the Champion cars.” Hurdle. You didn’t fancy Clan Des Nobody with nice clothes or cars Obeaux, did you? Sure, he cannot goes to Croke Park then? Everyone stand Cheltenham. Shishkin was drives a banger to the Aviva to watch some price at 6-1. You want your a Six Nations match, do they? Was it head examined if you backed Benie horseracing Roy Keane was referring Des Dieux at 4-6 against a mare as to when he was on about the prawn- talented as Honeysuckle. And Envoi sandwich brigade? Allen was the bullet-proof banker, not Yes, it was very easy to type from Paisley Park or Tiger Roll you silly lot. the comfort of home after the event. It Oh yes, it is always easy after the was very easy to say Cheltenham event. There is an old story about a should not have happened at all. It very popular member of the Irish was very easy to say Irish people press room who was watching a race should not have travelled over to join at Galway one day and spent the the party. But neither Duggan nor whole race saying, “Come on, Paddy”, Conlon was there, and when the but as Paddy was passed on the long festival kicked off on Tuesday there uphill climb to the line that was was no chat of schools closing in altered ever so slightly to, “Come on, Ireland or self-isolation periods. Paul”. Of course, Paul went on to win Perhaps Cheltenham could have the race. called it quits on Friday and He would regularly get forecasts cancelled the Gold Cup, or gone and tricasts up too, although rarely behind closed doors, given the mentioned the winner or runner-up developments on Thursday, but when you were chatting about the everyone was already in the town by race beforehand. that stage and every pub would have There were any amount of Crowds at last week’s Cheltenham Festival, which has brought much opprobrium from some writers in Ireland been bursting at the seams if the gates confirmed cases of after-timing at were closed. Cheltenham last week, but none self-isolating upon my return, there is manager Mikel Arteta contracted distancing’ are coming thick and fast.” From what I have read on the issue, came close to what was written in the no way I would have travelled to coronavirus, as did Chelsea winger Actually, there was no scoffing at there is far more chance of Irish newspapers upon returning Cheltenham. I would expect that to Callum Hudson-Odoi. I have little the panicky outside world at all. We contracting coronavirus around a home last weekend. The Irish Times’ be the case for every single Irish doubt Liverpool would be just one are also panicking. Everything table in a pub than there is in the Keith Duggan was the main culprit, punter too. win, rather than two, away from the changed on Thursday. The goalposts open air of a racecourse. but Tommy Conlon was only a short We knew about Covid-19 last title had Covid-19 not affected players moved. Everything we had been told Cheltenham has been an easy head behind in the Sunday Tuesday, but we did not know or coaching staff. earlier in the week was no longer target over the last couple of days. Independent. enough. Atletico Madrid brought 3,000 valid. We were a lot wiser on The Irish public needed somebody to Duggan’s piece was jam-packed Perhaps we should have taken travelling fans to Anfield on Thursday night than we were on blame for the current set of with lazy stereotypes about this great personal responsibility and not Wednesday night. Given the spiralling Tuesday morning. unprecedented circumstances and sport of ours. travelled to Cheltenham, but there situation in Spain last week, surely those who attended the festival have This was the opening paragraph: was no guidance from either that was worse than Cheltenham N HIS Sunday Independent got it in the neck. “Damned if the horsey set – waxy of government to do so. going ahead. Racing, it seems, was a column, Conlon wrote: “If any There was no article from Duggan jacket, Range of Rover, tweedy of cap, As Rob Harris, global sports much easier target for Duggan and industry would be capable of last Saturday week telling every Irish jaunty of stride, always up for a stiff correspondent for the Associated Conlon. saying, ‘Let them eat cake’, it is person to stay away from one, never afraid of a sneaky fag and I Cheltenham, nor did Conlon advise Press, said on Sky Sports’ Sunday Duggan continued in his Times the upstairs-downstairs always slightly baffled by the fact that Supplement: “It’s been a week like no piece: “When you’ve been moving demesne of money and manure. Like against the trip in his penultimate the entire world is not swooning over other. We couldn’t have imagined at with the crowd in Cheltenham for the children who couldn’t bear to have Sunday Independent column. It is this filly or that four-year-old; the start of the week a position where past few days, it must be easy to feel Christmas cancelled, they insisted on always easy after the event. damned if the festival of festivals, that the Premier League would be devil-may-care and fearless and to having their pleasure at all costs, And, chaps, if you think everyone never-sunny, glorious corner of completely off, but the situation has scoff at the panicky outside world. except that these children are with a fondness for horseracing wears England where the atmosphere is escalated through the week.” How much harm can a bit of a flu do? supposed to be adults. waxy jackets, drives Range Rovers and always 1986 and Dawn Run cantering The Premier League was postponed Have a drink! Live! It’s three deep at “They made a show of themselves drinks champagne why don’t you into history while beetroot-faced men for three weeks because Arsenal the bar and the jokes about ‘social at this dog and pony show. The come with me to Closutton some wet hurl trilbys and fedoras in the air and Wednesday morning in January at the women exude a Jackie Collins around 7am? glam and where there’s always time Dominance runs deeper than the scoreline This “beetroot-faced man” wishes for one more glass of bubbly . he had not gone to Cheltenham last damned if this timeless paradise of THE score was 17-10 to Ireland last runner in the feature race on day two is that they were a neck away from a week so he could see his wife a few horse-iness is going to be thrown off week, but perhaps a more informative either following the late withdrawal of clean sweep of the championship weeks before she gives birth. course by some poxy little global scoreline is 8-2. Chacun Pour Soi due to a foot races. Had Santini reeled in Al Boum This child who “could not bear to pandemic.” Irish-trained horses were abscess. Photo and joined Epatante, have Christmas cancelled” wishes the Poxy little global pandemic? Is that responsible for the first three in eight Willie Mullins finishing the festival Politologue and Lisnagar Oscar as British government had adopted a what all horseracing fans believe thye races last week – the Mares’ Hurdle, as leading trainer was perhaps the championship race winners, it would different approach and postponed coronavirus to be? Ballymore, Champion Bumper, Marsh most remarkable thing of all. He was have been the first time since 2012 large gatherings last week. I did not go home when I landed at Novices’ Chase, Pertemps Final, 0-13 before the Champion Bumper the four main prizes had stayed at This “devil-may-care and fearless” Dublin Airport on Saturday morning. County Hurdle, Albert Bartlett and and had four favourites stuffed by that home. journalist who “made a show of I felt great, had no temperature and Grand Annual. That is almost 29 per stage, two at odds-on. He went 7-15 Rock On Ruby, Finian’s Rainbow, himself at this dog and pony show” no cough but I did not go home. cent of the races. for the remainder of the meeting. Big Buck’s and Synchronised were the wishes he had the after-the-event My wife is 36 weeks pregnant with The home team sent out the first What is worrying for the hosts is quartet in question eight years ago, wisdom of Conlon and Duggan ahead our first child and I was petrified three in only two of the 28 races both Mullins and Gordon Elliott, who but none managed to repeat the feat of the event and realised the extent of about passing anything on to her. If I (seven per cent) – the Brown Advisory both trained seven winners, had six 12 months later. That is yet another what lay ahead knew early last week what I know & Merriebelle Stable Plate and the different winning owners each. reminder of how good Al Boum Photo You see, that is the beauty of now, that there was any prospect of Champion Chase.

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