Final day of Galway hit with 44 non-runners after going turns soft

The last day of action from the Galway festival has been hit with 44 runners being taken out of their respective races.

A total of 122 runners were declared for action but over a third of them have been declared non-runners, with 39 of the 44 non-runners due to the change in the going.

The going on the Flat is soft, soft to heavy in places, having been good to yielding when final declarations were made on Friday. The jumps track is soft, having been good two days ago.

The rain started to fall at 4pm on Friday and continued during racing on Saturday. Although a dry day is forecast on Sunday, clerk of the course Lorcan Wyer reported the track to have taken 25mm of rain in total, when just 4mm had been predicted.

The feature Irish Stallion Farms EBF "Ahonoora" Handicap (4.10) remains at a field of 13, but there have been 15 non-runners in the opening 2m½f handicap hurdle (2.00), and a further eight in the 3m½f handicap hurdle (2.30).

Well-backed duo

Current Option remains favourite for the Ahonoora Handicap, but there has been support for two of the owner's other runners in the race.

Dooley Thoroughbreds field four runners, headed by Current Option, who bids for a hat-trick in the race, but Sirjack Thomas and Saltonstall have been both shortened in the market.

Sirjack Thomas was a general 14-1 yesterday evening but is now a best-priced 8-1, with punters hoping the well-handicapped seven-year-old can bounce back from a below-par run earlier in the week.

Saltonstall, who endured a nightmare passage in the same race contested by Sirjack Thomas on Tuesday, has shortened to a general 13-2 (from 9-1).

Casanova, the owners final runner in the race, is also prominent in the market at 7-1. All four Dooley-owned runners are trained by Ado McGuinness, who launches a seven-strong assault on the race.

Britain is represented in the race by the David and Nicola Barron-trained On A Session, who has placed in this race for the last three years and warmed up for a fourth bid by snapping a long-standing losing sequence at Musselburgh in June.

Five of the last ten renewals have gone the way of British challengers, including four consecutive wins by Brian Ellison with Baraweez (2014, 2015) and Dream Walker (2016, 2017).

With three non-runners, all of the reserves have claimed a spot in the race, including the well-fancied No More Porter, who is second-favourite.

Updated at 1.25pm

Galway card and betting

Read more:

Unlucky 2021 faller Robinnia out to end festival on high note for Willie Mullins

Ado McGuinness mob-handed again as Current Option chases Ahonoora hat-trick

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