Group 1 winner Romantic Proposal returns with impressive Listed victory

Monday: Naas

Having broken her Group 1 duck in last September's Flying Five, a return to the top table could be on the cards for Romantic Proposal, who could prove to be better than ever at the age of six if she can reproduce the quality she showed on her seasonal bow in the Listed Woodlands Stakes.

The Eddie Lynam-trained mare was tanking for every yard under Chris Hayes as a searching pace was set by the sole three-year-old in the field, Geocentric, but the winner quickened past her impressively inside the final half-furlong to score by an easy three-parts-of-a-length. Favourite and last year's winner Mooneista was another length away in third.

Lynam said: "I had not done a lot with her. Chris stated the bleedin' obvious coming in when he said that she's quick! She was fine on that ground and the dream is alive."

He added: "I knew she was in great form but I thought she might need it. She had a great winter this year, she came in looking brilliant and hasn't missed a beat. She's in the Greenlands Stakes and the Duke of York Stakes over six furlongs next month and we will decide then what race we go for at Royal Ascot."

Deneuve promises much

Aidan O'Brien is hopeful that Deneuve can improve enough to be a contender for Royal Ascot after the daughter of No Nay Never registered a narrow victory on debut in the opening fillies' juvenile maiden.

Deneuve showed plenty of greenness under Ryan Moore and appeared as though she was going to struggle to peg back the much sharper outsider Comanche Country, but she gradually got there and won on the nod.

O'Brien said: "We weren't sure whether she was ready to run or not so we let her take her chance. It was a lovely run and here could be any improvement in her. We will give her a little break now and go for a winner's race before we decide where to go with her. She could turn into anything, she has a lot of natural ability and Ryan said she will have learned a lot from this."

Aidan O'Brien: landed a treble at Naas on Monday evening

Good night for Ballydoyle

O'Brien and Moore went on to complete a treble on the evening, the most impressive of which was the inexperienced Ivy League in the valuable mile handicap.

Despite drifting significantly right inside the last furlong, the Galileo colt had far too much for his rivals, beating Fiach McHugh by three-and-a-quarter lengths while value for a bit more.

O'Brien said: "He did that nicely. He's a big strong colt and he's very babyish still, he will progress and is probably not too bad. I don't think he'll have any problem stepping into stakes company. He is not short of pace. He would love horses in front of him and a race like the Jersey Stakes could be a good option for him."

The other leg of the treble came when Emily Dickinson got up on the line to land the 1m2f fillies' maiden.

Results, replays and analysis

Follow your favourites with our amazing Horse Tracker feature. Add up to 1,000 horses to your stable, filter them and keep up to date with automatic email alerts. Join Members' Club Ultimate now and never miss a winner again!