Feane Bids To Bolster Big-Race Record With ‘Well-Handicapped’ Runner On Irish Oaks Weekend

[Wandering Eyes]

A week after sending out stable star Vera's Secret to win her second Group 3, John Feane, widely regarded as one of the shrewdest handlers in Ireland, is eyeing another major payday in the Scurry Handicap at the Curragh with Greek Flower, a filly the trainer describes as being “seriously well-handicapped.”

And there would be few more deserving winners on Irish Oaks Weekend. Greek Flower flashed home to fill the runner-up spot in the Rockingham as well as the Scurry last season. Luck was not on her side, either, when she was beaten just over four lengths in the Rockingham last month and Feane will be bidding to maintain his excellent record in sending out winners at some of Ireland's biggest meetings with the six-year-old daughter of Australia on Saturday.

Not one for courting publicity, the Curragh-based trainer with no more than 24 horses at any given time prefers to let them do the talking. Crucially, wins achieved on Irish Champions Weekend as well as at the Guineas and Derby meetings in the past 12 months alone say more about the man than he ever will.

“We went pot-hunting with Greek Flower last year and she was second in the Rockingham and second in the Scurry,” Feane said. “She flew home for second in both of those races and I can remember reading that there was only one horse all year who covered the final two furlongs quicker and that was Believing. She's a hard filly to win with but she won over €50,000 in prize-money last year and wasn't far off bagging a big one. Hopefully her day might come this weekend.”

Feane added, “She was beaten just over four lengths in the Rockingham last time and, basically, things didn't work out for her on the day. She's 3lb out of the handicap but, if Big Gossey comes out, the weights will go up and she'd appear well-in. If they go quick, and the pace doesn't hold up, she could fly home and be in the mix for good prize-money. She could be running around in lesser races and have a better chance of winning but I'd rather go where the prize-money is. I think she's seriously well-handicapped.”

Vera's Secret is very much Feane's flag-bearer. She has won four of her 10 starts, with the latest of those wins achieved in last week's Group 3 Brownstown Stakes at Leopardstown. A return to that course and distance on Irish Champions Weekend could be in store for the mare with Feane revealing that he is eyeing an audacious tilt at the Group 1 Matron Stakes next. 

He said, “She's had just three runs this year and has won two Group 3s and run well in a Group 2. Leopardstown is a track that suits her and she's improving as well. She's in the Matron Stakes and is usually best fresh so we're thinking of aiming her towards that. Obviously, Group 1 races are hard to win and she'll need to step forward but she deserves to take her chance.”

He added, “We're not afraid to go where the prize-money is and had winners last year on Derby Weekend, Guineas Weekend and Irish Champions Weekend. We only keep about 20 horses in training so we need to be targeting the bigger meetings. We're just targeting prize-money these days and, with the fillies, the ultimate aim is to gain black-type. We're lucky to train for a lot of owner-breeders so that's another hugely enjoyable aspect of the business as well.”

Ballyhimikin Stud boss James Hanly is one such owner-breeder who has enlisted the services of Feane. In fact, not long after Ombudsman landed the Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot, the breeder heaped praise on Feane for calling it right from the start about the Group 1-producing Syndicate. That daughter of Dansili reached a modest rating of 78 with her wins coming in handicaps at Ffos Las and Southwell but Hanly revealed that Feane was adamant that the filly deserved her place in the paddocks and how right he was.

More recently, the distinctive light blue and red silks of Ballyhimikin Stud were carried to victory by impressive maiden scorer Charasson (Kodiac) at the Curragh on Derby Weekend and Feane revealed that black-type races await that filly.

He said, “Charasson will run in the Sweet Mimosa Stakes at Naas next week and, Fregada (Kodiac) [similar ownership], who is another very good filly, has some big targets coming up as well. She's very talented and we're looking forward to her. The market has become so strong at the breeding stock sales that many owner-breeders have decided to go out and make their own stock by putting them in training. That's obviously fantastic for me because they have patience and let me train them to the best of their ability. These are the horses that you want to be training.”

There was a time when Feane was associated with orchestrating and executing eye-watering gambles. Not anymore. That aspect of the business has been dead and buried for a number of years now for the simple fact it has become too difficult for connections to get bets on. But Feane has not stood still. After seeing the wood from the trees, he has refined his business model and, along with training for a number of renowned owner-breeders along with long-standing supporters who continue to keep fun handicappers on the go, he has traded a number of horses from Irish maidens in recent years.

He said, “It's sad when you see some top trainers finishing up in Ireland. We train for a few owner-breeders, then we have a few handicappers there and a few that might run well in a maiden and be traded on. We run it as a business. But the gambling side of things is finished. I haven't been betting in the past two or three years because there's no such thing anymore. There are no accounts, everything is closed off and owners can't even get bets on. The real trick here is to train horses to run well in maidens and sell on to other jurisdictions. Now, the biggest gamble you can land is selling horses out of maidens.”

Feane added, “Where are the best jurisdictions for owning and training horses? I would say Japan, Hong Kong and France. And what do those places all have in common? They are Tote monopolies. If Ireland was a Tote monopoly, where would we be?”

Along with Scurry Handicap contender Greek Flower, Feane will be represented at his local track on Oaks Weekend by Havana Grey newcomer Shadow Of The Moon in a seven-furlong maiden and stable stalwart Indigo Five (Fast Company) in the Group 3 Meadow Court Stakes. All three of Feane's runners “will run well,” according to the trainer, who has encouraged people to start getting behind the Curragh.

He said, “My partner Susan and I bought a yard on the Curragh together last year and things are going great. We've plenty of staff, the horses are running well and we're happy. We have a couple of new owners this year but I don't really advertise or go around with my chest out. I like doing my own thing to a degree. But I'm happy with what I'm doing and we do the best with what we have.”

Feane added, “The Curragh is getting a lot of criticism lately but I think they are putting on a good show. Brian Kavanagh is doing a good job. If we had a think tank and everybody put their thoughts down on paper, I think we'd be far better off rather than just criticising people. The Curragh is an easy target because of all the money that was spent on it but, if we can't be positive about it, who else will?”

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