Gowran Park — Friday 12 June 2026

Gowran Park — Friday 12 June 2026

Soft ground at Gowran Park under a partly sunny sky sets the stage for a Friday evening card that offers a handful of genuinely interesting puzzles. The going will sort out the fields quickly, so horses that have previously shown a liking for cut underfoot get a significant boost today. Three races stand out for punters looking for angles beyond the obvious.

4:15 — Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden (7f)

Selection: Folsom Blues (4/6 Boyle Sports, 8/11 Betfred)

Joseph Patrick O’Brien’s yard has been in excellent nick, showing a 10/60 strike rate over the last fortnight with plenty of winners flowing through. Folsom Blues ran third on debut, which is a decent enough starting point for a two-year-old, and Dylan Browne McMonagle rides. The market makes him a short-priced favourite and for once the market is hard to argue with. A debut third suggests he learned plenty and the step forward should come here.

The bigger interest at a price is King’s Fury at 5/1 (Boyle Sports), also from the Joseph Patrick O’Brien yard. Two runners from the same powerful stable in a maiden of this nature is worth noting. Ronan Whelan on Premier View (12/1 Boyle Sports) for Henry De Bromhead, a yard that has been particularly sharp lately with an 11/42 two-week strike rate, is a saver worth keeping onside in a race where plenty are unknown quantities.

Folsom Blues is the straightforward call, but if you want to take a swing at something bigger, Premier View each-way at 12s has claims given the De Bromhead form.

5:23 — Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Handicap (7f)

Selection: Greydreambeliever (11/4 Boyle Sports, Betfred, LiveScore Bet)

This fillies’ handicap over seven furlongs on soft ground is the most competitive puzzle on the card. Joseph Patrick O’Brien saddles Greydreambeliever, who gets Dylan Browne McMonagle in the plate. The filly’s form reads 33-226, meaning she has been knocking consistently at the door without getting her head in front. A horse that posts figures like those is a horse on a workable mark, and with McMonagle aboard and the O’Brien yard in solid form (17/85 over the last two weeks), this is the logical choice at a fair 11/4.

Soft ground should suit, the trip looks right, and the combination of a live yard and a top jockey gives confidence. At just under 3/1 it is not a steal, but it is a sensible favourite to side with.

Luna Mia Each-Way at 9/2 (Boyle Sports, Betfred) from the M D O’Callaghan yard (2/8 last 14 days) is the each-way play. Her form 2182-4 shows a consistent filly who has won at this level and hit the frame regularly. The stable is in decent nick and at 9/2 in a nine-runner handicap she is overpriced for a placed return. Three places at 1/5 odds makes the each-way case compelling.

Pink Oxalis Each-Way at 8/1 (Boyle Sports, Betfred) is the longer-range punt. The form 7-0035 shows she has been creeping forward and on a big weight pull here, with a three-pound claimer in the saddle, she could outrun that price in a competitive but beatable field.

7:43 — Packages At www.gowranpark.ie Race (1m1½f)

Selection: Iron Fist (9/2 Boyle Sports, Betfred, 4/1 LiveScore Bet)

This is a five-runner affair dominated on paper by the odds-on Trustyourinstinct at 1/3, trained by Joseph Patrick O’Brien with McMonagle up. The form 176-72 is not the stuff of certainties and at 1/3 you are taking on significant risk for minimal reward. The bookmakers are backing him to brush these aside, and maybe he does, but value lies elsewhere.

Iron Fist from the Jessica Harrington yard (4/35 over 14 days, a yard that delivers consistently) has form reading 61-023 and gets the step up to just over a mile and a furlong on ground that should not inconvenience him. Nathan Crosse rides. The Harrington yard operates at a reliable clip and this horse has shown enough to suggest he is competitive at this level. At 4/1 with LiveScore Bet he looks the most attractive price on the card for those wanting to oppose the short-priced favourite.

In a five-runner race, Leopold The First at 20/1 with his two-placed finishes is a curiosity, but Andrew Lee’s stable has had only one run in the last fortnight so it is hard to build a case with confidence.

Today’s NAP

Greydreambeliever — Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Handicap (5:23, Gowran Park)
Odds: 11/4 — Boyle Sports (others: 11/4 Betfred, 11/4 LiveScore Bet)

Consistent form figures, a top jockey in Dylan Browne McMonagle, and Joseph Patrick O’Brien firing at 17/85 over the last fortnight all point the same way. A filly that has been placed multiple times at this level on a mark she can exploit, on soft ground that should not be a problem over seven furlongs at Gowran. The 11/4 represents fair value in a nine-runner handicap where the opposition is flattered by their current prices.