Naas, Saturday 9 May 2026 — Tips and Analysis

Naas, Saturday 9 May 2026 — Tips and Analysis

Good ground at Naas today for a card that punches well above its weight. The Oaks Trial is the headline act and it features a genuine classic contender at short odds, while the six-furlong Premier Handicap is a proper puzzle with 15 runners and some intriguing form lines. Here is where the value lies.

1:33 — #Matchbooklovesracing Irish EBF Maiden (5f)

Selection: Carry The Flag (2/5 Boyle Sports)

Aidan O'Brien's juveniles at 14/37 over the last fortnight is a yard that is very much in business, and Carry The Flag looks a short-priced but solid vehicle for the stable. On debut at the Curragh over this trip on soft ground, he was beaten just 1.25 lengths into second, and the horse that finished third has since performed in Listed company. That form has a genuine look to it. Crucially, today's good ground should suit better on pedigree, and the Spotlight notes exactly that. Wayne Lordan takes the ride for a yard whose string is in fine fettle.

At 2/5 this is not a bet for the faint-hearted, but sometimes the right horse is just the right horse. If you want an alternative at bigger odds, Woodlawn Lily (11/1 Boyle Sports) is worth a small each-way play. Her debut fourth behind a subsequent Listed winner at Cork at 25/1 makes her massively unexposed, and trainer Robson De Aguiar is striking at a 4/15 clip right now. The quicker ground is the only question mark on breeding, but she is well worth the each-way risk at double-figure prices.

Woodlawn Lily Each-Way — 11/1 Boyle Sports, 2 places at 1/4 odds.

3:45 — Declan Landy Fencing Premier Handicap (6f, 15 runners)

Selection: Sovereign Cry Each-Way (6/1 Boyle Sports)

Fifteen runners, good ground, a Premier Handicap over six furlongs. This is the sort of race you need a horse with a clear form angle and something to look forward to on breeding, and Sovereign Cry ticks both boxes. Made 58,000 at the breeze-ups and showed progressive form at Dundalk through the winter. His most telling run was when he was too keen on debut and still only caught late by Gavoo, who is in this race again on the same terms. Sovereign Cry subsequently came back and beat an 82-rated filly over five furlongs in a performance that suggested he is a stronger galloper than his mark fully reflects.

Dylan Browne McMonagle, the champion jockey, takes the ride for a handicap debut. That is not a booking yards make by accident. Five months off could leave him fresh and a touch warm up front, but the Spotlight notes the expectation he will be a stronger model at three, and good ground on a flat, galloping track suits his profile. The key angle here is that Gavoo beat him when he was green and boiling over, and Gavoo's trainer has not had a winner in 14 days. The tables look ready to turn.

Ocean's Breath (7/2 Boyle Sports) is the market mover to respect. Colin Keane is a big positive and the form of his AW maiden win, where he beat a subsequent winner with plenty in hand, reads well. But 7/2 in a 15-runner handicap is short enough when he is unproven on turf and the handicapper has had a look at him on an opening mark.

Chicago Pope (9/2 Boyle Sports) won over this course and distance in October and ran well on his return at Cork. Ben Coen stays on board and he is a genuine each-way player too, but at 9/2 the value is thinner than Sovereign Cry's 6/1 with the same each-way terms on offer.

4:57 — Darley Irish EBF Naas Oaks Trial (Listed, 1m2½f, 7 runners)

Selection: Eretria (11/10 Boyle Sports)

Donnacha Aidan O'Brien is striking at 3/10 in the last fortnight, and Eretria is the most interesting horse on the Naas card. A 420,000 guineas purchase, she went to Dundalk and was beaten less than a length by Emmeleia, a stablemate who promptly went and won a Group 3. She then came out and bolted up over this trip at Leopardstown. Two runs in, one defeat, and that defeat reads as a near miss against a Group-class rival. She holds Oaks entries, and this Listed outing is not the end destination, it is a stepping stone.

The going is good, the trip suits, and the form is there. At 11/10 this is odds-on but the quality of the formbook angle justifies it. The concern is the seven-day turnaround for La Fogata, who has changed hands and now joins the same yard. She was weak at 16/1 in her final two-year-old start but the heavy ground looks a legitimate excuse, and her dam was stakes class over a mile and six furlongs. She could outrun her 18/1 price each-way.

Mixed Feelings (9/4 Boyle Sports) is the second market pick, trained by Joseph Patrick O'Brien whose yard is ticking over at 11/71, and she has only had two runs. But Eretria's form is simply more informative and more compelling at this level.

River Ara at 6/1 (Boyle Sports) is also worth a mention. A P O'Brien at 14/37 is a barn in serious form, and a course win on the profile keeps her interesting. But she has beaten just one home in five starts and today faces a step up in class.

Today's NAP