Dual Champion Hurdle winner Honeysuckle has given birth to her first foal, a filly by Walk In The Park.

The news was announced on social media by Peter Molony, racing manager to Honeysuckle’s owner, Kenny Alexander, who said: “It’s a girl! Honeysuckle has foaled a bay filly by @coolmorestud @grangestud Walk In The Park at 11:30 last night!! Mother & daughter reportedly doing well.”

Honeysuckle was trained expertly by Henry de Bromhead to win 17 of her 19 races including the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham in 2021 and 2022.

She met with the only defeats of her career at the beginning of the 2022-23 in the Hatton’s Grace and Irish Champion Hurdle but went out in a blaze of glory when winning the Mares’ Hurdle last March.
Now 10, Honeysuckle is slated to visit Blue Bresil for her next covering, the sire of Constitution Hill.

Jade De Grugy could put her Cheltenham Festival aspirations to the test at Fairyhouse later this month following an impressive debut for Willie Mullins at Leopardstown.

The five-year-old was snapped up for €230,000 after winning at Saint-Brieuc in late 2022, and after a 452-day absence finally made her first start for her Closutton training team and new owner Kenny Alexander over the festive period.

Sent off the 5-4 favourite in the hands of Paul Townend for a two-and-a-half-mile maiden hurdle, Jade De Grugy delivered a blistering display, making light work of her rivals to romp home by 15 lengths.

She is now poised for a step up in class for her next start, with Fairyhouse’s SBK Solerina Mares Novice Hurdle on January 27 seen as one possible spot where Jade De Grugy can tune-up for a shot at the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle in the spring.

“She was very impressive,” said Alexander’s racing manager Peter Molony.

“We are not sure what she beat, but what she did was very good and Paul was very impressed with her – we are quite excited about her.

“Every option will be open, but something like the Solerina at the end of the month might be something for her.

“If she progresses in the right direction you would be dreaming of the Mares’ Novices’ at Cheltenham. It’s what we’re thinking of at the moment and hoping for.”

Mullins also unleashed another exciting prospect in the colours of Alexander during Leopardstown’s Christmas Festival with French import Kargese finishing second in the Grade Two Mercedes-Benz South Dublin Juvenile Hurdle.

It was the same position Gala Marceau filled in the race on stable bow 12 months ago and Kargese will seek to repeat Gala Marceau’s Grade One winning exploits in her next start at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Molony added: “We were happy with her, she just didn’t settle great on the day. Considering that, she ran very well and the winner had had two runs already so again we’re quite excited about her.

“Hopefully all going well she goes to the Dublin Racing Festival and if things progress well, we will dream of a go at the Triumph Hurdle.”

Dual Grade One scorer Gala Marceau could make her belated return at Doncaster later this month, as connections have their sights set on the Mares’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

The five-year-old was a star performer for trainer Willie Mullins and owner Kenny Alexander last season, finishing no worse than third in five starts and tasting big-race success at both the Dublin Racing Festival and at Auteuil in the Prix Alain du Breil.

She was also a fine second to stablemate and regular foe Lossiemouth in the Triumph Hurdle before finishing a place further back in third behind that rival at the Punchestown Festival.

Having finished off her season excelling when upped to two and a half miles in France, connections believe the Mares’ Hurdle over a similar distance is the ideal target for the Cheltenham Festival in March.

And Gala Marceau could use a well-trodden path to Prestbury Park by running in Doncaster’s Yorkshire Rose Mares’ Hurdle on January 27, a race Mullins has won with both Annie Power (2014) and Vroum Vroum Mag (2017) previously.

“We will possibly see her out towards the end of the month and there is a nice race at Doncaster that is being discussed,” said Peter Molony, racing manager to owner Alexander. “It’s a nice mares’ race, a Grade Two I think it is.

“The main aim would be the Mares’ Hurdle at Cheltenham – that’s what we are thinking.

“The extra half a mile she will get at Cheltenham seemed to really play to her strengths at Auteuil and she was very impressive that day. We were all blown away to be honest.”

Alexander’s colours have of course been carried to Mares’ Hurdle success twice in the past by the great four-time Festival winner Honeysuckle.

Gala Marceau may struggle to match Honeysuckle’s exceptional career CV, but Molony feels she has more than done enough to advertise her quality during her first season with Mullins and has shown signs over the summer there could be plenty more to come.

He continued: “I’m not sure she will ever fill those boots, but she has done us proud so far and won us two Grade Ones.

“She’s not the biggest in the world, but she is as tough as nails and she has definitely grown with us over the summer and strengthened a bit by the time she went back to Willie’s. So we are very hopeful she can progress again.”

The training prowess of Nicky Henderson has been hailed after Doddiethegreat raised more valuable funds for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation when finishing second at Cheltenham last week.

Owned by Kenny Alexander, the seven-year-old is named after former Scotland rugby union great Doddie Weir, who died of motor neurone disease in November last year.

Alexander is donating all prize-money earned throughout Doddiethegreat’s career to the foundation set up by his great friend and fellow Scot to raise funds to aid research into MND.

This was a decision that paid dividends at the beginning of the gelding’s career when he won his first three outings with the minimum of fuss and he then channelled his namesake’s fighting spirit when returning from over two years on the sidelines with a thrilling comeback victory at Ascot recently.

Although tasting defeat for the first time at Cheltenham, he travelled menacingly over the Prestbury Park undulations and was denied by just over a length as he raised a further £6,075 for the charity.

“We’re absolutely delighted and over the moon with him and Nicky Henderson’s training performance with him has just been phenomenal,” said Alexander’s racing manager Peter Molony.

“I don’t think there is a better trainer anywhere to get a horse back from injury and nurse a horse back to the racecourse and then also get them to perform at the top level again, it’s absolutely incredible.

“The whole story and Kenny’s generosity to the Doddie foundation is brilliant and the horse is earning lots of money for the foundation which is huge and hopefully we are raising a bit of awareness for the cause as well.

“When you set out to do something like this with a horse and he turns out to be Doddie and he is winning and showing the ability that he has, then it is great and gives you a great sense of satisfaction.”

Doddiethegreat’s owner has made no secret of his desire to take a shot at the Scottish Champion Hurdle in the spring, but his Cheltenham performance has now opened up more options, with both a return for the Festival in March and a step up in trip just a couple of the possibilities for connections to ponder.

“I think both Nicky and Nico (de Boinville, jockey) are adamant that he is crying out for further and will improve for further,” continued Molony.

“Kenny would absolutely love him to go to Ayr in April for the Scottish Champion Hurdle. But we would just be a little bit worried that you might get fast ground and with his previous injury history and it being over two miles, would that be the right place for him? It’ll certainly be under consideration.”

When asked if a run at the Cheltenham Festival would be considered, Molony added: “Absolutely, all options will be open and no doubt Nicky and his team will pick the right course of action with him.

“It’s still one day at a time because of his horrific injury and we’ll always be on tenterhooks with him, but we will see how we go.”