Racing: Maguire back at the double

ADRIAN MAGUIRE shrugged off the after-effects of a crashing fall at Galway on Wednesday to bounce back in style there yesterday afternoon with a 70-1 double. Cleared before racing to resume after bruising his right knee in a fall from Gales Cavalier in the Galway Plate, Maguire produced the 10-1 chance Rahanine Melody with a challenge on the inner after the final fence to take the Jockeys Association Beginners Chase for Tony Martin.

Maguire then enjoyed a runaway victory aboard Treble Bob for Dermot Weld, bringing the Curragh-based stable's winning tally for the six-day festival to 10. Weld said : "I hope to run Treble Bob back on the Flat later in the season, but the Irish Grand National next Easter and the Galway Plate back here next year would also be targets."

The leading Irish claimer Barry Geraghty, who injured his back in a fall from Verywell in the opening race, was taken to hospital for X-rays and may have to miss the annual visit to Australia by an Irish jump jockeys' team which is scheduled to depart today.

Meanwhile, a long-range ante-post book on the Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe is a relatively new development. Swain has moved into 6-1 second favouritism following his victory in the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Stakes with the runner up High-Rise 8-1.

But the Arc is an "away fixture" and, although it has seen some memorable triumphs for Britain, notably Dancing Brave and Lammtarra, history shows that by and large, the prizemoney stays in France. In the last 20 years, the French can boast 14 wins, Britain four, Ireland one and Italy one.

Swain has already had three tilts at the prize, finishing third, fourth and seventh. Clearly, it should pay to put patriotism aside and concentrate on the French runners. One Frenchman in particular, Andre Fabre, has made the Arc his domain of late, with four winners since 1987. And he has an strong hand this time round, with three Group One winners - Limpid, Loup Savage and Fragrant Mix. There is little doubt that if ante-post betting was being framed in France, there is no way the trio would be 10-1, 12- 1 and 14-1.

Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe, William Hill bet: 4-1 Dream Well, 6-1 Swain, 8-1 High-Rise, 10-1 Croco Rouge, Limpid, Royal Anthem, Zainta, 12-1 City Honours, Loup Sauvage, 14-1 Astarabad, Daylami, Fragrant Mix, 16-1 Ebadiyla, Shahtoush, Winona, 20-1 Border Arrow, Oscar Schindler, Romanov, Silver Patriarch.