Mr. Byrnes

C

Cantoris

At the Start
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Jan 7, 2008
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what is interesting about the below is the lay bet on Solwhit that day at Fairyhouse when Byrnes was reported to the stewards for his post race bahaviour towards Tom Doyle. I wonder is the net closing in on Mr. Byrnes? Or is this Betfair's way of owning up another Kieran Fallon?

Byrnes employee warned off for four months

Thu, 28th Jan, 2010

U000012643476041.jpg

Champion Hurdle hopeful Solwhit one
of the horses laid by John O'Gorman
(© Healy Racing Photos)
The Referrals Committee Dr. Gordon A. Holmes (in the Chair), Mrs. J.O. Onions and Mr. John Powell met in the Turf Club, The Curragh, Co. Kildare on 28th January 2010 to consider the referral of Mr. John O’Gorman, stable employee of Mr. Charles Byrnes, trainer, by Denis Egan, Chief Executive of the Turf Club, in respect of a possible breach of Rule 273 (xiv) 4(b) which prohibits the holder of a racing establishment employee card to lay any horse under the care and control of the trainer for whom he is employed to lose a race with any person or betting organisation.

Evidence was heard from Mr. Hugh Hynes, Turf Club Integrity Analyst and from Mr. John O’Gorman, who admitted laying nine horses trained by Mr. Charles Byrnes to lose between the dates of 8th May 2008 and 21st December 2008. Details of the horses laid are set out in the attached schedule. The Committee also considered representations made by Charles Byrnes on behalf of John O’Gorman.

Having considered the evidence, the Committee noted that the laying of horses to lose by a racing establishment employee card holder when employed in a trainers yard seriously damages the integrity of racing and that the appropriate penalty for such an offence would be in the region of twelve months. However, in mitigation the Committee acknowledged that John O’Gorman had admitted the offence at an early stage and cooperated fully with the investigation. Having regard for all these circumstances, the Committee imposed a four month disqualification on John O’Gorman with effect from today’s date.


RACES BREACHING RULE 273 (xiv) 4. (b)
(Including betting values)

TWOFAN (USA) 6.25 Clonmel, 8th May 2008
Result: Pulled up, 16 runners.
Placed €1,043.01 on the horse to win. Laid €1,252.48 on the horse risking a net liability of €1,306.58 if the horse had won. Profit from these back and lay transactions totalled €209.47

ROCHESTER ROW (USA) 8.45 Roscommon, 7th July 2008
Result: Finished 13th of 18 runners.
Laid €28.36 risking a liability of €49.09 if the horse had won.
Profit from this lay transaction totalled €28.36

EHOWEE (IRE) 7.35 Down Royal, 3rd September 2008
Result: Finished 14th of 16 runners.
Laid €22, risking a liability of €181.30 if the horse had won.
Profit from this lay transaction totalled €22.

MASK OF DARKNESS (IRE) 3.25 Tralee, 30th September 2008
Result: Finished 11th of 20 runners.
Laid €5, risking a liability of €75 if the horse had won.
Laid €5, risking a liability of €25 if the horse had been placed.
Profit from this lay transaction totalled €10.

LISKENNETT (IRE) 1.55 Navan, 9th November 2008
Result: Finished 8th of 10 runners.
Laid €5, risking a liability of €22.15 if the horse had been placed.
Profit from this lay transaction totalled €5.

MERCHENT PADDY (IRE) 2.50 Gowran, 22nd November 2008
Result: Finished 8th of 14 runners.
Laid €52.17 risking a liability of €1,032.74 if the horse had won.
Laid €293.41 risking a liability of €1,629.80 if the horse had been placed.
Profit from these lay transactions totalled €345.58.

TWOFAN (USA) 3.25 Fairyhouse, 22nd November 2008
Result: Unseated Rider, 12 runners.
Laid €87.20 risking a liability of €1,599.64 if the horse had won.
Laid €124.00 risking a liability of €596.30 if the horse had been placed.
Profit from these lay transactions totalled €211.20.

SOLWHIT (FR) 3.05 Fairyhouse, 29th November 2008
Result: Won, 16 runners.
Laid €3,576.67 risking a liability of €8,607.81 if the horse had won.
Loss from this lay transaction totalled €8,607.81 as the horse won the race.

SOLWHIT (FR) 1.05 Thurles, 21st December 2008
Result: 2nd of 3 runners.
Laid €131.42 risking a liability of €45.74 if the horse had won. Profit from this lay transaction totalled €131.42.
 
What is interesting is the difference in amounts of some bets than others. There are people on here I'm sure that would have far greater knowledge of betting patterns than I, but such variations in stake stick out like a sore thumb and suggest to me some bets which were belonging to the account holder and some which were placed on behalf of a third party.
 
Must be very hard to pin something on someone at the Turf Club if they're citing an example of him losing the price of a pint in evidence.

I'd suggest the Solwhit, Merchent Paddy and Twofan bets weren't his ;)
 
Racing Post data for the performances:



Twofan 2/1F (D N Russell) pulled up
Always towards rear, pulled up before 3 out (op 9/4 tchd 5/2)
...while running no race whatsoever was the favourite Twofan. He was always behind and was tailed-off when pulling up three out. Rider Davy Russell reported afterwards that the horse didn´t handle the ground and jumped poorly. He was found to be post race normal on veterinary examination.
Click to expand...

Rochester Row 7/2 (Mr Derek O'Connor) beaten 48 lengths
Always towards rear, eased from 2f out (op 9/4)
Rochester Row, placed twice in three outings coming here, was friendless in the market on his first run for 144 days. He was last with a circuit to race and despite passing a few in the straight proved a big disappointment for connections.
Click to expand...

Ehowee 6/1 (Mr M Fahey) beaten 68 lengths
Mid-division, ridden and no impression 5f out, weakened and tailed off (op 9/2)

Mask Of Darkness 10/1 (N P Madden) beaten 76 lengths
Chased leaders, slight mistake 6th, hung off bend and no extra after 4 out (op 8/1)

Liskennett 10/1 (N P Madden) beaten 76 lengths
Held up towards rear, ridden in 8th entering straight, no extra in moderate 7th 3 out, soon weakened
... Larkwing and Liskennet were others to give way when the pace quickened on the descent to the third-last flight.
Click to expand...

Merchent Paddy 11/1 (D N Russell) beaten 23 lengths
Prominent, 2nd after 4 out, lost place and no impression under pressure from before straight (op 8/1)
There was a long gap back to the never-threatening View Mount Prince and easy-to-back Merchent Paddy, who dropped out before the straight.
Click to expand...

Twofan 10/1 (N P Madden) unseated
Mid-division, mistake and unseated rider 4 out

Solwhit 4/1 (T J Doyle) won by 3/4 length
Held up, headway entering straight, ran on well from last to lead close home (op 5/2)
SOLWHIT, winner of the Leopardstown November Handicap and contesting his first handicap hurdle, had not run over hurdles since making it two from three at Punchestown in April. Light in the market, he was held up and had it all to do turning towards two out. However, he quickened well on the run-in and finished strongly to get on top close home.
Click to expand...

Solwhit 1/3F (D N Russell) beaten 3/4 length
Raced in 2nd, niggled along 4 out, ridden from next, pressed winner before last, kept on same pace run-in
Not for the first time, a long odds-on favourite was chinned in this particular race. In fairness, NINETIETH MINUTE had looked a good horse whose jumping over hurdles had let him down in the past, but in this tactical affair he did everything right. There was no pace for the first half of the race, a deliberate ploy by the winner who made all, but as Paddy Flood wound it up inside the final mile he looked to have long odds-on favourite Solwhit in trouble as early as the fourth-last. Indeed, the winner got away from that particular flight much the quicker of the two and if one could pinpoint somewhere in the race that may have been the winning and losing of it, that may have been it. The favourite was pushed to close and was more or less under pressure from that point, but had got to within a length of the eventual winner at the final flight. One felt that a good horse would have picked up the winner from there but he couldn´t get appreciably nearer. The tactical nature of the race suited the winner undoubtedly, but in addition to that he has probably never jumped as well in a hurdle race as he did today and showed what he is capable of when that happens. The way the race was run didn´t suit the favourite although it was somewhat disappointing that he was unable to get to him when he had closed up to have every chance.
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So the first 7 lays produced a pulled up, an unseated and 5 other runs with an aggregate beating of 291 lengths.
 
Either that or he didn't realise there was a future multiple Grade-1 winning Champion Hurdle favourite in the yard...

Surely by December 2008 the whole yard knew Solwhit had a bit about him?
 
I don't think I'm talking out of turn (if I am, please feel free to delete this), but someone on another forum - who may also be a member here - told me that Mr Byrnes was not altogether happy about the Fairyhouse win - where the jockey was helpless to stop the horse, it had so much in hand.

The suspicion (or speculation, at least), was that they were trying to get |Solwhit handicapped to land a touch in the Totesport Trophy (I think it was) and that the race had shown him in a better light than they had hoped.

Perhaps this is another reason for the apparent disappointment at the win?
 
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what is interesting about the below is the lay bet on Solwhit that day at Fairyhouse when Byrnes was reported to the stewards for his post race bahaviour towards Tom Doyle.
Click to expand...

Can't find a link to this one, Cantoris. What happened?
 
Hey Grey, there's a 2 mile handicap in Fairyhouse at the Hattons Grace meeting. It's the Saturday. Nice pot....40k race. Legend has it that Solwhit was being lined up for a coup in the Pierse in Jan and he was to be given a pipe opener. When the fog descended on the track they were supposed to be laughing. Out the back and not cited. Only problem is he was rated four stone better than them and came from nowhere to win (think of the Pittoni win at Punchestown over New Year). Well, he came back in and it's on Turf Club record that Brynes verbally abused Tom Doyle in the parade ring. I know many life long racegoers who were shocked at the talk coming out of Byrnes' mouth. The rest is history.
 
Am I the only one who thinks a four month sentence, mitigated from twelve due to 'cooperation' (what else could he have done?) is absolutely laughable?

edit: I'm assuming the Turf Club analyst has gone through all of the accounts that layed Solwhit in that handicap hurdle at Fairyhouse, as well as the Merchent Paddy race.
 
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Maybe it's because, as others have suggested, Mr O'Gorman was probably only betting in tenners and fivers and is not the main villain.
 
That doesn't wash with me tbh. I feel a degree of sympathy for O'Gorman, as we are almost certainly not seeing the whole picture here. However, the fact remains he contravened the rules and is deserving of a far harsher punishment than he has gotten away with, imo.
 
This is either a shot across the bows for Byrnes or the Turf Club is testing the waters here and round two is coming round the corner.
 
trackside528 said:
That doesn't wash with me tbh. I feel a degree of sympathy for O'Gorman, as we are almost certainly not seeing the whole picture here. However, the fact remains he contravened the rules and is deserving of a far harsher punishment than he has gotten away with, imo.
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I agree with you, having thought about it further. The amounts being laid against the stable's runners were starting to rise, and even if we assume that it was someone else who was laying the much larger sums, he nevertheless allowed that person to fund and use his Betfair account.

It must be very tempting for some stable staff on low wages to try and profit from knowing their horse is not expected to win, and a strong deterrent is needed.
 
Despite his inside knowledge he made a pigs ear of the first race, laying a relatively small amount at over 6/1 on a 2/1 shot. Trading isn't his game.

I wonder was any of that in running? He seemed to be backed before the off, maybe Twofan wasn't where he was supposed to be during the race and he traded out.
 
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Melendez said:
Despite his inside knowledge he made a pigs ear of the first race, laying a relatively small amount at over 6/1 on a 2/1 shot. Trading isn't his game.

I wonder was any of that in running? He seemed to be backed before the off, maybe Twofan wasn't where he was supposed to be during the race and he traded out.
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All the more reason to prosecute - you see it regularly on the all-weather Mel, horses trading at 9/1 having drifted from 5's on course and they're queuing up to lay 20 on Betfair at the off. Just shows how confident he is that the horse wouldn't be winning.

Given the circumstances it's highly unlikely that the horse is a genuine 2/1 shot, or even a single figure price.
 
You can have all of this Racing for change you want, but the real change racing needs is the likes of Byrnes and others removed, not tolerated.
 
Hamm said:
You can have all of this Racing for change you want, but the real change racing needs is the likes of Byrnes and others removed, not tolerated.
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Hey, I think that's a good idea!
Just think, though, if they put in all the effort needed to weed out the fiddlers, the publicity they'd harvest would be most unwelcome.
'They' have lived with it so long now that they daren't make a move to clean house .... they'd be exposed to the question: why didn't you do this earlier?
 
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