Mare of the month
mare of the month
Function Dream (Strong Gale-Rare Dream (Pollerton)
Captain Chris winning the Arkle with Richard Johnson. His dam Function Dream was unable to take her chance at the Festival in 2001 due its abandonment because of the foot and mouth crisis
Amazingly, the mare was apparently described as “too plain” by one of the trainers who viewed her (what do looks have to do with an ability to gallop fast and hard?). But ‘andsome is as ‘andsome does and soon Function Dream, who was named after a river in Cork, proved that she could no longer be dismissed in a cursory fashion, finishing third in her first point-to-point and then winning a mares’ maiden at Dromahane when ridden by B. Walsh and trained by John Walsh. On her first start under Rules, still trained by Walsh, she tipped up in a beginners’ chase
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Amazingly, the mare was apparently described as “too plain” by one of the trainers who viewed her
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he expected horse did not win ths year’s Arkle Chase. The race favourite, Medermit, could only finish fourth while strong Irish fancy Realt Dubh, a 17/2 chance, came home in third. But, if punters had looked a little more closely at the 6/1 chance Captain Chris, who admittedly was not expected to run at all, and examined his pedigree a little more closely and based their betting strategy more on bloodstock reasoning, they might have been walking away with more cash in their pockets. A son of the seemingly always successful Ballylinch sire King’s Theatre, Captain Chris is out of the one-time leading and 161-rated chase mare Function Dream, a daughter of Strong Gale and out of Rare Dream (Pollerton) and the winner of 11 races (all chases) over distances between 2m and 3m. Despite all of that glory to come, as a youngster she did not find any fans at the 1996 Derby Sale being led out of the ring for 7,500gns not sold. She was offered there by Scart Stud having been bred by Noreen Walsh, wife of the stud’s owner Tom, a brother to the TV pundit and former jockey, Ted.
in September 1997 and it took her a further five runs through to February 1998 to get off the mark. But once she got her head in front, Function Dream just could not be stopped going on to register a three-timer with smooth victories over Tartooth at Leopardstown in March and Letterlee at Clonmel. A subsequent November victory in the Murphy International Chase led Walsh to say: “She won three chases last season, stays three miles well, and I think she has improved a lot. She is a very good mare.” Her next start, and her first at graded level, saw Function Dream given a debut run over hurdles in which she finished third in the Pierse Group Stayers Novice Hurdle (G1) at Cork – the winner being Glazeaway and ridden by a certain R. Walsh. A poor run in the Paddy Power Handicap Chase saw her pulled up and she did not regain winning ways until September 1999 when running on heavy ground at Galway over 2m6f (reportedly not fully fit) before coming home seventh in the Kerry National. Despite finishing then ahead of Risk Of Thunder, she stopped quickly in the race and was found after to be colicing. Walsh then sent her out for a couple of runs in 2m hurdle races – presumably with the handicapper in mind – before the mare could only finish 14th of 17 in the Irish National Trial. The decision was taken then by the Walshes – apparently on the advice of Ted – that there were either more or easier opportunities for the mare across the water and she was sent into the care of the angel of the north, Mary Reveley. Already by then the winner of five chases, the eight-year-old mare picked up a sixth on her very first start in England when successful on good to soft at Uttoxeter. The Racing Post post-race comment proves to be prophetic when saying: “Function Dream… did not have a lot to spare on her debut for Mary Reveley, but this will not be her last win for the Saltburn trainer”. Under Reveley’s care, Function Dream went on to win five chases on the bounce through a period of just over four months taking her British handicap rating from 126 to 157. In the first of those sucesses she gave the useful gelding Jungli a 21l beating and once again the Post comment proved to be
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