Patrick Mullins claims long-awaited victory in Galway amateur highlight

Patrick Mullins realised his long-held ambition as he steered Echoes In Rain to a convincing victory in the Connacht Hotel Handicap, the feature event on the first day of the Galway Festival.

Mullins has won plenty of big races, counting a clutch of Grade One successes on his CV, but he had yet to land a race that is viewed as one of the highlights of the amateur season.

However, the rider righted that statistic in style as Echoes In Rain, trained by his father Willie, was tanking along a fair way out and despite getting a bump before turning into the straight, she was in a perfect position to challenge in the two-mile-one-furlong contest.

Mullins had to get serious on the 11-4 favourite in the closing stages, but she found plenty for pressure to triumph by a length and a half from stablemate Maze Runner – with Mullins punching the air passing the post. Dutch Schultz was third with another Mullins inmate Lot Of Joy – a Swedish St Leger winner – making eye-catching ground to finish fourth.

'You keep trying and you might hit the bullseye' - Patrick Mullins on the relief of finally emerging victorious in the Connacht Hotel Handicap #GalwayRaces pic.twitter.com/wVNVw1eNfT

The winning rider said: "Sixteenth time lucky! It's the amateur Derby and my father won it on Pargan, for my grandfather.

"There’s plenty more (races for me to win) – there’s the Foxhunters’ in Aintree, there’s the Kim Muir in Cheltenham, so there’s more to do. And a Galway Plate wouldn’t go astray, but it won’t be this year, unfortunately.

"We took the hood off her today, and she got very relaxed. I thought, going down to the start, that she was going to be too keen. She was quite buzzed up but we went a good gallop. She got a little bit keen and I actually let