Barry Geraghty, the winning jockey with Jonjo O'Neill, left, and JP McManus after Shutthefrontdoor lifted the Irish Grand National. Photograph: Barry Cronin/PA  Tony McCoy's first whip suspension since 2012, incurred during the Grand National meeting, proved even more expensive than it appeared at the time when it caused him to miss the winning ride in Monday's Irish National. Barry Geraghty took his place in the first colours of owner JP McManus, whose Shutthefrontdoor scrambled to a narrow victory over Golden Wonder.  McCoy was banned for four days for using his whip a dozen times when beaten on Diakali in a hurdle race at Aintree and, following the sport's normal practice, the ban came into effect a fortnight later. The champion jockey immediately realised the significance of the dates he would miss and contemplated an appeal. "I've probably had 2,000 rides since my last whip offence and I think four days was harsh," he said at the time.  For the third time in six weeks, Geraghty wore the McManus colours to land a major race when the victory might have been McCoy's. Geraghty scored twice at the Cheltenham Festival, in the Champion Hurdle and the World Hurdle, on horses rejected by McCoy in favour of other animals in the same ownership.  Shutthefrontdoor, who was prominent from an early stage, was returned at 8-1, the first outright favourite to win the race since Omerta in 1991. He prevailed by three parts of a length from Golden Wonder, with Saoirse Dun and Jamsie Hall next.  It was a longed-for first success in the National for the 34-year-old Geraghty, who lives near the Fairyhouse course where it is run and whose brother, Ross, won in 2002 aboard The Bunny Boiler. "He's never shy about reminding me," the jockey said in a recent interview but bragging rights in the family have now been levelled.  The winning trainer was Jonjo O'Neill, who won the race in 2007 with Butler's Cabin, also owned by McManus. "He was in a great position all the way and jumped really well. Everything went right for him."  Shutthefrontdoor was heavily supported to land the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival last month, his first outing after a midwinter breathing operation, with tongue tie and cheekpieces in place for the first time. But all the planning came to naught when he turned in a sloppy round of jumping under Nina Carberry.  "After that, we thought this was the race for him," O'Neill said. "Plan B didn't work out too badly! He will have good rest and is hopefully OK and we can look forward to next season."  McManus said: "It's disappointing for AP that he's not here today, as I'm sure he would have picked this horse. I wish both of them could have rode it but I feel sorry for AP that he's not here."  During a busy Easter Monday's action in Britain, racing was suspended for a short while at Fakenham when the amateur rider Carey Williamson was thought to have suffered serious injuries in a fall. She was taken to a local hospital but a course official suggested that was no more than a precaution.  "She was fully conscious in the ambulance and was telling people where her car keys were and where her car was," he said. "I think they just want to check her over to make sure everything is OK."
Barry Geraghty exploited the absence of Tony McCoy, serving a ban for whip use, to claim another Fairyhouse win for Jonjo O'Neill and JP McManus