Philip won the Smurfit Kappa championship hurdle on rank outsider Sublimity on the opening day of the festival and finished off his week winning the Vincent O'Brien County Hurdle with Petrobob on the final day. Less than a hour after Sublimity rode home to victory, Nina became the first woman in 18 years to win a professional race at the meeting, winning the cross country Sporting Index Handicap Chase with Heads On The Ground.

The Carberrys' other son Paul didn't make the festival this year due to an injury.

"It's a bone in his foot, " his mother said. "It doesn't look serious - more of a nuisance really." Paul was keeping an eye on his siblings' form at Cheltenham at home in Ratoath, Co Meath.

Carberry puts her children's chosen career down to her influence as a mother.

"It's probably my fault for putting them up on ponies in the first place, " she said. "I remember with Paul, they didn't have bikes, they had ponies. Those days, they used to be able to ride down the road - of course you can't do that now. I suppose it's just like any young fellas, some of them play ball and some of them do other things."

And of course, a mother's duties are never done.

"Philip didn't have much rest, " Pamela Carberry told the Sunday Tribune.

"He was up at four o'clock in the morning and on the road to France on Wednesday because he had to race there.

So I had to book him tickets on Monday or Tuesday. It all got a bit messy but everything worked out ok."