It's been a good week for our Marlborough trainers as the Jumps calendar stepped up a gear to accommodate fixtures every day for the first time since May.
Neil King was first off the blocks at Worcester on Friday when 8 year old novice chaser Canyon City beat Nick Williams' Aimee de Sivola a neck in the novices handicap over 2m 7f. This was the Burderop trainer's first winner since Princeton Royal on June 20, although King is a traditionalist by nature. Runners are generally pretty sparse in high summer.
Meanwhile, namesake Alan King scored at Market Rasen yesterday with smart flat recruit Haseefah. The impeccably bred daughter of Teofilio switched from Francois Rohaut's in March and has been running creditably in middle distance handicaps without getting her head in front. That changed with a set of eight hurdles in the way, and the style of her 9 1/2l victory suggests there will be more to come.
The King yard is still largely focused on the flat, with just 4 of the last 16 runners being Jumpers. The knack of running a dual-purpose yard is one the Barbury maestro has well covered, and with rain impending, the prospect of seeing top stayer Trueshaan again on Qipco Champions Day will increase. But where yards like this often excel is with juveniles that show good speed on the flat and can continue this when leaving the ground.
Two miles across the downs, Emma Lavelle sent two runners to Market Rasen including emerging handicapper Hang In There. The seven year old couldn't peg back the stone weght advantage provided to Fergal O'Brien's Valentino Dancer in the Ferry Ales Brewery Prelude Handicap Hurdle, but lost little in defeat. This was a very respectable Class 2 race, and Hang In There will win again.
Roles were reversed in the Golden Fleece Handicap Chase 30 minutes earlier, when Buster Thomas bested Gortroe Joe by 2 1/2l for the same two yards, a 14th season winner fro stable jockey Tom Bellamy, for whom the Lavelle tie-up is paying dividends.
Emma Lavelle is another for whom the skills of juggling dual-purpose horses holds no fear. On Friday, five year old gelding Master Milliner put 7l between himseld and runner-up Autumn War to notch his fourth handicap scalp in York's William Hill Pick Your Places Handicap over 2m.
There are now less than five weeks until the start of a new Point-to-Point season when the West Country circuit launches a new campaign at Bishop's Court on October 30. This earliest yet start to the season continues the growth of early season fixtures that accommodate young horses, reflecting the Irish model. We have yet to see how many qualified horses will run across the 150+ fixtures, but the professional sport has shown considerable resilience through the Covid crisis, and the grass roots will hopefullly mirror that intense loyalty to the sport from its constituents. Fore details of the early fixtures, click here.
It's been a good week for our Marlborough trainers as the Jumps calendar stepped up a gear to accommodate fixtures every day for the first time since May.
Neil King was first off the blocks at Worcester on Friday when 8 year old novice chaser Canyon City beat Nick Williams' Aimee de Sivola a neck in the novices handicap over 2m 7f. This was the Burderop trainer's first winner since Princeton Royal on June 20, although King is a traditionalist by nature. Runners are generally pretty sparse in high summer.
Meanwhile, namesake Alan King scored at Market Rasen yesterday with smart flat recruit Haseefah. The impeccably bred daughter of Teofilio switched from Francois Rohaut's in March and has been running creditably in middle distance handicaps without getting her head in front. That changed with a set of eight hurdles in the way, and the style of her 9 1/2l victory suggests there will be more to come.
The King yard is still largely focused on the flat, with just 4 of the last 16 runners being Jumpers. The knack of running a dual-purpose yard is one the Barbury maestro has well covered, and with rain impending, the prospect of seeing top stayer Trueshaan again on Qipco Champions Day will increase. But where yards like this often excel is with juveniles that show good speed on the flat and can continue this when leaving the ground.
Two miles across the downs, Emma Lavelle sent two runners to Market Rasen including emerging handicapper Hang In There. The seven year old couldn't peg back the stone weght advantage provided to Fergal O'Brien's Valentino Dancer in the Ferry Ales Brewery Prelude Handicap Hurdle, but lost little in defeat. This was a very respectable Class 2 race, and Hang In There will win again.
Roles were reversed in the Golden Fleece Handicap Chase 30 minutes earlier, when Buster Thomas bested Gortroe Joe by 2 1/2l for the same two yards, a 14th season winner fro stable jockey Tom Bellamy, for whom the Lavelle tie-up is paying dividends.
Emma Lavelle is another for whom the skills of juggling dual-purpose horses holds no fear. On Friday, five year old gelding Master Milliner put 7l between himseld and runner-up Autumn War to notch his fourth handicap scalp in York's William Hill Pick Your Places Handicap over 2m.
There are now less than five weeks until the start of a new Point-to-Point season when the West Country circuit launches a new campaign at Bishop's Court on October 30. This earliest yet start to the season continues the growth of early season fixtures that accommodate young horses, reflecting the Irish model. We have yet to see how many qualified horses will run across the 150+ fixtures, but the professional sport has shown considerable resilience through the Covid crisis, and the grass roots will hopefullly mirror that intense loyalty to the sport from its constituents. Fore details of the early fixtures, click here.
Buy your tickets now
