"Quality will out" is a watchword for racing at Aintree nowadays, where the era of long-priced unfancied horses has largely been put to bed by changes to race conditions and the shape of the fences. And perhaps the racing over the National fences is better for that.
That quality was proven yesterday when 3/1 favourite It's On The Line, trained by Emmet Mullins, and ridden by Derek O'Connor, outstayed the other 9 finishers in the 22 runner field that faced the starter in the Randox Foxhunter Chase. Rated 140, It's On The Line was rated 6lb higher than any other horse in the field bar third placed Annamix, a contender from Closutton. Second, Benny's Hill, trained by Dan Skelton, took up the running 5 out, but was run out of it on the elbow and finished 4 1/4l adrift, Annamix a further length behind. Time Leader, prominent throughout, briefly disputed the lead on the lead-in, but couldn't maintain the advantage for Huw Edwards, and was the only amateur-trained runner to finish in the money. Not everyone is pleased to see the sport's biggest owner scooping up a prize designed for the amateur division. Whilst there is much to admire about the contribution J P McManus has made to the sport at every level, the amateur ethos of this type of race, and the Cheltenham Foxhunter last month, is being eroded by horses trained by licensed trainers attracted by the relatively large prize funds. The £50,000 on offer here compares to £5,000 or less for an ordinary hunter chase, £1,000 or less for a point-to-point. It seems manifestly unfair that of the 22 runners, only three truly amateur -ridden horses finished the race, outpointed by better quality animals that could as equally be running in proper Rules races. This is one reason why Sine Nomine's victory at Cheltenham, and Premier Magic's the previous year, were so well received. Fiona Needham's horse represents the true grass roots of the sport. The counter-argument is of course, that the quality of the races has improved overall. that is not in dispute, but the number of horses rated 130+ in hunter chases and point-to-points is modest, and these potential competitors are being crowded out by professionals - trainers and riders too in all but name. Perhaps a rating cap is required to allow more point-to-pointers to take part without feeling over-faced, but this approach is also counter-intuitive. In the much smaller US steeplechasing scene, the programme for point-to-point and mainstream Jump fixtures is now largely combined, but this is not currently the case in the UK or Ireland, although fixtures like the Barbury International tried to achieve it. No easy answers, but surely an issue race planners might seek to address. Time for Roach to bag a Foxhunter4/10/2024 Time Leader and Spyglass offer the best chance of continued home-grown success on the Randox Foxhunter Chase, the second of the three "classics" of the amateur season tomorrow at Aintree.
Twenty-two runners line up for the thrill of a lifetime - a circuit of Aintree's Grand National fences, but rarely nowadays, the ground will be soft or heavy, which always throws up some imponderables. Time Leader has enjoyed a successful season to date for trainer Hannah Roach and his owners from the North Staffordshire. A faacile win at the Portman in mid-November was followed by an uncharacteristic pull up at Chaddesley in the Wheatland 3 weeks later. He prepped neatly for Cheltenham with a bloodless 7l win at Hereford before running an excellent race to finish 6 1/4l behind Sine Nomine, 5l adrift of It's on The Line, who re-opposes. Spyglass, a product of the de Bromhead yard, is now trained by Regan Pallas in Bridgend. His 1/2l beating of Iskander Pecos in the Walrus Hunters Chase at Haydock in February has been paid a compliment by the latter horse's recent Hereford win. Leading rider James King takes the ride. Both, however, will have their work cut out to match the quality of the two leading Irish candidates in It's On The Line from Emmet Mullins, and Annamix, from Willie Mullins Closutton winner machine. It's On The Line was touched off by Sine Nomine in the Cheltenham Foxhunter and is a justifibale favourite to go one better. Barring that Cheltenham second, he is unbeaten in three runs this season at Drumahane, Dromore and Naas. Emmet Mullins is of course no stranger to Aintree success, having farmed the Grand National with Noble Yeats. Annamix was pulled up behind It's On The Line at Naas but has won since at Gowran Park. The younger It's On The Line may have the legs on him though. Emmet Mullins also saddles Romeo Magico, a winner at Limerick and Dromore this term. However, the Limerick race was a maiden; this is an altogether tougher ask. Oliver Greenall and Josh Guerriero saddles Gaboriot, a winner at Catterick. Formerly owned by Peter Daresbury, who is no stranger to Aintree, that sales may in itself give an answer. I can't see Daresbury giving up an opportunity to win a Foxhunter at the racecourse he chaired for so long. Gaboriot has 18lb to find on the ratings with the top-rated It's on The Line. Paul Nicholls always relishes this race, and the prize money is sufficiently large to keep him interested to sustain his Trainers' Championship claims. French-bred Cap de Methan has had a sparing campaign, with just one winning run at Leicester in March. Daughter Olive Nicholls will be in the plate. Championship rival Dan Skelton fields Bennys King, also a Leicester winner but well beaten behind Sine Nomine at Wetherby in February. He has something to find, unless Aintree's fences bring out something extra. That Leicester win should rule out Gordon Elliott's Hardline, 23l behind that day. A satellite yard of Ditcheat, Sam Loxton has entered Espoir de Guye. A winner at Wincanton when beating Famous Clermont, a previous winner of this race, he was more recently behind Captain Tommy at Ludlow and reopposes. Both have something to find to be in the finish.Also from the Loxton yard is Drop Flight, an Exeter winner. Lieutenant Rocco was behind Espoir de Guye at Wincanton, and there's no reason to suggest he can reverse that form for trainer Syd Hosie. Given a clear run, Time Leader is preferred to keep the race at home Paul Miller will replace Peter Wright as CEO of the Point-to-Point Authority on 3 June. However, he will be at point to points most weekends for the rest of the season.
Born and bred in Scotland, Paul spent almost 20 years in London before moving to the countryside in 2012. For the last 25 years he has been involved in recruitment solutions and resource management through his own company. Working across numerous sectors and with various businesses, his focus has been on the development of people, team structures, processes, marketing and commercial strategy, all of which are directly applicable to point to point today. Although only being introduced to pointing 7 or 8 years ago he has quickly become a huge enthusiast. He has been immersed in the sport through syndicates, shared ownership and racing clubs, whilst he developed an in depth understanding of the trends within the sport when carrying out a study for PPA on how to attract more horses; several strands from which are already successfully in place today. A fascinating renewal of the St James's Place Foxhunter Chase at the Festival contains added interest for Yorkshire spectators, when Fiona Needham saddles Sine Nomine to run in the race for the first time, and Hertfordshire-trained Premier Magic tilts at a repeat. 12 have been declared for the biggest trophy of the week, and the chance to take home the winner's prize of £24,445, something rather more than the £400 available for weekend Point-to-Points on the circuit. But winning the Foxhunter is about far more than cash; it's a chance to make a mark on racing history in one of the most treasured races of the Festival, even among all those Grade Is. Friday's race is no easy task however. The Irish have been carrying all before them all week, and field 5 candidates, among them first and second favourites, It's On The Line from Emmet Mullins' yard, and Ferns Lock from David Christie's Ulster powerhouse. Ferns Lock has impeccable credentials, with three runs this season providing wins at Dromahane and Thurles, and a half length second at Down Royal. Christie also fields Ramillies, winner of Open races at Cragmore and Turtulla. Master of Cheltenham, Willie Mullins, also fields a candidate in Billaway, winner of this race in 2022, beaten just a head by It's On The Line at Naas in mid February. He seems to have lost none of his appetite for the game, despite now being 12. The other Irish challenger is Samcro, trained by Gordon Elliott, yet to get a look-in on the coveted winner's slot this week. A former winner of the 2 1/2m Grade I novice hurdle at the Festival, Samcro is a high quality entrant to the hunters' ranks with a sequence of 4 Open wins during the autumn to his record. Gigginstown horses have an excellent record at Cheltenham. But don't rule out the home team. Last year's winner Premier Magic has been prepared with this race in mind, and is unbeaten since pulling up in this race in 2022. He comes here on the back of a schedule that has been re-worked time and again following the wet winter's impact on the fixture list, but there's nothing in his wins at Brocklesby Park and Sheriff Hutton to suggest he is not on top of the task again. Bradley Gibbs has been riding out of his skin these past few months, so there is every reason to believe the pairing can strike lightening a second time. Sine Nomine comes into this race unbeaten, having come to prominence last Spring in a thrilling finish to the Point-to-Point.co.uk Novices Championship, aka the John Corbett Cup, at Stratford. A 3l second to Wagner at Alnwick prefaced a bloodless 15l win in a Wetherby hunter chase last month. He is the new English challenger for the Foxhunter mantle. Fiona herself is no stranger to this race, having won it as a rider in 2002 on Last Option for father-in-law Robin Tate. Hannah Roach saddles Time Leader, whose 28/1 price belies an excellent record. A winner four times for John O'Shea in the 2022-23 season during which he was also fifth in the Aintree Foxhunter, he has warmed up for this with a win at Hereford. He'll be ridden by Toby McCain-Mitchell. Our champion trainer also has a penchant for this race, having won it with Pacha du Polder in 2017 and the following year. Shantou Flyer was third behind Premier Magic last year, yet another placing in a race where he has made the frame on each of three occasions, but at 14, his best may be behind him. The same cannot be said for his young rider, Olive Nicholls, whose star is in the ascendant in the riding ranks. A case can be made for Quentin's Man, third in the Walrus Hunters Chase at Haydock in February, and D'Jango, behind Quentin's Man at Haydock but a winner at Warwick last month. Less so for From The Heart, whose runs at Dunsmore and Cocklebarrow reflect his likelihood of being in the finish. What a difference seven days can make! Just over a week ago Didmarton was abandoned with the course cloaked in snow but on Saturday there were no similar problems and the rescheduled Duke Of Beaufort's meeting went ahead without a hitch, writes Andrew King. And the Bradley Gibbs team limbered up for a big week at Cheltenham with his stable star Premier Magic attempting a repeat success in the St James's Place Festival Challenge Cup on Friday following a short-priced double courtesy of victories for Crocodile Lounge and Fier Jaguen. After opening at 4-7, Crocodile Lounge was well backed into 1-3 favourite for the Restricted contest and had no problems in justifying that support when making much of the running and seeing off Daisy Yeats by 15 lengths. Co-owner Adrian Simpson commented: "He is only five years old and that was just his fourth race in total. We hope he is a nice horse for the future and, with that in mind, we will play it softly, softly with him this term and take it step by step." Gibbs employed similar tactics aboard Fier Jaguen in the Mixed Open and the pair eventually pulled clear of their only serious rival, Tara Storm, from the home bend for a relatively comfortable verdict. However, Gibbs expressed himself a shade disappointed by the result, saying: "I am not sure Fier Jaguen was at his very best there for whatever reason but he has won well and there are not really any solid plans for him in the short term." Of Premier Magic, the rider/trainer was much more upbeat and said: "We are very happy with the horse ahead of Friday's race but he has obviously got no easy task in as it's always so competitive. However he has done everything we have asked of him in his build up and he had an away-day at Newmarket last week where he pleased us. He goes to Cheltenham in good form and hopefully can repeat last year's victory." Ready Steady Freddie Whereas Gibbs maybe approaching the twilight of his career in the saddle, the future can only beckon for teenager Freddie Keighley after he partnered his first ever winner when Sametegal took the honours in the Riders Conditions race. Keighley,16, the son of licenced trainer Martin, was understandably over the moon with the success and said: " My father told me to bounce the horse and make the running and the plan worked to perfection. I spent a week's work experience at Paul Nicholls' yard recently which was an eye-opener and when I left he kindly gave me Sametegal as a leaving gift - so here we are and I have to thank Mr Nicholls for this win." Perfect intro Ihandaya made the best possible start for new trainer Nicky Sheppard in the Conditions contest with a spring-heeled round of jumping that resulted in a authoritative call over What A Glance. The six-year-old's owner Clive Hitchings said: "He looked fantastic in the paddock beforehand and transferred those looks to the course where Natalie (Parker, jockey) has given him a great ride and I couldn't be more pleased. I understand the winning time was very good so that bodes well but, as far as any future plans maybe concerned, I will leave all that to Nicky and her team." Patience is a virtue The Hannah Lewis-trained Queenhill finally managed to get her head in front after coming out on top following a prolonged duel with favourite Money From America in the closing stages of the concluding Maiden. It proved a poignant moment for owner Mervyn Jones as he also bred the mare and he confided: "I have to admit it's an emotional moment for small owner/breeders like myself as I bred her, raced her and have to be very patient with her. She has always shown us there was a race in her and it was a matter of finding the right one. The door finally opened there but from where I was watching it was difficult to tell whether she had got up, so the judge's announcement proved a welcome relief." Glory for Gloria Fama Et Gloria proved the answer to the Members' race despite trying to throw it away when idling badly in front at the final fence. He rallied on the run-in to see off the challenge of Miltown Bridge by three lengths. Star performance Crocodile Lounge gave the distinct impression he is a smart horse in the making and seems certain to build on his victory. February 08th, 20242/8/2024 Eagle-eyed followers of Point-to-Point racing may have identified a key clue in pursuit of the winner of the St James's Place Foxhunter at the Cheltenham Festival in the gloaming of an otherwise unremarkable day at Wetherby last week.
Hunter chases no longer fill the way they used to and often produce small fields where the more companionable atmosphere of the Point-to-Point scene draws more. They used to call it "pot-hunting", with the Foxhunter trophy the largest pot there is, both in race value and the sheer size of the trophy. Wetherby's Join the Vickers Racing Club Open Hunters Chase included Sine Nomine in its 5 runner field, last seen winning the John Corbett Cup, aka the novice championship, at Stratford in late May where she impressed. Trained by Catterick Clerk of Course, Fiona Needham, herself no stranger to success in the Foxhunter, the grey mare Sine Nomine made full use of her mares' allowance to score here authoritatively with Benny's King and Windsor Avenue far in arrears. After the race, rider Jack Dawson told the Racing Post that the plan would be to head straight for Cheltenham. Northaw Racing NewsWelcome to the News page. Here you will find the very latest information about Northaw Races and race course conditions
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