Northern racing: Lewis Tomlinson with his horses to follow

By Lewis Tomlinson

Horse Racing

Mon December 09, 2024 · 1w ago

How typical that a column about racing in the North would start, not talking about horses, but about grim weather?

Liverpool was a sorry place to be for sports fans on Saturday afternoon, Storm Darragh tearing through the north-west to put paid to not only the Merseyside Derby, but also Aintree’s headline Boylesports Becher Chase card.

Perhaps any punter whose weekend plans had been derailed by Darragh would have attempted to salvage the afternoon, as my pals and I did, by shielding from the storm in a quality establishment (Bowe’s Bar – what a place) to watch a fine card down south at Sandown (Jonbon – what a horse). Adapt, improvise, overcome; a flawless Plan B. Bear Grylls would be proud.

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The storm wasn’t quite able to wipe out the entirety of the northern racing weekend, though, and the hardy souls who arrived at a wild Wetherby on Saturday morning in time to see the opening novice contest at 10.35 witnessed a tidy performance from Olly Murphy’s odds-on favourite DIAMONDS FOR LUCK, though perhaps the most interesting runner sighted in Yorkshire came in the shape of LATENIGHTRUMBLE.

A half-brother to the yard’s stable star Latenightpasss, Latenightrumble has been brought along in canny fashion by the in-form Tom Ellis - campaigned solely in novice hurdles after a spin in a hunter chase in the spring - and defied an opening mark of 110 on his return to chasing, to my eyes with a shade more authority than the head winning margin would imply.

He’ll remain unexposed and has gone straight into the My Stable tracker.

The best action in the north, though, came at Kelso on Sunday, where Henry Daly’s Highland National winner BRETNEY made another successful raid into Scotland, landing the Borders National with a decisive front-running display. The other feature prizes remained local, though, with Kelso regulars CRACKING RHAPSODY and NELLS SON adding to their excellent course records.

Cracking Rhapsody landed the track’s feature event, the Morebattle Hurdle, back in February and after finishing down the field in the Greatwood last time, Ewan Whillans’ flag-bearer resumed his progress in gaining a third win at his local track.

He’s a likeable sort and it’s easy to envisage him landing another good pot this season, still only five and surely capable of staying two-and-a-half miles if given the chance; the Hogmaneigh Handicap Hurdle at Musselburgh over that trip on New Year’s Day an ideal target to my mind.

And though it’s undoubtedly been a tough period for the still-hospitalised Nicky Richards, his spirits would surely have been raised by the game display of his stable-star Nells Son in the inaugural running of the valuable Richard Landale Memorial Handicap Chase, showing superior reserves of stamina to overhaul the keen-going front-runner MATATA after that one had opened up a healthy advantage after three out.

It’s easier to be enthusiastic about the runner-up than Nells Son himself going forward - the winner’s mark likely to be touching 150 when next seen – but it’s impossible to crab connections' placement of a horse which has already banked them £65k for the campaign.

Matata - lost little in defeat

Sandy Thomson and Susan Corbett also got on the scoresheet at Kelso on Sunday, whilst Lucinda Russell’s WHISTLE STOP TOUR looked a staying chaser to remain interested in with a ready success in the closing contest, the race traditionally known as the Paris Pike Novice Chase.

A six-figure purchase from Irish points, the six-year-old was much sharper than on chase debut, eventually recording a ready success at the expense of last-time-out winner DARE TO SHOUT. Whistle Stop Tour will surely prove equally effective beyond three miles and at this stage of his career he’s at least matched the feats of the last horse the Russell yard sent out to compete in this contest almost a decade ago - a fella named One For Arthur, who finished third behind Seeyouatmidnight in its previous guise as a level weights affair.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the old quirkbag MONDAMMEJ made it two wins in the space of a fortnight at Newcastle on Friday evening having previous racked up a losing streak of more than three years. Never straightforward, but once capable of making the frame in the Temple Stakes, a breathing operation appears to have worked the oracle for Antony Brittain’s sprinter, with the facile manner of his latest victory suggesting what may well have been considered an unlikely hat-trick now looks a distinct possibility.

Speaking of unlikely hat-tricks, EAST STREET completed one of his own at Haydock on Wednesday afternoon. Though there’ll be higher-profile adverts of James Owen’s talents over the course of the season, his sweetening up of a horse whose temperament appeared equal to his ability when trained by Sue Smith has been remarkable, the eight-year-old making a fuss-free switch back to hurdling to supplement wins at Wetherby and Leicester from the previous week.

The likeable WHITE RHINO underlined his status as one of the most prolific handicappers around when taking his record over fences to two-from-two, his place in a top Saturday contest surely earned with an assured defeat of promising chase debutant PRESIDENT SCOTTIE, while the not-quite-as-prolific CLOUDY GLEN made a successful start in veterans’ company later on the card, capitalising on a falling mark to score for the first time since landing the 2021 Ladbrokes Trophy. As if it doesn’t need repeating any further, Venetia Williams simply does not leave Newton-le-Willows empty handed, whilst Cloudy Glen himself will surely hold leading claims if lining up in the Veterans’ Final at Sandown next month.

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What's coming up?

You’d be a shade optimistic to find anything to really get the pulse going at either Hexham on Wednesday or on the Tapeta at Newcastle on Thursday - perhaps Martin Todhunter’s FOREST BLAZE the most interesting proposition in the North East in Hexham’s opener, but Bangor plays host to a decent Friday card, the previously Becher-bound MAJOR DUNDEE looking to hold solid claims in the Virgin Bet-sponsored staying chase, while the following two miles one furlong contest could prove a particularly hot race of its type if the likes of BUCKSY DES EPEIRES, JAVERT ALLEN, DR T J ECKLEBURG and PARTY VIBES all stand their ground.

There’s more good stuff in the north on Saturday, with two ITV races amongst the septet due to take place at Doncaster; KATEIRA and TAKE NO CHANCES may clash in the listed mares’ event, whilst last year’s winner FORWARD PLAN may have the likes of CRUZ CONTROL, GABORIOT, GALOP DE CHASSE and RICHMOND LAKE in opposition in the bet365 Handicap Chase, while up at Newcastle, Lucinda Russell’s exciting DERRYHASSEN PADDY would surely take plenty of beating despite a penalty if taking up his engagement in the novice hurdle at 12.17.

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