Michael O’Sullivan will have a great chance of back-to-back victories in the Bar One Racing Royal Bond Novice Hurdle when he partners Fascile Mode for Tom Mullins at Fairyhouse on Sunday.
The young starlet of the weighing room picked up his first Grade One when coolly steering Marine Nationale to win this event 12 months ago, before establishing himself as a leading rider when following up on Barry Connell’s stable star at the Cheltenham Festival.
O’Sullivan successfully linked up with Fascile Mode on the five-year-old’s hurdling bow at Punchestown and the exciting prospect’s experienced handler is delighted to have retained his services as he now steps up in grade.
“All the big yards have their big jockeys and one thing and another, but Michael is a very talented man and a talented jockey,” said Mullins.
“When he has the horse, he will win with it. He was very good on Marine Nationale last year and he’s a really good jockey – we’re very happy to have him.”
That 12-length Punchestown success was a welcome return to form for Fascile Mode, who impressed on his rules debut at Leopardstown last Christmas before failing to land a telling blow in some stiff assignments during the rest of his bumper season.
“We’re happy here and everything has gone very well since he won at Punchestown,” said Mullins.
“He has a season under his belt now and is stronger and has definitely improved as much as I hoped he would. He did it nicely at Punchestown and won well in the end.
“It was great to get back on track you know, he went to Cheltenham (for the Champion Bumper) and he got a kick at the start from another horse and it kind of stopped our season then and there.
“We got him back at Punchestown and we were thrilled and we have been thrilled ever since. We just hope we get a nice clean run on Sunday and see what happens.”
Encanto Bruno made a winning start to life in the care of Gavin Cromwell at Cheltenham in October and will seek to continue his progress, dropping back to the minimum two miles.
“We’re going back to two miles from two-and-a-half-miles at Cheltenham the last day, but he travelled very well at Cheltenham, so hopefully that won’t be a problem to him,” said Cromwell.
“The soft ground is probably as soft as he would want it, but he will hopefully cope with it fine and he seems in good nick.
“He’s like a lot of good horses and he doesn’t really show you much at home, he’s a really likeable, simple and straightforward horse. He clearly produces it on the track and they are the ones that you want.”
Disputing matters at the top of the market is Henry de Bromhead’s An Tobar, who was a taking course-and-distance scorer on debut, while Gordon Elliott and Willie Mullins have traded blows in this race in recent history and between them are responsible for five of the eight declared runners.
Cullentra House stable jockey Jack Kennedy links up with Clonmel winner Farren Glory, with Elliott also saddling Gigginstown pair King Of Kingsfield and What’s Up Darling.
Hurricane Fly features among Mullins’ nine Royal Bond heroes and this time the Closutton master relies on the Rich Ricci-owned duo Bialystok and Horantzau D’airy.
Jamaican International Ravel Morrison has been convicted of fraud after he was caught using a deceased person’s blue badge to park.
According to a report in The Guardian, Morrison, during his interview under caution, claimed he bought the badge from “someone in Old Trafford” for £50. The former Manchester United representative was subsequently charged with one count of fraud.
Morrison, 30, who currently represents DC United in Major League Soccer (MLS) appeared before Manchester magistrates court to plead guilty to the offence on Thursday. He was fined £1,000 and was ordered to pay costs of £508.32 and a victim surcharge of £400.
Manchester city council enforcement officers began their investigation in May into a white Audi S3 parked in Bridgewater Street which was displaying a blue badge.
Blue badge permits are given to people with disabilities or health issues, whose mobility is limited. It entitles those individuals to park free of charge in spaces that are often closer to shops and destinations.
The police discovered that the badge’s holder died in February 2022, and was no longer valid. The vehicle was issued with a penalty charge notice and was removed to the Manchester vehicle pound. Morrison reclaimed his vehicle later the same day.
“This ruling shows that the law is applicable to everyone, with no exceptions. I am grateful for the diligent work of our investigating officers, as well as legal counsel, who were able to successfully prosecute this case,” a spokesperson for Manchester city council said.
“Our officers patrol the streets daily to ensure that blue badges are used legitimately, and we will not hesitate to take action if we discover people trying to circumvent the law,” they added.
Morrison’s topsy-turvy career, playing for 13 clubs around the world after leaving Manchester United in 2012. He has so far made 18 appearances for Jamaica with three goals to his credit.
This afternoon’s Coral Gold Cup card at Newbury will go ahead as planned following a precautionary inspection.
The entire track was covered again after racing on Friday and was reported to be frost free underneath at inspection time.
Officials will, however, continue to monitor conditions with a further drop in temperatures expected before day break.
It was positive news too from Fairyhouse, too, where day one of the track’s Winter Festival also passed an inspection.
Fans of the mighty Constitution Hill might have to wait until Boxing Day to catch a sight of National Hunt racing’s pre-eminent superstar, with trainer Nicky Henderson revealing he is far from certain to line up in a rescheduled Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Sandown next weekend.
The six-year-old was all set to bid for back-to-back victories in the Grade One contest at Newcastle on Saturday, but the abandonment of racing has forced his trainer back to the drawing board.
The powers that be have moved swiftly to save the Fighting Fifth, switching it to next Saturday’s Tingle Creek card, with existing entries cancelled and new entries to be made by noon on Monday.
But the week’s delay means there will now only be 17 days between the Fighting Fifth and Constitution Hill’s next target – a defence of the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton.
“We’ve discussed it and discussed it and we’ll continue to discuss it,” Henderson told the PA news agency on Friday afternoon.
“What I couldn’t give Ian Renton (regional director for the Jockey Club) was a guarantee that if they put it on at Sandown that we would run, so I think what they will do is reopen it, and therefore we are not holding it to ransom.
“I don’t know, I’m nervous about it – the time schedule – and I fear one race will have to be sacrificed for the other.”
Constitution Hill was due to be joined on the trip to Newcastle by stablemate Shishkin, who would have been on a recovery mission under a big weight in the Rehearsal Chase, having refused to start in last weekend’s 1965 Chase at Ascot.
As that premier handicap will not be restaged, the Seven Barrows handler must now face preparing his charge for a tilt at the King George VI Chase at Kempton without the aid of a prep run.
He added: “What I really want is a race for Shishkin – that is miles more important.
“I do not like the idea of going into the King George with no run, I don’t like that at all, but there is nowhere for him to go. If you could put on a Rehearsal Chase or something like that I would be there like a bullet!
“He’s going to have to do a lot of work in a short space of time. A lot of racecourses are very helpful to us and I’m going to have to rely on them for their help.”
Jamaica College and St Andrew Technical (STATHS) will meet in the 2023 Walker Cup final after scoring 3-0 victories over Excelsior High and Wolmer’s Boys respectively in the semi-finals played at stadium east on Thursday.
Coming into the season, both teams who had met in the Manning Cup final in 2017, 2019 and 2022, would have been tipped to meet at that stage once again.
Jayd Johnson scored a double for Jamaica College who led 1-0 at half time as Excelsior High finished the game with 10 players after Renaldino Medwinter was sent off for striking a Jamaica College player.
Johnson gave Jamaica College the lead in the 27th minute, Jamoy Denis made the scores 2-0 in the 51st minute before Johnson completed his brace in the 58th minute.
Earlier in the first game, Nickoy Gayle scored for STATHS in the 10th minute, Richard Livingston doubled the lead in the 19th minute before Ajetai Marshall who was celebrating his 17th birthday and came off the bench in the second half, completed the scoring in the 77th minute.
The final will be a precursor to the Manning Cup final between Hydel High and Mona High at the National Stadium on December 8.
Nicky Henderson will make alternative plans for Constitution Hill and Shishkin following the abandonment of Saturday’s high-profile fixture at Newcastle.
Constitution Hill was due to bid for back-to-back victories in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Gosforth Park, with Shishkin set to join his esteemed stablemate on the trip to the north east for a redemption mission in the Rehearsal Chase, having refused to start in last weekend’s 1965 Chase at Ascot.
But with course officials calling off the meeting on Friday after significant snow fell on the covered track, Henderson is now contemplating his next move.
While raising the possibility of the Fighting Fifth being rescheduled, the Seven Barrows handler would be happy to head straight to the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton on Boxing Day with Constitution Hill.
What is causing him a bigger headache is how best to prepare Shishkin for an intended tilt at the King George VI Chase on the same Kempton card.
“The one I’m more concerned about is Shishkin,” Henderson told Racing TV at Newbury on Friday. “From Constitution Hill’s point of view, if he had to go to Kempton without a run, that would not worry me at all, whereas Shishkin going to the King George without a run does not sit comfortably.
“We have no option with Shishkin, there might be an option with Constitution Hill, as I know the powers that be are working like beavers to try and reconstruct a Fighting Fifth.
“But on the other hand, we wouldn’t want to go too far away from today, because you’re getting terribly close to Christmas itself and 16 or 17 days (between runs) doesn’t appeal to me enormously.
“I don’t think Shishkin is necessarily a doubt (for the King George), but he needs to go and have a good gallop somewhere. He’ll have to do some work in the meantime.”
Dashel Drasher produced a gutsy display to hold off the fast-finishing Paisley Park in a thrilling conclusion to the Coral Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury.
Jeremy Scott’s Stayers’ Hurdle runner-up was sent off the 2-1 second favourite in the hands of Rex Dingle and showed huge improvement on his Wetherby reappearance, when only third in the West Yorkshire Hurdle.
It was Patrick Neville’s Mahons Glory who wasted no time in building up a hefty lead in the early stages, as the other five runners were well-grouped, content to bide their time.
With the business end of the Grade Two event approaching, 20-1 shot Flight Deck led the field into the straight but Dashel Drasher was snapping at his heels and had taken over by the time the final flight approached.
The 10-year-old jumped the last with a narrow advantage, with Dingle soon in full flow searching for the line, as Tom Bellamy in his wing mirrors conjured up the customary end-of-race flourish from Paisley Park.
However, despite the petrol tank flashing red and Dashel Drasher’s lead narrowing with every stride, he was never headed by Paisley Park and showed plenty of heart to pull out extra and score by a head.
Grand National hero Corach Rambler could head straight for the Cheltenham Gold Cup following his creditable third-placed finish in last weekend’s Betfair Chase.
Lucinda Russell’s charge was disappointing on his seasonal reappearance at Kelso in October, but was nevertheless stepped up to Grade One level for the first time at Haydock.
The nine-year-old was ultimately unable to land a telling blow on Merseyside, but Russell’s partner and assistant Peter Scudamore feels there was enough encouragement in the performance to suggest he would be no forlorn hope come Gold Cup day in March.
He said: “I was delighted, I thought he ran a fantastic race. Derek (Fox) thought the ground was a bit soft for him, but he stuck at it well.
“I think he’s got an opportunity of being placed in a Gold Cup. I don’t think he’ll win it, but I think he’s got an opportunity to be placed.
“We’re not quite sure where we’re going between now and then, but personally I think we should do the same as last year – give him a racecourse gallop, go to Cheltenham and then go to Aintree.
“We’ll see how he is, but that’s what I think.”
Corach Rambler has won the Ultima Handicap Chase at each of the last two Cheltenham Festivals and the form of his second victory has been boosted hugely by the runner-up Fastorslow.
Martin Brassil’s stable star went on to beat Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs in the Punchestown Gold Cup before the end of last season, and proved that was no fluke by taking his measure again in last Sunday’s John Durkan at Punchestown.
Scudamore added: “Corach Rambler loves Cheltenham and has performed round well at Cheltenham. He obviously beat Fastorslow last season and the extra two furlongs of the Gold Cup won’t worry him.
“Last year he went to Carlisle, then he finished fourth at Newbury (in the Coral Gold Cup) and then it was a big step up from Newbury to what he did at Cheltenham.
“I think he ran to the same standard as he did at Newbury last year when he ran at Haydock the other day on ground that was possibly softer than he likes.
“I think he’s a worthy runner in the Gold Cup – I don’t think he’d just be turning up for the day out – and I’d be quite happy to go straight there.”
Saturday’s high-profile fixture at Newcastle, which was due to stage the return of the brilliant Constitution Hill, has been abandoned due to snow on the track.
Nicky Henderson’s charge was set to be the star of the show this weekend, in his bid for back-to-back victories in the Fighting Fifth Hurdle.
Adding further spice to a quality card was the intended presence of his top-class stablemate Shishkin, who was poised to contest the Rehearsal Chase having refused to start at Ascot last weekend.
Officials deployed frost sheets across the entirety of the Newcastle track on Tuesday to guard against sub-zero temperatures, and on Friday morning clerk of the course Eloise Quayle reported the surface underneath to be raceable.
However, with snow having already fallen, a precautionary inspection for 2.30pm on Friday was called to assess the situation and Quayle ultimately had no option but to call off proceedings.
She said: “We’re absolutely gutted. We’ve had five centimetres of snow in total and we tried to have a practice run of taking the frost sheets off with the snow on, which first of all proved incredibly difficult, then secondly as we were taking them up the ground was freezing over behind us.
“The ground wasn’t frozen as we were taking them off, but within half an hour it was white over. Given we were having our warmest temperatures at the time we were taking them off, coupled with the difficulties taking them off in the first place, I think we were pretty hopeless, sadly.
“We’ve tried everything we can, but unfortunately sometimes you just can’t beat the weather.”
While Friday’s Newbury meeting went ahead as scheduled, a precautionary inspection has been called for 7.30am ahead of Saturday’s Coral Gold Cup card.
Covers were put down earlier in the week and were due to be reapplied at the end of Friday’s meeting ahead of overnight temperatures which could dip as low as minus 4C overnight.
Doncaster also have a Saturday card, which will be subject to a 7.30am check.
Fairyhouse is due to stage a classy two-day fixture on Saturday and Sunday, although the opening day is subject to a 7.30am inspection.
Brendan Sheridan, Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board clerk of the course at Fairyhouse, said: “We had a slight grass frost at Fairyhouse this morning following a cold night, but the track is currently fit for racing.
“Having spoken with Met Eireann this morning, the forecast for tonight is for temperatures to get down to minus 3C and not much higher than 2C tomorrow.
“In light of that forecast, we will have an inspection at 7.30am on Saturday morning to assess the situation for day one of our Winter Festival.”
Bangor’s Saturday National Hunt meeting is subject to a precautionary inspection at 8am, while Sunday’s meetings at Leicester and Carlisle will have to pass 11.30am and 12pm checks respectively on Saturday, with Carlisle currently unraceable due to frozen patches of ground.
Milton Harris’ assistant Tony Charlton has been granted a temporary training licence after an interim suspension was imposed on Wiltshire-based Harris by the British Horseracing Authority.
Harris has not been able to have runners since November 9, when Balboa and Giddyupadingdong were not permitted to compete at Ludlow by the BHA, with the Warminster trainer due to face a licensing committee hearing in January.
Charlton has now been given a temporary licence to train from Harris’ Sutton Veny yard, although it is “with agreed conditions attached”.
Horses who have remained in Harris’ yard since the trainer’s licence was suspended will be able to run from December 14, although any horse who has been in a licensed yard and moves to Charlton will be eligible to run immediately.
Harris, who started his training career in 2001, had a seven-year enforced absence from 2011 to 2018 due to financial issues.
Since returning to the sport he has saddled some notable winners, highlighted by Knight Salute, who claimed the 2022 Grade One Jewson Anniversary 4-y-o Juvenile Hurdle at Aintree along with three Grade Two victories that season.
Matthew Forde was 20 years old when he first appeared for a CPL franchise. Having had success in age group cricket he was someone who was of interest to CPL teams, but it was a conversation with Pedro Collins that started his CPL career. Forde had been coached by Collins for a while. They lived very close to each other, and Collins would regularly give Forde a lift to and from training.
On one of those journeys the conversation turned to CPL cricket. Forde told Collins that he did not currently have a team. Collins is part of the Saint Lucia Kings set up and he called Daren Sammy, the Kings head coach, while Forde was in the car. Forde was encouraged to send videos of him in action to Sammy and by the time he was dropped off Sammy had called back to say, “I want this youngster.”
That conversation led to Forde making his CPL debut during the 2022 season, and while he didn’t bowl in his first match, he was entrusted with the new ball for his home debut against Guyana Amazon Warriors. Forde says his response to being asked if he wanted this responsibility so early in his career was to tell Sammy, “You asking a dog if he want a bone”.
Forde was determined to make the most of that opportunity. While sat on a drinks cooler waiting for his home debut he made it clear to his team mate, Rivaldo Clarke, that he was not going to miss his chance. He said: “Rivaldo boy, I don't know about you, but I know when I get my chance and I come off of this cooler, I'm not coming back on this cooler.”
Forde has not had to sit on the side lines since, with the latest milestone being his call up for the West Indies ODI team who are taking on England in December. His coach for that series will be Daren Sammy, and Forde has said that his relationship with the Kings and West Indies head coach has been foundational to his career.
“I think he has been, if not the backbone, he has been the main guy for me in terms of giving me that opportunity and trusting me, believing in me. I started opening with the new ball for the Kings and he trusted me. I just kept performing until he built that trust in me,” Forde said.
For Forde, the CPL has been the building block for his career progression since making that breakthrough in 2022. “I think CPL was the foundation. CPL really started it all because without CPL then the rest of the world wouldn't see me. CPL was my first major tournament. So, for me that's like CPL was the foundation. And I will always say the Kings will always be at my heart.”
Going forward, Forde wants to develop all elements of his game. He has two half centuries in topflight cricket, one as an overseas player at the Lanka Premier League and another in the recently concluded Super 50 tournament where he presented the West Indies academy side. He says developing his batting and becoming a true all-rounder is where he wants his game end up.
“My goal is to be to be the number one all-rounder in the world and to put West Indies cricket back to where it needs to be at the top. So, for me and a couple of the younger guys like me, we work really hard in in terms of fitness, the mental side of the game, theory, whatever it be. We are always working because we know what we want to achieve, and we know the goals that we have set and planned out as a collective group.”
Hermes Allen made a fine start to his career over fences with a smooth success in the Coral John Francome Novices’ Chase at Newbury.
The six-year-old looked a top-class prospect after striking Grade One gold in the Challow Hurdle at the Berkshire track late last year but was unable to replicate that form in the spring after being sent off favourite for both the Ballymore at Cheltenham and the Mersey Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree.
Having undergone wind surgery during the off-season, the Paul Nicholls-trained gelding was the 13-8 market leader for his reappearance and chasing bow and ultimately got the job done in convincing fashion.
The keen-going Nickle Back took the six-strong field along for much of the two-and-a-half-mile journey and looked to have the chasing pack in trouble rounding the home turn, with Harry Cobden having to ask Hermes Allen a question or two to close the gap.
However, Nickle Back’s earlier exertions began to take their toll halfway up the straight and Hermes Allen soon took his measure before stretching six and a half lengths clear.
“It was a proper race today, which you’d expect, and I’m thrilled with that. He jumped well, travelled well, learnt a lot and galloped on well,” Nicholls told Racing TV.
“Harry was thrilled with him, he said he was very clever jumping, especially late on, and that’s just what you want from a novice chaser first time.
“I’ve said quite openly, we missed a month’s work with him and I’ve been chasing my tail to get him ready, to be honest. It’s only a fortnight ago that I thought we’d get here, luckily we were able to gallop him here on the gallops morning, he’s schooled well and we’ve just about got away with it.
“He will improve fitness-wise, but he’s just got natural ability. His form in the first half of last season was very good, then he lost his way a bit, but he was struggling with his breathing all season and I think that caught up with him in the spring. He’s the finished article now.”
The Ditcheat handler now faces a quandary over how best to campaign what appears a particularly strong team of novice chasers in the staying division.
He said: “The idea is that Stay Away Fay runs at Sandown next week (Esher Novices’ Chase) and Knappers Hill is going to go to Kempton (Kauto Star Novices’ Chase on Boxing Day). I was thinking this horse would go for the Dipper on New Year’s Day at Cheltenham, but that’s gone now, so we’ll have to come up with something else.
“I don’t want to run them against each other at the moment. We’ll have to in the spring, but at the moment it’s pointless really.
“Whether I go to Cheltenham in a fortnight’s time with this horse over two-and-a-half and then leave him for the Scilly Isles (at Sandown in February), that could be a possibility.”
John McConnell is out to put a recent quiet spell behind him by claiming one of the biggest victories of his training career so far in the “iconic” Coral Gold Cup at Newbury on Saturday.
The County Meath handler is one of coming forces on the Irish jumps scene, as advertised my multiple Graded-race victories in recent years and a first Cheltenham Festival success with Seddon last season.
Mahler Mission may well be a Festival hero himself, had he not fallen two fences from home when still bang in contention in the National Hunt Chase in March.
And following a pleasing comeback run when second in the Colin Parker Memorial Chase at Carlisle last month, the seven-year-old will line up this weekend with leading claims.
“I’m very happy with him, everything has gone well and we’re looking forward to it,” said McConnell.
“He’s travelled over and travelled fine, everything is good that way and there’s not a bother on him.
“Conditions should be OK, so we’re looking for a trouble-free run and after that we’ll see what happens.
“We were delighted with Carlisle. I think given it was two and a half miles on a right-handed track it was a very good run, and this trip should be more suitable.”
While Mahler Mission clearly has plenty going for him, there are a couple of obvious negatives.
Not only has McConnell gone over 50 days and saddled more than 40 runners since his last winner, but the Irish also have a surprisingly poor record in the former Hennessy Gold Cup, with the victory of the Willie Mullins-trained Total Recall in 2017 a first for the raiding party since Bright Highway’s success in 1980.
McConnell, though, remains positive, adding: “We’ve been a little bit quiet, but the jumps horses have been running mainly OK and it’s very competitive at this time of year, so I’m not overly worried.
“The Irish don’t have a great record in the race, I don’t know if there’s a particular reason, but hopefully we can change that.
“It’s one of the iconic races I’ve grown up watching and to have a runner in it is great, to think about winning it is just unreal.”
There is a second major contender from Ireland in the form of Gavin Cromwell’s Stumptown.
The six-year-old has disappointed in his last three races, but had previously looked a likely candidate for a race of this nature by winning at Sandown and finishing second in the Kim Muir at Cheltenham.
Cromwell said: “He’s in great nick and has a lovely racing weight, so hopefully he will have a good chance.
“The last day he ran in the Kerry National he made a mistake, I think it was four out, and wasn’t beaten far, so it wasn’t that bad of a run.
“When he was pulled up in the Irish Grand National it was quite soon after Cheltenham and it was run on very soft ground, which probably wasn’t ideal.”
The home team is headed by Complete Unknown, who bids to provide Paul Nicholls with a fourth victory in the race as a trainer and a sixth overall, having also ridden the winner twice in the 1980s aboard Broadheath and Playschool.
Nicholls told Betfair: “This race has been his target since he came back into training early in July. Second-season chasers have a great record in the Coral Gold Cup and he comes to Newbury in top form after a tidy win at Newton Abbot in October when he was only half fit. That was his first start since a wind op in the summer and he has improved tons for the outing.
“Complete Unknown schooled really well on Thursday and we are very happy with him. Most of his form is on testing ground, but that is mainly down to circumstance and he was an excellent second to Gerri Colombe on good to soft going at Aintree in April. As long as the ground at Newbury is similar he should be fine.”
Dan and Harry Skelton combined to win last year’s Coral Gold Cup with Le Milos and are out to repeat the feat with Midnight River, who returns to handicap company after finishing third in the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby on his seasonal debut.
“Midnight River is very well and this is what we have had our eye on for a while with him. He jumped on Wednesday morning and that told us everything is ready,” said the trainer.
“I was delighted with his run in the Charlie Hall, he couldn’t beat the first two that day, we tried to go with them turning in but he didn’t have that class if you like, but he’s improved a good bit since then and we’ve aimed at this ever since.
“He’s been in all those top handicaps last season so he does have that experience, but I’m sure it will be a very good race, it always is.”
Other contenders include Lucinda Russell’s top-weight Ahoy Senor and the Sam Thomas-trained pair of Stolen Silver and Our Power.
Russell said in her blog for William Hill: “He’s a very classy horse, but it is a heck of a weight to carry round. He’s run very well round Newbury before, where the fences suit him, and I think we’ll see a much-improved performance from his run at Wetherby.
“At an each-way price I think he’s been overlooked and we think finishing in the first four would be a satisfactory result. I’m quite bullish about him in a way because he’ll be much better for his comeback run, but it’s a big field and he has to carry top-weight.”
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