Alexander family lands Kelso double

 

 

Fife trainer Nick Alexander, daughter Lucy and son Kit had just cause for family celebration after a victorious double at Kelso Races on Monday.

 

They opened their account in the second division of the Duncan Sinclair memorial novices’ hurdle race, where Landecker stayed on gamely to secure Lucy – Scotland’s only professional lady jockey – her 20th victory of the season.

 

Brother Kit rode Present Potential to land the feature race, the prestigious Cazenove Capital Management Buccleuch Cup maiden hunter chase.

 

The seven-year-old battled gamely to hold Quona Thomson’s Just Awake by two-and-a-quarter lengths.

 

Steven Fox, who rode favourite Barachois Silver to finish third picked up a 19-day ban for excessive use of the whip.

 

Champion jockey A.P. McCoy and Cheshire trainer Donald McCain completed a victorious double at the meeting.

 

McCoy enjoyed a comfortable victory in a drama-packed opening division of the Duncan Sinclair memorial novices’ hurdle, where Crofton Lane and Varene De Vauzelle crashed out at the first, badly impeding hurdling-debutant Maraweh.

 

Trevor Hemmings’ ex-Irish point-to-point victor was making it two out of three over hurdles.

 

The McCoy/McCain double was completed with another favourite – Sealous Scout – in the Kids Go Free at Berwick Speedway handicap hurdle race.

 

A soft ground bumper winner at Bangor in February, the six-year-old was making a victorious debut over the trip.

 

Henry Brooke was the luckless jockey carried out by a loose horse in Saturday’s Grand National, and his bad luck continued when Harrys Whim crashed out at the last when to the fore in the Green Tree Hotel Peebles mares’ handicap chase, leaving Hawick jockey Craig Nichol and Lady of Verona to take the spoils for Berwickshire owner Peter Dale.

 

Hunters Belt posted a popular local success for Hawick handler George Bewley to land the concluding Mcmillanfineart.com conditional jockeys handicap hurdle race, in the hands of the trainer’s son, Jonathon.

 

Yorkshire trainer Mark Walford recorded his first success over jumps when Fentara was left clear in the Sheena Cochrane Celebration handicap chase through the departure at the third last of Fiddlers Reel – depriving Galashiels jockey Ryan Mania of his 50th victory.

 

Walford enjoyed an across the card double when 10-1 chance Cornborough won the seven-furlong maiden stakes at Redcar in the hands of Hawick jockey Jason Hart.

 

Irish raider Sudski Star landed a competitive Borders Carers Centre handicap chase. The six-year-old is on the market, but could return to Scotland to run at Perth.

 

Racing was preceded by two competitive Charles Owen pony races – Charlie Todd and Little Anne winning the five-furlong contest and Abbie McCain riding Little Bull to take the six-furlong event.

 

The next meeting at Kelso is on Tuesday, April 22.