Jefferson off the mark with Cyrus
RUTH JEFFERSON saddled her first winner as a trainer as Cyrus Darius bolted up to repeat his victory of 12 months ago in the Timeform Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso.
The smart performer was trained by Jefferson’s father, Malcolm, who died two weeks ago. His funeral is in Malton today.
Jefferson has only saddled a handful of runners in her own name but it was perhaps fitting that one of the better horses in the yard would break her duck.
Cyrus Darius has not reached the heights that once looked possible, but back over smaller obstacles he looked in a different league to his three rivals.
He travelled like a dream throughout for Brian Hughes and the heavy ground did not stop him pulling 12 lengths clear of Better Getalong. Jefferson has been left with a yard in rude health, with the likes of Cloudy Dream, Mount Mews and Waiting Patiently among the stable stars. The latter pair both run at Ascot tomorrow. Waiting Patiently is 5-2 for the Grade One Betfair Ascot Chase. Mount Mews is 11-2 for the Sodexo Reynoldstown Novices’ Chase. Hughes had earlier set up a double for trainer Keith Dalgleish, winning on the novice Taxmeifyoucan. Mac N Cheese, ridden by Callum Bewley, was the Scot’s second winner on the card and his fourth in two days. Dalgleish gave Hughes the leg up on Silver Concorde and Delegate, his winners on Wednesday at Musselburgh where he has a terrific strike rate.