BRIAN’S BLAST FROM THE PAST

Under the heading ‘Friendly rivals neck and neck until the final fence’, this is what I reported in the Western Mail on May 9, 2017.

In the Ladies’ Open race at the Banwen Club on May Day Bank Holiday, Pembrokeshire’s Jodie Hughes, 33, riding Roger Willcox’s Patricktom Boru, managed to beat Glamorgan’s Isabel Williams,19, riding Buck Mulligan, by just a length after the pair had jumped the last together.

Both riders are leading the field in the race for the Welsh Ladies’ Championship and, although Jodie has ridden more winners than Isabel, as the competition is run on a points basis and Isabel has had more six seconds along with her two winners, it is a very close thing indeed.

Jodie was champion in 2011, 2014 and 2015, and said of her younger rival: ”Isabel is a very neat and determined rider and we have had a few close battles already this season, but we get on really well.’’

It’s hard to believe now,watching Jodie jumping those fences at breakneck speed, that when she first started out she used to ride against Isabel’s father, Evan Williams, who in 2002 won the national point-topoint riders’ championship and who today is Wales’ leading National Hunt trainer.

Jodie has booted home 69 winners, nine of which have been under Rules.

Her claim to fame is that she once beat the legendary champion jockey AP McCoy when riding 100-1 winner Panache.

Her six winners this season have come on different horses, four of them in maiden races.

She said: “It’s very satisfying winning on maidens [horses that have not won before] knowing that no-one else has won on these inexperienced horses.’

Jodie told me: “I’m still as driven now as I have ever been and my aim is to ride as many winners as I can for as long as I can.’’

For the record, the winners that day were Conditions: Minella For All (James Bowen) 5-2, Confined: Qalinas ( Wayne Maskill) evens fav. Men’s Open: Really Unique ( Byron Moorcroft ) 5-4, Ladies’ Open: Patricktom Boru (Jodie Hughes 5-6 fav. Restricted: Robin Des People (Bradley Gibbs) 4-5 fav. Intermediate: Minella Arts ( Tom David) evens fav. Open Maiden: Robin’s Wager (Byron Moorcroft) 7-1.