Popular course has nurtured big names
THE South Wales and Monmouthshire Point-to-Point season gets under way at Howick, near Chepstow, on Sunday (February 16). First race is at noon and an exciting afternoon’s racing is promised. Enthusiasts over the past few years have witnessed the riding skills over the popular Howick course of the likes of Sean and James Bowen, Ben Jones, Jack Tudor and Connor Brace. All these riders have now joined the paid ranks and have been making a name for themselves under the full rules of the sport. Seventeen-yearold Tudor, for instance, not only rode the winner of the Welsh Grand National but recently landed the £100,000 Betway Heroes Handicap Hurdle at Sandown Park on Limited Edition for trainer Christian Williams, who also began his race-riding career between the flags.
Evan Williams, a former national champion point-to-point rider featured in last week’s Turf Talk column, has been sending out winners on an almost daily basis, while another former point-to-point rider turned trainer, Tim Vaughan, has also been keeping his owners happy.
■ Congratulations go to Pembrokeshire based Scott Malson, who chalked up his first point-to-point win when scoring on the Jason Warner-trained Mister Dick at the
Milborne St Andrew Point-to-Point in Dorset.
■ Meanwhile, former Western Mail racing editor Brian Radford is recovering at his Newbury home after spending eight days in hospital after undergoing an operation. Brian was chief sub-editor, deputy night editor and racing editor for his past eight years on the paper before leaving in 1979 to join the Sporting Life as assistant editor. In 1983 he moved to the People as a news/sports investigator and later joined the News of the World. He then freelanced for several other national newspapers including the Guardian, Observer and Daily Express.
He’s the author of a number of books on snooker, football, cricket and, of course, horse-racing. His Taken For A Ride, published in 1981, is still much sought-after by horse-racing enthusiasts. Brian attended the trial of the infamous In The Money/Cobblers March ringer scandal known as “The Trial of the Century”, in which John Bowles, of Crickhowell, Powys, after a two-week trial at Exeter Crown Court, was given an 18-month suspended sentence and fined £1,500 after being convicted of two counts of deception.
It was thanks to Brian that I was given the job of reporting on the Welsh hunt-racing scene for the Western Mail more than half a century ago now, and I am sure all the many horse-racing folk he met when he was with the Western Mail will want to wish him well.
Brian’s Blast from the Past
Under the heading “Fine display by Katesville”, this is what I had to say in the Western Mail back in 1990:
“Lee Bowles’ Katesville scored a twolengths win over odds-on favourite
Timber Tool in the Men’s Open race at the Llangeinor Hunt Point-to-Point. In one of the best races seen in Wales for years, Timber Tool, bidding for his 10th win in a row, set a cracking pace which soon had the field – apart from Katesville – well strung-out.
“But Katesville’s rider Tim Jones, always had the favourite in his sights and, taking the lead at the second last fence, Katesville ran on strongly to clock the fastest time of the day. Porthcawl’s Joanne Eddy, aged 21, a nurse in the Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, notched up her third winner when landing the members’ race for the second year running on her 14-year-old Luchello, who beat the fancied Sally Haven by a length.
“The ladies’ open was won by High Shoon, owned by Ross-on-Wye trainer John Edwards and ridden by his 18-year-old daughter Sophie, who was chalking up her first winner.
“High Shoon made nearly all to beat the favourite Rectory Boy by three lengths. High Shoon, a winner over hurdles and fences in Ireland, missed the last two seasons owing to leg trouble.
“Tim Rooney booted home his 17th winner this season on Peter Bowen’s Radio Cue in the Adjacent Hunts race and he is now just two wins behind Philip Scholfield – injured in a fall on Saturday – for the National Riders championship. For the record, John Llewellyn won the restricted on Tom Penny and Philip Williams took the maiden on 20-1 chance Willows Casinio.”