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Ashforth's Angles: A salute to persevering trainers

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Race horse trainer NEVILLE BYCROFT

Neville Bycroft: has been training since 1981

  PICTURE: Martin Lynch (racingpost.com/photos)  

 By David Ashforth 6:00PM 9 FEB 2016 

David Ashforth previews the racing from Carlisle, Kempton and Southwell on Wednesday

It’s a great pity that Ludlow has been abandoned as I had some jolly interesting things to say about it.

At least the ground there won’t get more chewed up. In company with other tracks, it looked to be suffering last week. Luckily there’s still Carlisle and, of course, Southwell and Kempton. There’ll always be Southwell, I feel, a bit like there was always Methuselah, at least for 969 years, before he was cruelly taken from us. I expect it was his teeth that let him down in the end.

When you’ve followed racing for a long time there’s a pleasure in the sight of familiar names, not of celebrated trainers but of small, striving, persevering ones.

Course specialist

So, in the first race at Southwell (1.10), next to Razin’ Hell, sits the untrumpeted name of John Balding. Like most of Balding’s horses, Razin’ Hell is a sprinter and, although his 6lb penalty for last week’s win over today’s course and distance takes the five-year-old up to a career high official mark of 75, his record at the track is impressive. It reads 2213113141.

It was 1987 when Balding, 70 now, took over from his father Arthur, who rode Cresta Run to win the 1,000 Guineas in 1927. There have been a few stars along the way – Blyton Lad won the Listed Rous Stakes at Newmarket in 1990, Matty Tun won two valuable sprint handicaps at York and Musselburgh in 2003, a year when Balding trained 21 winners. In 2008, with his first runner abroad, Balding’s Turn On The Style won £36,000 at Nad Al Sheba. Days to cherish.

It’s a few years since the South Yorkshire yard hit double figures but it’s something to still have the enthusiasm at 70, and let’s hope Razin’ Hell does.

Amazing Bycroft

That’s nothing. Neville Bycroft, whose Eium Mac (4.25) is partnered by the underrated Raul da Silva, has been training since 1981 and is 82. Amazing. His North Yorkshire yard also rarely reaches double figures but it’s had its moments and its horses.

Imagine what it felt like in 2006, when Danum Dancer, ridden by the up-and-coming Silvestre de Sousa, won the Listed Two-Year-Old Trophy at Redcar, and with it £114,000.

So go on Eium Mac and, at Kempton, go on Franco’s Secret (7.25), trained by Peter Hedger, in West Sussex.

Hedger, 76, has sailed a similar ship, sometimes winning ten races a year, as in 1998, when Brilliant Red won £43,000 by landing the Courage Handicap at Newbury.

Bargain buy

Franco’s Secret, like stablemate Pacabag (6.25), is out of Veronica Franco, and thereby hangs a tale. In 1997 Veronica Franco was beaten in a selling race at Windsor, to take her career record to zero from 22.

She was a four-year-old rated 44. Optimistically, John Whelan claimed her for £6,000 and sent her to Hedger.

In the next 13 months Veronica Franco won seven times, culminating in victory and a £19,000 prize at Newbury, when rated 74. At stud she has produced five winners of 22 races.

I like stories like those.

 

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