TOWCESTER RACES: Dream time for Jonjo O'Neill at Towcester

Hurdle.

While last year’s winner Earcomesthedream ran gamely in the race for the third time, the veteran 13 year-old eventually pulling up after still being in contention at the foot of the hill towards the end of the exhausting three mile marathon, Ultimate Dream, some seven years younger, coasted home by 14 lengths from The Model County with Samson back in third.

Ultimate Dream was returned at 13/2 and brought a first winner for rookie owners Brian and Yvonne Cosgrove from Cheltenham.

There was a 20 pence deduction in the pound on all winnings as 100/30 favourite Amberjam spread a plate at the start and failed to take part in what became an 11 runner affair.

On a day when a party of 60 guests assembled to remember Caroline Beesley, the former BBC Radio Northampton producer, presenter and news reader, it was fitting there were two winners on the seven-race card sired by Black Sam Bellamy.

Fund-raising for the Cynthia Spencer Hospice in Northampton was key to the gathering and while everyone made a significant contribution, local racehorse owners Mick and Sheila White and Simon Hunt were massive backers.

Hunt is best known for his roller coaster path with The Giant Bolster which was by the same German sire which produced both 40/1 winner Perfect Pirate and Sweetlittlemystery, the 16/1 scorer in the concluding bumper.

Perfect Pirate is trained by Ben Pauling who has made a name for himself with Towcester success over the past three seasons, notably with three wins by Newton Thistle, two of them on this card, in the last two years.

Perfect Pirate bounded home by three and a quarter lengths from Another Venture in the 2m 5f novices’ hurdle with the Tote win paying a massive £71.10 for a £1 stake.

Four of the runners in the bumper were sired by Black Sam Bellamy, but it was Sweetlittlemystery which prevailed by a head from the well supported Molly Childers.

There was some small irony in this as Sweetlittlemystery was ridden by Brendan Powell for his namesake father, yet Powell has often ridden for local trainer Stuart Edmunds, responsible for Molly Childers.

The switch to a testing track such as Towcester suited 12/1 winner Goohar which obliged by four and a half lengths from Dontminddboys in the 2m 5 1/2f novices’ limited handicap chase for trainer Henry Dailey and jockey Jake Greenall, while Yanmare (13/8 favourite) completed a chase hat-trick for Nigel Twiston-Davies and Jamie Bargary and Alan King celebrated his 50 th birthday week with Azzerti (13/8 favourite), in the 1m 7 1/2f maiden hurdle.