THE curtain came down on the regional 2025/2026 point-to-point season last Saturday at Castle Irvine, Necarne, following the second session of the Fermanagh Harriers’ annual two-day meeting.

Co Wexford’s Barry O’Neill was crowned champion rider during a campaign which saw him record 13 wins. Four of these came at the weekend, with two being on the David Christie-trained, Ray Nicholas-owned West Of Idaho who landed the Dennison Commercials winners of three on Friday and Killyhevlin Hotel adjacent hunts’ winners’ race the following afternoon.

Larne-based Stephen Connor ended the regional season with 12 wins to his credit. The Galway native was placed on all but one of his seven rides on Saturday, but only scored on the first of these, the newcomer Ballywillin who landed division one of the opening Goffs Spring Sale four-year-old maiden in the colours of his trainer, Stuart Crawford. The Affinisea gelding is due to come up as Lot 399 at next week’s Goffs Spring horses in training/point-to-point sale at Doncaster.

The majority of Noel McParlan’s 11 wins came on horses trained at Caherty Stables by Gerald Quinn for Philip McBurney, but not the last which he recorded in the final race of the regional season, the Mannok & Breen Concannon Farrier seven-year-old and upwards geldings’ maiden. Here, Noel scored by five and a half lengths on the 2019 Shantou gelding Minella Cristal, who is trained by Saintfield’s Patrick Ward.

There were two more locally-trained winners on Saturday. Deckie Lavery recorded his fifth regional success when the Mary Turley-owned, Paddy Turley-trained newcomer Lower De Couely landed the ITBA NH fillies’ bonus scheme five-year-old mares’ maiden by four and a half lengths. Trained by Cormac Abernethy and carrying the colours of Largy Bloodstock, the nine-year-old City Chief won the novice riders’ open under Co Wexford’s Cormac Byrne.

The McGill brothers, Orán and Dara, ended the local campaign on the six and five-win mark respectively.

Any older riders considering stepping back from the game should take heart from the fact that, while the local point-to-point season was coming to a close last Saturday, Co Antrim’s Jeremy McWilliams landed the supertwin race at the North West 200 at the age of 62.

I AM going to start on the winning jockeys, trainers, owners and breeders this week with the latter group, as otherwise I might forget that the Martin McCaughey-bred 12-year-old gelding Ninth Wave (September Storm - Royale Pearl, by Cloudings) recorded his 15th success between the flags when landing the ladies’ open at Cothelstone on Wednesday.

On Friday at Downpatrick, the concluding Joe Rea Memorial Mares INH Flat Race was won by the Paul Flynn-trained, Orán McGill-ridden Coco’s Legacy, who was having her second start. The five-year-old Order Of St George bay was bred by the late John Eastwood, whose family retain ownership of the mare. She is the first of four recorded foals out of Suakin (by Motivator), whose three-year-old Poet’s Word filly, is due to come up as Lot 549 in Part II of the Derby Sale.

On the William Hill-sponsored card at Lingfield on Saturday, there was a win for the McCracken Farms-bred three-year-old filly Assaranca (Ghaiyyath - Hansiya, by Dark Angel).

Let’s move on to the training front, and back to that Friday meeting at Downpatrick, where Colin McBratney saddled James Murdoch’s Gangster Granny to win the Road Stud Instillations Handicap Hurdle at odds of 33/1. On the same card, Ross Crawford sent out Dinoland to win the near three-mile Remembering Caughoo Handicap Chase for owners Nigel O’Hare, Joe Mackie, Mark Devlin and Philip Smith.

At Naas the following afternoon, the Stonethorn Farms-bred, Aidan O’Brien-trained Confucius (No Nay Never - Millisle, by Starspangledbanner) won the six-furlong two-year-old maiden at odds of 1/5 on his second start.

Soldier marches on

At Roscommon on Monday, the extended seven-furlong handicap was won by the Andy Oliver-trained 9/4 favourite, Sun Soldier.

Here we go, back to Downpatrick again, where Dermot McLaughlin saddled Finnians Row to win the Peter Fitzpatrick & Sons Estate Agents and Chartered Surveyors Handicap Chase for local owners Anne McCartan and Frances Smyth. The 10-year-old Famous Name gelding was ridden by Liam McKenna.

At Naas on Saturday, the Amanda Torrens-owned Arctic Steps won the five-furlong handicap in the hands of Paddy McGettigan. Owner Peter FitzGerald is on a bit of a roll at present and his colours were carried to bumper victories at Killarney on Saturday and at Cork on Sunday on the Willie Mullins-trained pair, Linford and Aine, who were both bred by Cherryvalley Farms. The Eoin Barry-owned Oneforgonzo won at Killarney on Monday.

On the flat jockeys’ front, there were multiple wins during the week for Dylan Browne McMonagle, highlighted by that in the Ladbrokes Chester Cup - at Chester - on Friday on the Joseph O’Brien-trained A Piece Of Heaven and by a treble at Leopardstown on Sunday. Others to visit the winner’s enclosure more than once were Oisin Orr and Darragh Keenan, while there was a single victory for Barry McHugh.

Over jumps, Sam Ewing partnered the aforementioned Dinoland to win at Downpatrick on Monday, after which he had a win at Sligo on Tuesday and landed a double at Punchestown on Wednesday. Anna McGuinness was on the mark at Killarney on Monday.

Across the water, Danny McMenamin landed a double at Market Rasen on Friday and followed that up with wins at Hexham on Saturday and at Perth on Wednesday.

DOWNPATRICK racecourse is set to celebrate point-to-pointing at its meeting next Friday, May 22nd, with two hunters’ chases, a point-to-point bumper and the Northern Region point-to-point awards.

The feature race is the Albert Bartlett Hunters’ Steeplechase over three and a half miles. This carries a prize fund of €17,500 and is expected to attract a high-quality field. Supporting the feature are the Down Royal Corporation of Horse Breeders’ Maiden Hunters’ Chase over two miles, seven furlongs and the Caherty Stables Racing Syndicate Point-to-Point Flat Race over two miles, one furlong.

The raceday will also recognise the achievements of Northern-based participants throughout the 2025/2026 regional point-to-point season with the annual Northern Region point-to-point awards taking place after racing. The awards are once again generously sponsored by the Down Royal Corporation of Horse Breeders, whose continued support for grassroots racing remains invaluable.

It will be a busy evening, with the Northern Region ITBA also hosting their annual awards prior to racing. For tickets and further information on ITBA awards, please contact the ITBA directly.

On Wednesday, Ruth Morrison, General Manager at Downpatrick, along with racecourse chairman Noel Chance, attended Balmoral Show where the 2018 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Native River, bred locally by Fred Mackey, landed the Downpatrick Racecourse racehorse to riding horse class in the hands of Emily MacMahon. A full report on the class will appear in next week’s review of the show.