Market Rasen Saturday

THE Grade 3 Summer Plate has become something of a Peter Bowen benefit since the prolific Stately Home won in 1997, and the Haverfordwest handler defied something of a slump in form to saddle his seventh winner of the race thanks to 11/1 chance Francky Du Berlais who ran right away from his rivals from the last to score by seven and a half lengths under the trainer’s younger son James, while brother Sean pulled up on stable-companion Lord Bryan.

Exelerator Express (Neil Mulholland/Tom Scudamore), Pink Eyed Pedro (David Brace/Paddy Brennan) and Templepark (Fergal O’Brien/Max Kendrick) stayed on from off the pace to fill the frame placings, although there was a sad postscript when it was found that Templepark, who finished lame and was immediately dismounted, had ruptured a suspensory ligament as well as suffering a complex sesamoid fracture, and he had to be put down. A fine servant to the Kendrick family over the years, he fell once, but otherwise finished out of the first four on only one occasion – when fifth of 14 over hurdles at Ascot in 2018.

O’Meara strikes over jumps with Stoniffic

DAVID O’Meara made his name as a jump jockey back in the day, but it’s rare for him to have a runner over hurdles given the flat-orientated nature of his stable.

That said, it pays to take notice when he does, and he landed the Summer Handicap Hurdle with 40/1 shot Stoniffic (Tom Scudamore), who was gaining a ninth win from 47 career outings. O’Meara might have had the exacta but for the fast-finishing Ingleby Hollow getting stopped in his tracks after the last hurdle.

Agent back to winning ways at Newmarket

NEWMARKET took something of a back seat at the weekend, but there was a listed race on the card, with Hugo Palmer’s Golden Pass dictating terms under James Doyle, and getting first run on Free Wind (John & Thady Gosden/Nicky Mackay).

This was a fourth win in seven starts for the daughter of Golden Horn, who is a likeable sort, but she might have something to think about if meeting the runner-up again.

The Newmarket card also saw a belated return to winning ways of former Queen Anne hero Accidental Agent, who relished the drop to handicap company to overpower his rivals under Georgia Dobie, and put a smile on the face of trainer Eve Johnson Houghton.