Wetherby Saturday

DJELO (Venetia Williams/Charlie Deutsch) landed the Grade 2 Charlie Hall Chase in impressive fashion, always travelling powerfully before seeing off the bold-jumping Pic d’Orhy (Paul Nicholls/Harry Cobden) to score by a length, with the pair 21 lengths ahead of Ga Law (Jamie Snowden/Jonathan Burke) in third. Hewick was the 2/1 favourite, but on a bad day for punters at the West Yorkshire track, he failed to travel with his usual fluency and was beaten at the top of the straight.

The Williams stable is notoriously quiet in the summer and early autumn, but November tends to be a profitable month, for the chasers in particular, and it was apt that she should saddle her first winner of the season on the first of that month.

“I was really thrilled,” said a smiling Venetia Williams after the contest. “It was quite a fight. I thought Djelo was going to win, then I thought he was going to get beaten. Pic d’Orhy is obviously a very talented horse. It was quite a battle to the line.

“We’ve got to go back for the Peterborough again [winner last year in heavy ground], haven’t we? I know it’s a step back in trip, but there’s no reason why he can’t be so effective. He certainly was last year.”

STRONG Leader (Olly Murphy/Sean Bowen) tends to be at his best fresh and enhanced his record after a break to win the Grade 2 bet365 Hurdle and, despite being usurped for favouritism and not travelling as well as runner-up Takenochances (Dan/Harry Skelton), the 15/8 second-favourite ground that rival down after the last to win by a hard-fought neck, with Doddiethegreat (Nicky Henderson/James Bowen) a length and a quarter back in third. Potter’s Charm was backed into favouritism, but failed to fire on the day.

The eight-year-old is probably best on a flat track and that makes his campaign fairly easy to map out, with Murphy unlikely to be tempted by the Stayers’ Hurdle.

“He’s a proper horse, and this has been the plan for a while,” said the winning trainer, before praising the efforts of the top riders who dominated the finish. “There were three brilliant jockeys and that was British jump racing from the back of the last today - a brilliant race - and I’m pleased we came out on top. That was a proper horse race. A truer-run race would suit Strong Leader well, and I hope there are more good races in him still.”

KATEIRA (Dan Skelton/Harry Skelton) was left with just one rival to beat after defections and the 2/1 shot took advantage of conditions to land the bet365 Mares’ Hurdle, travelling smoothly and asserting after the last to beat a below-par Golden Ace (Jeremy Scott/Lorcan Williams) by 28 lengths. The runner-up was some way off the form that saw her spring a surprise in the Champion Hurdle in March, but the winner did it easily and looks as good as ever.

A realistic Dan Skelton said: “You have to take the form with a pinch of salt as to my eyes the other mare wasn’t going from the first but the pair of them winged along. Kateira had been off the track a good while - unfortunately, we couldn’t run her in the new year as she had a very intricate pelvis injury that cut short her season. I know she only beat one horse, but she looked as good as ever. She could go to Ascot for a £100,000 race in three weeks.”

ASCOT’S first jumps card of the new season featured several classy handicaps, starting with the two-mile Grundon Waste Management Handicap Chase, and victory went to 9/2 chance Teddy Blue (Harry Derham/Brendan Powell), a tricky customer, but in cooperative mood as he travelled best and quickened to lead two fences out before beating Gabriel’s Getaway (Anthony Honeyball/Ben Godfrey) and Special Cadeau (Henry de Bromhead/Mike O’Connor) by three-parts of a length and a length and a quarter.

Teddy Blue’s win was a feather in the cap of Harry Derham, who has done so well with others’ cast-offs, and the seven-year-old gelding has now won half of his six starts since transferring from the stable of Gary and Josh Moore.

“Teddy Blue is a quirky horse,” admitted Derham. “I trained him until about last March horrendously. I was trying to train him like a normal horse, and one day it occurred to me that he’s a bit mad, and I needed to understand that. It took me a year to get to know him.

“All this spring, I had it in my head that this horse is so well. He’s very talented but just a bit mad. He could have another stone in hand, or no more in hand; he’s his own man, but I knew I had him right today.”

Alexei delivers

The Lavazza Handicap Hurdle saw 13/8 favourite Alexei (Joe Tizzard/Brendan Powell) deliver on market expectations with a decisive display. Travelling strongly throughout, Alexei took up the running approaching the last and stayed on well to hold Indemnity (Emma Lavelle/Ben Jones) and Moveit Like Minnie (Nigel and Willy Twiston-Davies/James Turner) by three lengths and a neck. Alexei seems at his best on a sound surface, with the going riding good here despite some heavy showers on the day, and it was quicker still at Chepstow when he was second to Celtic Dino in the valuable Welsh Champion Hurdle.

Strong finish

A typically competitive renewal of the Sodexho Live! Gold Cup Handicap Chase produced a strong finish from Henry’s Friend (Ben Pauling/Ben Jones). Always prominent, he jumped into the lead at the last and kept on well to repel The Changing Man (Joe Tizzard/Brendan Powell) and Blow Your Wad (Tom Lacey/Stan Sheppard) by a length and three-quarters and a length and a quarter. This win completed a double on the card for the trainer/jockey combination, who had earlier scored with No Questions Asked in the novices’ handicap chase.

“Henry’s Friend is tough and genuine,” said the winning trainer. “He’s been thriving at home and deserved this.”

Carlisle Sunday

THERE were two listed contests at Carlisle on Sunday, with the Houghton Mares’ Chase going to Paggane (Faye Bramley/Harry Cobden), who shaded favouritism at 13/8 and beat market rival Telepathique (Lucy Wadham/Tom Cannon) by nine and a half lengths. The winner had run a blinder in the Silver Trophy Hurdle at Chepstow on her return and is the rare example of a horse improving after being switched from Willie Mullins, which is quite a compliment for rookie handler Bramley, based at Lodge Down Stables in Lambourn Woodlands.

The Colin Parker Memorial Chase commemorates the late Lockerbie trainer, who had strong local connections when head lad to Gordon W Richards at Greystoke. The intermediate chase is always a classy affair and threw up another talented winner in the shape of Resplendent Grey (Olly Murphy/Sean Bowen), who overcame the marked drop in trip to add to his success in the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown in April, beating odds-on favourite Handstands (Ben Pauling/Ben Jones) by three-parts of a length. The pair may well renew rivalry in the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury at the end of the month, with Resplendent Grey favourite in most lists for that contest.