CO Cork-born Brian Harding, who partnered One Man to victory in the 1998 Champion Chase at Cheltenham, saddled his first point-to-point runner, and winner, at a very wet Alnwick on Sunday.

One of five Irish-bred winners on the seven-race card, the Lyall Hodgins-ridden Senor Lombardy, who was a 5/1 shot, made all to land the opening conditions’ race by 10 lengths from the 6/4 favourite, Roderick Random.

By Milan, Senor Lombardy made €125,000 at Goffs’ 2017 Punchestown Sale following his victory in a four-year-old Ballysteen maiden on his only start for Colin Bowe.

He won a bumper and a hurdle the following autumn for Keith Dagleish but his form tapered off when he was sent over fences, his confidence not being helped by two falls.

The other Irish-bred winners at this Ratcheugh Racing Club meeting, the first in the Northern Area, were the Vinnie Roe gelding Vinnie Lewis (men’s open), the four-year-old newcomers For Fitz Sake (by Califet) and The Wise Traveller (by Getaway) in the two divisions of the maiden and the five-year-old Shirocco mare Dream Over in the restricted.

For Fitz Sake, who was a first winner in the training ranks for British international event rider Harriet Dickin, was due to come under the hammer at Goffs UK’s sale of point-to-pointers at Yorton Farm on Thursday as was the Jack Teal-owned, trained and ridden The Wise Traveller.

The previous day, there were just two winners with an IRE suffix on the eight-race card at a sunny Larkhill.

These were the six-year-old Stowaway gelding Happy Larry in division two of the restricted and the nine-year-old Trans Island gelding No Limitations in the second division of the veteran horse conditions race.

Around 200 spectators attended this Avon Vale Hunt fixture.

A LARGE entry which resulted in multiple divides saw a 10.20am start to racing at Barbury racecourse last Sunday when Covid-19 put a halt to the international aspect of this fixture which was held behind closed doors.

Eight of the 10 races were won by Irish-bred horses including the divides of the opening point-to-point bumper for four- and five-year-olds which were both won by five-year-old newcomers trained by Mel Rowley, ridden by Alex Edwards and sent off as even-money favourites.

The first half of this Irish Thoroughbred Marketing-sponsored two-miler went to Autumn Equinox, a September Storm gelding out of the Good Thyne mare Tombazaan, while the second success went the way of the Oscar bay He’s A Knowall who is out of the Beat All mare Miss Knowall.

He’s A Knowall was to be sold at the Goffs UK Sale of point-to-pointers at Yorton Farm on Thursday as was the 2016 El Salvador gelding Salt Of The Earth who, trained by Alan Hill, landed the Tattersalls Ireland four- and five-year-old maiden under Will Biddick.

Division one of the Jockey Club maiden for mares and fillies over the same trip was won by the also sales-bound Ingeborg Zilling, a 2016 Mahler chesnut who was ridden by Zac Baker for Tom Ellis.

Hannah Lewis had a good weekend, landing the ladies’ open at Larkhill on Saturday and the mixed open here.

Her successful Sunday mount was the eight-year-old Presenting gelding Marcle Ridge who had won five times previously in the hands of his trainer, Sam Jukes, including in a hunters’ chase at Cheltenham.

Division one of the novice riders’ race went to the Nick Williams-trained Fifty Shades, a seven-year-old Tajraasi gelding who provided 16-year-old Dan Ellis with his first success in this sphere.

The Irish Thoroughbred Marketing six-year-old and upwards maiden was also divided but ended up rather uneven with 17 runners in the first half and just nine in the second.

Division one was won by Ifyoucanseemenow, a six-year-old Stowaway gelding trained by Dibby Brown and ridden by Nick Phillips.

Bradley Gibbs both rode and trained the division two winner Dawnie Boy, another six-year-old gelding but by Aizavoski.

THE multiple and reigning ladies’ champion, Gina Andrews, will be out of action for over a month following a heavy fall at Cheltenham last Friday.

Having recorded a racecourse double for Pam Sly at Wetherby on December 5th, Andrews was again riding for the Cambridgeshire owner/breeder/trainer at Prestbury Park.

She had just hit the front going into the final flight in the two-mile, one-furlong handicap hurdle when her mount, Haafapiece, fell and she took a kick in the face from a following horse.

While Haafapiece galloped away uninjured, Andrews was on the ground for some time, being attended to by the on-course medical team. She was then transferred to the Royal Gloucester Hospital where she was diagnosed with a fractured eye socket and cheekbone.

Her sister and fellow jockey Bridget Andrews told Racing TV mid-week: “She’s doing really well. She’s gone back to hospital today and is probably going to have to have an op on her cheekbone, but the main thing is everything will heal. She’s probably going to be out for six weeks.”

Andrews has ridden two point-to-point winners this season, one for her trainer husband, Tom Ellis, and the other for Joe O’Shea.