THE tragic death of James McNeile at Larkhill point-to-point the previous Saturday led to all the amateur riders in the Fox Hunters’ Chase on Thursday wearing black armbands as a mark of respect.

The following day the Grade 2 Weatherbys Private Bank Bumper was won by Lalor, trained at South Molton by Richard Woollacott. While this represented the biggest win of the trainer’s career, he spoke afterwards about the “worst week of my life.”