THE importance of last weekend’s fixture in Portrush taking place will not have been lost on the many owners and handlers in the northern region who have been starved of opportunities to run their horses on home turf of late due to the programme of fixtures in the region effectively falling apart in recent weeks.

The North Down Foxhounds fixture at Kirkistown on March 12th was the first to fall when it was announced nine days in advance of that date that the fixture had been cancelled due to unsuitable ground conditions.

It has seemingly set off a domino effect in the region as the Loughbrickland meeting on March 19th was cancelled eight days prior to it’s race date when the INHSC found the track to be unfit for racing due to waterlogging.

Today’s fixture at Moira was the latest meeting in the region to fall when the INHSC announced on March 23rd that it had been abandoned due to ground conditions.

The end product of which is that in a four-week period stretching back to March 12th, of the four fixtures in the region that were due to take place, only one has managed to get the go-ahead.

Unsurprisingly following those lack of opportunities in the region, last Saturday’s fixture in Portrush proved to be the biggest of the five fixtures run last weekend, producing the sole divide from the two days of action in the pointing fields.

Fears

Worryingly, fears were circulating in the region that the cancellations would not end with today’s fixture at Moira and that has unfortunately come to fruition with the two-day fixture at Necarne following suit.

It had been due to bring the region’s season to an end in mid-May, but the INHSC announced on Wednesday that it too had been cancelled.

This leaves just Taylorstown, Loughanmore, Largy and Broughshane remaining in a heavily depleted fixture list, and those in the region now turn to the authorities in the hope that they can find at least one additional fixture for the region specifically to provide some compensation for the lost opportunities of recent weeks.

TOMORROW afternoon’s fixture in Rathcannon plays host to the third of six auction maiden races for four-year-olds, with the race attracting a total of 17 horses.

Despite the races having been around for some time, following their introduction during the spring term in 2019, the conditions of the races do continue to catch out handlers.

In particular, one condition of the race which has upset a number of handlers of late is the rule which states that “any sale conducted outside the sales ring (private sale) will not be considered to qualify the horse to run in these races.”

This condition not only applies to the point-to-point auction maidens but also features in the qualifications for National Hunt auction races under rules.

Given that purchasers would have paid commission to the relevant sales company when acquiring the horse in the “private sale” outside of the ring, and as the horses are still being bought at the qualifying sale, it is understandable why some handlers are left struggling to understand the logic of the condition.

Fewer entries

The evidence from previous auction maidens, particularly those held during the spring term, and evident in the entries for tomorrow’s race at Rathcannon, shows that they do typically generate fewer entries than a normal four-year-old maiden.

This has a financial implication for hunt committees and you would like to see as many horses as possible who meet the criteria of being bought for €25,000 or less at the qualifying sale being eligible to help boost the entries.

Point-to-point Ratings

IT is fair to say that King Of Kingsfield (95++) could scarcely have done anything else to record a more impressive winning debut when taking the four-year-old maiden at Portrush.

Once moving on at the third fence, the Vadamos gelding was never headed as Declan Lavery was able to set the fractions, ones which produced a winning time seven seconds quicker than any other race run on the card, all achieved without ever coming off the bridle.

Perhaps most impressive in this mistake-free debut was just how emphatically he was able to ease clear of his rivals with the winning margin being recorded at a distance to tell its own story of his dominance.

It was followed later by another dominant display by Vaucelet (106++) who was in a class of his own in the open. The seven-year-old was unchallenged on a return to his preferred conditions and he would certainly have to enter the equation for many of the bigger hunter chases to come this term.

The weekend’s open action also saw a horse at the other end of the age spectrum prove once again that he retains all of his enthusiasm for the game, as the 14-year-old Macs Legend (102) fended off a progressive mare at Ballynoe.

This is clearly a track that he relishes as it was a third course success. That fixture opened with two notable maidens. A cleaner jump at the last saw Encanto Bruno (92+) make a winning debut in the first of them, whilst the margin of victory for Grey D’Alco (92+) was 18 lengths 30 minutes later.

A performance of this calibre was always coming as he had chased home the now 130-rated hurdler Daily Present last spring.

All six winners at Monksgrange would look capable of future track success, with Mel Monroe (86+) and Classic Anthem (93++) in particular standing out. The former is yet another young mare from recent weeks that should be given serious respect due to her all-the-way 10-length victory.

Victory

Classic Anthem had victory sewn up when his chief rival departed two-out leaving him to return alone but that does not do justice to what he had done prior to that point.

At Lisronagh, Act Of Authority (93+) had raced keenly in the early stages resulting in Derek O’Connor bringing him to front of the pack, and he looks a naturally speedy sort for shorter trips, while Townhill (92+) and Kamsinas (91+) are names to note from Loughrea.