A LONG trip to Beverley paid dividends last Wednesday, when Allhallowtide credited me with my first success as a trainer. The journey home certainly felt that little bit shorter, as not only had I trained the winner but I also bred her myself. Despite holding a licence for the best part of a year, I have only had a handful of runners in that time.

As both my parents were teachers, horses or racing wasn’t something I grew up with. Don Atkinson lived next door to us and sparked my interest from a young age. I used to see him pass our gate on a horse a couple of times a day so was keen to discover more. The Lordan family were also close neighbours and when Wayne (Lordan) started his apprenticeship I followed his career closely.