JOCKEY Sam Twiston-Davies kick started what could be an inspirational week by riding two winners on Towcester’s Easter Sunday card.
Staging the meeting itself was a triumph for the Northamptonshire track which had worked relentlessly all week for one of its flagship cards to get racing ‘on’ in the aftermath of the recent icy blast.
Twiston-Davies is poised to ride 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Imperial Commander in Saturday’s Aintree showpiece and he showed he is currently in top form with wins on board Doubletoilntrouble for Fergal O’Brien and then Count Guidi Deiro for his father Nigel.
Brackley businessman Rob Rexton received the trophy for the Exclusive Offers on Totepool Mobile Novices’ Handicap Chase over 2m 6f, after Twiston-Davies had steered Doubletoilntrouble (2/1 fav) to a five length victory over Midnight Dove.
Rexton has horses with both Twiston-Davies and O’Brien and his set to see his colours carried in a hurdle race at Aintree this week by Master Of The Sea, which was fourth at the recent Cheltenham Festival.
The Twiston-Davies double was landed when Count Guido Deiro (4/1) took the 2m 5f maiden hurdle, just holding on from favourite Master Todd after 40/1 outsider Fergal Mael Duin had leapt clear on the home turn before finishing third.
Meanwhile, trainer Tony Carroll has his horses in excellent heart and was present to see Thinger Licht (11/4 jt-fav) win on his British debut under Josh Hamer after being claimed by the Worcestershire trainer from a race at Enghien, in the suburbs of Paris.
Carroll said: “We had a winner on the Flat at Doncaster on Saturday with Luggers Hall so that is now 28 for the yard this year and we had 56 the whole year in 2012.”
Five of the seven races were won by a favourite or joint favourite and another horse to enter that equation was Devenish Island (1/2) who took the National Hunt flat race for trainer Karen McLintock, based at Ingoe near Newcastle Upon-Tyne, and who celebrated her 48th birthday on the previous Wednesday.
The horse looked an unlikely winner two furlongs from home but was given a whole-hearted ride by Richard Johnson and kept in a straight line, whereas debutant When Ben When veered off to the left in the closing stages and was reeled in.
All Annalena (6/4 fav) demonstrated the benefits of impending motherhood by landing the 2m mares’ handicap hurdle under Leighton Aspell. All Annaleana is in foal to 2006 Derby winner Sir Percy who is also owned by Anthony and Victoria Pakenham.
Jockey Samantha Drake was seen at her best in making virtually the running to score on her mother Janet’s horse Keeverfield (8/1) in the 3m handicap chase.
The hunters’ chase was won by What Of It (7/4 fav), coming out on top of a protracted struggle with Swallows Delight.