15 April 2010 Report: Cotswold - Andoversford
by Pete Mansell
Mark Wall hopes of winning this year's Area Championship were given a major boost when the Northleach rider claimed two more victories during Sunday's Cotswold Point-to-Point at Andoversford.
Sheknowsyouknow and Smart Boy Prince led from the start of the Confined and none of the other runners got a look in and they were almost a fence clear at the bottom of the hill.
The furious pace started to take its toll on the leaders as they met the rising ground approaching the penultimate but Sheknowsyouknow buckled down to her task and drew clear of her rival in the home straight.
8 horses lined up for the Maiden and success in this race showed a completely different side to Wall's riding and to those tactics which had been employed earlier in the afternoon.
His mount Grafwin has had problems completing the course this season so Wall was content to hunt her round for the first circuit. The mare made eye-catching progress as they jumped the downhill fences and secured the lead with three fences to jump and hung on well to claim victory.
Grafwins success provided a first and last leg double for Naunton trainer Fergal O'Brien who had sent out Getyouracttogether to win the Members earlier in the afternoon. Sam Drinkwater normally rides this horse for his parents Karen and Paul, but he picked up a suspension riding under Rules recently so was ineligible, but Nick Slatter proved a capable deputy.
The lead changed hands several times before Slatter took the race by the scruff of the neck at the 11th and this partnership held a sizeable advantage three fences later. The race was put to bed at this point although The Last Cast never gave up the chase and got to within four lengths of the winner at the post.
O'Brien is Head Lad at Nigel Twiston Davies' yard at Naunton. Richard Bevis is his assistant at the same establishment and he sent out Freddie Ed to contest the Connolly's Red Mills sponsored Intermediate.
Ned the Post and Claire Allen and Freddie Ed and Michael Miller had the race to themselves from three out and it was the former's jockey who was the first to go for their whip. There was very little between the two horses approaching the last but Freddie Ed hit the front on the flat and held on to win by a length.
James Richardson's stables are almost adjacent to the track at Andoversford so it had to be a pointer to his horses' chances when the trainer missed his local meeting in favour of running Celestial Dragon the Red Mills Intermediate at Tweseldown. With just four rivals to overcome he had a relatively easy task and that proved the case.
Due to the generosity of owner J P McManus, Grand National winner Don't Push It received a heroes' welcome when he made a surprise visit to the Cotswold Point-to-Point in company with his trainer Jonjo O'Neill.
