Two horses died in the Scottish Grand National on Saturday, again bringing an unwanted spotlight on jump racing.
In the week Celebre D’Allen died 48 hours after running in the Aintree Grand National, the casualties in the Ayr marathon were Macdermott, who was pulled up after the 10th fence before halfway, and The Kniphand, who had been contesting the lead but fell heavily at the second last.
Macdermott was last year’s winner and trained by Willie Mullins, who won this race when Harry Cobden, an oasis of calm among the mayhem, guided home the 9-1 shot Captain Cody.
Captain Cody beat stablemate Klarc Kent by a length which not only gave Mullins a 1-2 in the race a week after saddling the first three at Aintree but took him to within £25,000 of Dan Skelton in the British trainers’ title race.
The race was considerably more dramatic than Aintree’s a week ago with just eight of the 23 starters completing the course and several horses brought down in the tightly packed field. Cobden avoided several trouble spots and did not appear unduly worried that he was four lengths down at the last but was already easing down the winner before he had passed the runner-up.
Skelton’s best chance of getting a dividend out of the race to prop up his lead – extended to £177,000 after the first couple of races – went when Sail Away was brought down at the first and his other runner, Snipe, did not get much further falling before a circuit was out.
“What a ride,” said Mullins of Cobden who was just having his second ride for the trainer. “Was he last or second last over the first? I thought ‘oh Captain Cody’s out with the washing’ but four miles later he was travelling strongly.
“My instructions to Harry were to put on his best female voice because he only goes for Jody Townend [riding at Bellewstown] and whatever voice he did, it worked. This has put us back in the title race but there’s a long way to go yet.”
The bookmakers were not seeing it quite so pessimistically, making Mullins 1-8 to retain it and Skelton 9-2.
Meanwhile Newbury’s Guineas trials threw up a couple of lively outsiders for Newmarket; the Andrew Balding trained Jonquil who took the Watership Down Stud Too Darn Hot Greenham Stakes and Archie Watson’s filly Duty First who took apart a big field assembled for the Dubai Duty Free Stakes.
Last year Jonquil made such a good impression on debut for Sir Michael Stoute he looked like would be the colt to pack him off into retirement on a high but he blew out on his next start and was put away before being sent to Balding.
On Saturday he always looked in control of the Greenham, duly fulfilling his early promise to come home a length and a half in front of Rashabar, last year’s Coventry winner and generally considered the ...
