BRITISH amateur Tom Hamilton paid a rewarding visit home last weekend as he rode four winners at Saturday’s Jedforest meeting at Friars Haugh, a feat he also accomplished in April 2014.

The 22-year-old is based at Joseph O’Brien’s Piltown yard and, although he would rather ride for his boss either on the track or in a point-to-point in Ireland, he’s happy to return to Hawick if offered mounts.

“It’s just a 50-minute flight over so it’s handy enough,” said Hamilton. “I rode two winners for my mother (Wendy) and two for Susan Grant, who’s based in Sedgefield and is married to trainer Chris Grant.

“Friars Haugh is our local track and it was particularly good to win the restricted on Diamond Brig (by Black Sam Bellamy) as my mother bred him herself out of an Overbury mare who won eight point-to-points.”

The six-year-old Diamond Brig, who landed a younger horses’ maiden at Corbridge last February on his only previous start, is a full-brother to the year older Over To Sam who won the same maiden for the Hamiltons in 2016 after which he joined Harry Fry, winning over hurdles on the first of just two outings for that yard.

AMATEUR

Hamilton has a keen interest in breeding and pedigrees and hopes to go down the bloodstock route at some stage. “At present, I plan to stay in the amateur ranks as a rider and keep up my work at sales for Goffs who kindly sponsor me. Previously I had done three years at ‘uni’ in Edinburgh studying Business Management.

“I’m very happy at Joseph’s and don’t see myself moving from there anytime soon,” he concluded.

It was a good week for the Hamilton family as Tom’s older brother, conditional jockey Jamie who is based in Malton with Mark Walford, rode a winner at Newcastle on Tuesday.