IT was a quiet weekend on the point-to-point scene for locally-connected horses but David Christie once again did his bit for the training fraternity by saddling Hathaways Cottage to claim the mares’ winners’ of two at Ballindenisk on Sunday.

Belfast owner Ray Nicholas, and his support team, made the journey down to the United Foxhounds’ meeting at the Co Cork venue where his five-year-old Mahler bay made all to land the seven-runner race by 24 lengths as the 2/1 (from 7/4) favourite.

Having her third start for her present connections and her fourth in total, Hathaways Cottage was ridden by Barry O’Neill who, in the earlier open, finished third, beaten a head and two lengths, on seasonal debutant Winged Leader, Christie’s only other runner at the meeting.

That six-strong race was won by the James Motherway-trained, James Hannon-partnered Dinny Lacey who was having his third start of the season.

The nine-year-old Presenting gelding was bred by Gareth Metcalfe out of the Old Vic mare Prowler whose five track winners to date include Creepy whose four victories included that in a Grade 2 novices’ hurdle at Cheltenham in November 2013.

Dinny Lacey, his dam’s seventh foal, has two chase wins to his credit along with a bumper success at Punchestown in February 2019 when he was ridden by Deckie Lavery.

Prowler’s oldest produce is the 2006 Classic Cliche mare Carrig’n May, the winner of a point-to-point maiden and dam of the aforementioned Hathaways Cottage.

This is the same family as the recent Boulta four-year-old mares’ maiden winner, Mountain Molly (by Mount Nelson) who is catalogued as Lot 25 at next Friday’s Tattersalls Cheltenham Sale.

At time of writing, other four-year-old entries in that sale include the Patrick Turley-trained My Forever Annie (Lot 3), a Champs Elysees bay who won her maiden under Lavery at Lingstown on November 26th on her only start, and the Colin McKeever-trained Jim The Wolf (Lot 33), a grey Joshua Tree gelding who finished second on the third of three starts in a fast-run maiden at Tatteralls Ireland in late October.

Reponet rewards

The former McKeever-trained Jeriko Du Reponet recorded a winning track debut last Friday at Newbury where he landed the opening race on the Coral-sponsored card, the National Hunt Maiden Hurdle over an extended two miles.

The Choeur Du Nord gelding, who won by three and a quarter lengths as the 4/11 favourite under Nico de Boinville, is now trained by Nicky Henderson for J.P. McManus.

Jeriko Du Reponet ran in the colours of Wilson Dennison when, as 5/4 favourite and on his only start in this country, he scored by 11 lengths in a four-year-old maiden at Kirkistown in March in the hands of Orán McGill.

At the same Newbury meeting on Friday, the former-Dennison owned Hermes Allen, another French-bred gelding, got back to winning ways when, after wind surgery and a break of 230 days, he landed the Grade 2 John Francome Novices’ Chase as the 13/8 favourite.

This Poliglote bay was 5/1 when taking the four-year-old maiden under Noel McParlan at Kirkistown in November 2021 on the second of his two starts for Caroline McCaldin.