DOING some digging in the files recently I happened upon the result of the bumper on the first day of the Leopardstown Christmas meeting 50 years ago. With no Sunday racing back then, the meeting was staged on Monday, December 27th.

At first I was intrigued by the winning rider, a certain Mr B Hanbury. More of him later. My eye then scanned down the list of riders who chased him home and I realised that I recognised all 15 who rode. Thirteen of them were amateurs, as you might expect, but they also included two professionals – that year’s champion National Hunt jockey Ben Hannon, and the multiple champion flat jockey Liam Ward, associated with so many great horses but especially Nijinsky.