Tight at top for trainers’ title

Reflecting the jump trainers’ championship under rules, point-to-pointing’s equivalent title race is tight at the top.

This article first appeared in the Racing Post on Friday 26th April.

Gloucestershire’s Max Comley, the pace-setter for most of the season, was overtaken by Somerset’s Josh Newman – who now leads with 19 winners – at the weekend, while Alan Hill (pictured above) is tied with Max, one behind Josh. Fran Poste is seven behind Newman, but also on 12 winners and looking a threat to the leaders is Gina Ellis, who took on responsibility for a yard of pointers in Warwickshire when husband Tom gained a full licence in mid-March.

Gina trains in her married name, but continues to ride under her maiden name of Andrews, a teaser for future historians should she pull off a trainer/rider championship double, yet for the first time in many seasons she faces competition for the women riders’ title from Izzie Marshall, who is Hill’s first-choice rider. Marshall has ridden 16 winners and needs one more to reach a century of successes in point-to-points, while Andrews is one behind, needing eight to reach a remarkable 400 victories in the sport.

Izzie Marshall who heads the women riders’ title race

Various national championships end on May 27 but, while there is some way to go, the contenders now have to focus on winners, and as Hill puts it: “If you are going to take championships seriously you have to do a bit of travelling – you cannot just sit at home hoping everyone else is going to lose.”

Of the front three only Hill, who is based in Oxfordshire, has a trainer’s championship on his CV. He won it ten years ago before Jack Barber knocked up a title-race hat-trick and then the Ellis yard became the Manchester City of the sport, but it is because he has tasted success that Hill says: “I’ve been lucky and won it before and so the main objective is for Izzie [his soon-to-be daughter-in-law] to win the ladies’ championship, although we know Gina could put together six winners in a weekend.”

In an egalitarian sport, three trainers’ championships provide goals for small, medium and large operations. With 12 winners, Herefordshire trainer Nicky Sheppard heads the title for yards with six to 14 horses, while the trophy chase for yards with five or fewer residents is led by Nick Wright who trains near Newmarket. He has sent out five winners, one more than Jonathan Barlow and Luci Hughes.