Quiet Thursday!

Yesterday we were at Newton Abbot with two runners. Behind The Curtain was our first runner in the first race on the card and he returned to the bigger obstacles, things went quite quick for him and he got unlucky at being hampered by the faller at the 6th fence and he lost his position after that. I think Jack did well to get him back in the race gradually and he ran on well in the end finishing 5th.  

Heure De Gloire ran in the third race of the card and she was going well until one bad mistake and Jack thought she did not really let herself down on the quicker ground, she is likely to go on her holidays now and wait for the ground to soften up a bit. 

Today the stable has no runners. There is one jumps card at Uttoxeter while on the flat there is action at Haydock, Hamilton and Chelmsford. In Ireland, they race on the flat at Leaopardstown.

There was some change to the industry as trainers Victor Dartnell and Harriet Graham announced their retirement from training this week. They both had fabulous careers with Victor Dartnell training for 30 years and Harriet Graham 25 years! They both enjoyed some success through their careers. Dartnell trained 354 winners in Britain and one in Ireland and was mostly associated with talented staying chasers like Giles Cross, Russian Trigger and Exmoor Ranger as well as high class novice Lord Sam. Harriet Graham teamed up with Gary Rutherford in 2002 and she's now set to leave him and his partner Georgina to go it alone. She trained for a quarter of a century and her stable star Aye Right winning the Rehearsal Chase in 2021 and being placed in the Charlie Hall Chase, Ladbrokes Trophy and Ultima Handicap Chase. 

James Maddison will not be included in England's 26-man squad for the Euro's 2024. Maddison joined Tottenham in a £40 million move from Leicester last summer but endured an inconsistent season as after a strong start was disrupted by injury. The final England squad for the tournament will be announced on Saturday, after their last warm-up friendly against Iceland at Wembley the night before. 

What did the cucumber say to the pickle?

You mean a great dill to me!

Happy Thursday!