THE DUNRAVEN BOWL

By Brian Lee

Ever since the first David Brace OBE sponsored Dunraven Bowl was held in 1996 it has been the race all Welsh point-to-point owners, trainers and riders strive to win.

Evan Williams, now a leading National Hunt trainer, won the first race on Miss Millbrook and his two other wins were on Cherry Gold in 2003 and 2004. And when Cherry Gold won again in 2005 Jason Cook was in the saddle.

West Wales leading point-to-point rider Dai Jones won on Keith Pritchard’s Canon Bridge in 2006 and Welsh champion point-to-point rider Rhys Hughes, like Williams, can an also claim three winners having won on Kilbreena (2007), the prolific mare Lady Myfanwy (2008) and Bob Bites Back (2009).

Tom David, from the Vale of Glamorgan, took the 2010 renewal on David Lovell’s Master Charm. David’s father, the legendary Cardiff bookmaker John Lovell, was a great supporter of point-to-pointing and he introduced computerised betting to the UK.

First past the post by just a length in 2011 was Bob’s Law, but runner-up Parthian Prince, partnered by Paul Tolman, was later awarded the race. The well fancied Rosie’s Peacock, a winner of 32 races, reared over on the way to the start injuring rider John Mathias so badly he was taken to hospital.

Pembrokeshire’s Mathias, the only rider in point-to-point history to boot home all six winners at a point-to-point, a feat he has achieved on two occasions, was successful on Lee Power’s Gale Force Oscar in 2014 and again the following year aboard Desertmore View.

In 2016 Claire Sherriff’s seven-year-old mare My Coranna, a winner of her four previous races, scored by three lengths from Repeat Business. She was trained by Ynysbwl’s David Gibbs and ridden by his son Bradley who won this year’s Foxhunters at the Cheltenham National Hunt Festival.

Repeat Business, who was owned by the late Jeffrey Bird, a real gent, and trained by his brother-in-law Jonathon Tudor, went one better in 2017 when ridden by Richard Patrick.

Repeat Business beat Dewi Lewis’s Tinkers Hill Tommy who went on to win the 2018 renewal under Hereford born Peter Bryan.

Not many female riders have ridden in the race but two who were successful are former Welsh champion jockeys Pip Jones, and Fiona Wilson. The former won on Final Pride (1997) and the latter aboard the rank outsider and mud loving Saffron Moss (1998).

As for the race’s sponsor Mr David Brace OBE, he saddled a third in Robin Des People and a fourth with Pink Eyed Pedro. However, his dream came true in 2019 when his home bred Pink Eyed Pedro, given a great ride by sixteen-yearold Jack Tudor, who recently has become first jockey to David Pipe’s famous yard, was successful.

It was said that the cheers from the crowd when his horse hit the front were louder than when her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother visited Chepstow back in 1975 when her Sunnyboy won the opening Raglan Novices Hurdle.

If the cheers were loud then they were even louder last year when Mr Brace’s home-bred Gats And Co, ridden by Tristan Durrell, and who was by Mr Brace’s Dr Massini and the 4-5 favourite got home by a head from Pier Jaguen partnered by Bradley Gibbs.

SIXTH RACE 7.35

TWO MILES ABOUT SEVEN AND A HALF FURLONGS (2M 7F 131YDS) FOR NOVICE FIVE YRS OLD AND UPWARDS

THE DUNRAVEN BOWL NOVICES’ HUNTERS’ STEEPLE CHASE (CLASS 5)

Total prize fund £5600 x Owners Prize Money. 1st £2498, 2nd £1249, 3rd £624, 4th £312. (Penalty Value £2874.48) HC

Bold Form Figures Indicate Point-to-Point Form

RACE STATS

TRAINER-IN-FORM (LAST 14 DAYS): L Price (2 wins from 11 runners, 18%) runs FIRST PREFERENCE

LONGEST TRAVELLER: HONEY I’M GOOD trained by B Gibbs, Lemsford, 139 miles.

FIRST PREFERENCE has won his last 5 outings between the flags and this doesn’t look much of a race, so he should be able to make a successful start in hunters Honey I’m Good looks the main danger.

1-2-3: 1.FIRST PREFERENCE (IRE) 2.HONEY I’M GOOD (IRE) 3.DOWER CAVES (IRE)

KEY Owner Breeding Breeder Br Jockey Trainer Sponsor colours no horse age st lb

1 DEBACLE (GB) (6) 233131 D

B g Bach (IRE) - De Blanc (IRE)

10 11-12

Mr Mark Robinson (7)

Mr Hywel Evans Hywel Evans, Kidwelly

H Carmarthenshire

TIMEFORM VIEW Winning pointer but performed only modestly in that sphere last time and his Rules form is far from inspiring. TFRHHIII BHA69

2 DOWER CAVES (IRE) (27) P3-UP23 BF

9 11-12

Mr Zac Baker Welsh Wizards C. Griffiths, Ferryside

Br g Court Cave (IRE) - Alverstone

H Tivyside

TIMEFORM VIEW Half-brother to modest hurdler Dynamic Kate, stays 3m Dam (h120) bumper/21f-3m hurdle winner Maiden pointer, third last time (Apr 1) Wears cheekpieces for Rules bow. TFRHHHII BHA-

3 FIER JAGUEN (FR) (15) 12-111U D

8 11-12

Ch g No Risk At All (FR) - Victoire Jaguine (FR)

Mr Julian Sherriff Bradley Gibbs, Lemsford

H Glamorgan

TIMEFORM VIEW