JOCKEY Guy Disney was the toast of Saturday’s Teme Valley Hunt point-to-point meeting, with the former Afghan war veteran, aboard Gotoyourplay in the Men’s Open race, scoring his first win since losing part of his right leg.
Disney, a 32-year-old former officer with the Light Dragoons, suffered his injury when his vehicle was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade in Helmand province in July 2009 and he now rides with a prosthetic limb.
Gotoyourplay drew clear of Surenaga and Another Kate in the home straight to record an eight-length victory, much to the delight of both Disney’s weighing-room colleagues and the racegoers.
Disney praised the horse owned by Major Patrick Darling and trained at Sellack by Dawn Woolf, saying: “He’s stayed on gamely and did everything I asked. It was a great win.”
James Ridley scored a double aboard Diamond Dolly in the Restricted and Brown Harp in the Maiden race. Diamond Dolly had a battle with runner-up Culpable Culprit and despite an objection for interference after the final fence, the stewards allowed the result to stand.
The win for the diminutive Brown Harp in the Mare’s Maiden was a triumph for another Sellack-based trainer Caroline Griffiths, as the daughter of ex-Irish Derby winner Sir Harry Lewis won by a length and a quarter
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here