HEREFORDSHIRE racing fans had three reasons to celebrate Saturday's remarkable victory of county bred-and-trained 10-year-old Eskleybrook in the Elmbridge Handicap Chase at Sandown - ahead of champion jockey Tony McCoy.Celebrating at Stoke Prior - Rachel Reynolds (assistant trainer), Dave Mansell aboard Eskleybrook, and Vic Gethin with the trophy.
The 50-1 shot, bred at Stretton Sugwas, was the first runner of Stoke Prior-based owner Vic Gethin since he took out a permit to train his own horses - and it was Herefordshire jockey Dave Mansell's first race against professional riders.
Mansell, a regular on the point-to-point circuit, said: "We weren't going there to be thrashed. He had done everything we had asked of him at home. But what did surprise me was that when Tiutchev passed him on the run-in he found a bit more and got back up to win."
He added: "I didn't realise it was Tony McCoy that we drove past until after the race and, of course, that made it even better."
Gethin has trained point-to-point horses for 15 years but Eskleybrook is the first horse that he has trained professionally - his licence only arrived on Friday.
He said: "We were very confident ahead of the race and knew that it was going to be very close. We were absolutely thrilled when he came home first."
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