Greenock Telegraph | Sport | Readers win a day at the Scottish Grand National

Friday, 9th January, 2009

Published: Friday, 18th April, 2008 12:00

Readers win a day at the Scottish Grand National

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Cock-a-hoop: Winner Yvonne Davies, left, with her Saturday tickets, and John Rogers, right, celebrating winning the Friday passes with wife Alvera.

FIVE lucky Tele readers are off to the races this weekend after scooping top prizes in our hot-to-trot Scottish Grand National competition.

Three pairs of briefs for today, and two pairs for tomorrow, were up for grabs, and the winners will join 25,000 others at Ayr Racecourse.

Out of the hat first for the Friday passes, were J. Rogers and J. Bleasedale, from Gourock, and M. Murray from Greenock.

And briefs for National day tomorrow go to Ms M. Collins, Port Glasgow, and Ms Y. Davies, of Gourock. A total of 40 horses are down to run in Saturday’s £200,000 Coral Scottish Grand National, headed by Alan King’s Halcon Genelardis.

Bellshill-born King was once assistant trainer at Cree Lodge in Ayr when John Wilson was trainer, and he has two more entries in Cheltenham winner Old Benny and Kandjar d’Allier.

Champion trainer Paul Nicholls has one entry left, Opera Mundi, while David Pipe has three in the shape of Celestial Gold, Vodka Bleu and Not Left Yet.

The first race on Saturday is at 1.55pm, the Purvis Marquees Novice Hurdle over two miles, and gates open at 11am.

There is also some top racing on Friday when the horses come under starter’s orders at 2.20pm. The pick of the action looks to be the Hillhouse Quarry Handicap Chase, with entries including Charlie Mann’s Another Native, Three Mirrors from the Ferdy Murphy stable and Howard Johnson’s Frankie Figg.

Gates open on Friday at 12.20pm.

To book tickets you can go online at www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk or call 0870850566. Thanks go to Iain Ferguson of Ayr Racecourse for supplying the fantastic prizes.

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