They say good things come to those who wait and that was definitely the case for Consett-based owners The Pavillion Partnership who were celebrating a first winner since April 2016 following Cuneo's victory in the True North Men's Open Race at the Lauderdale's 75th anniversary fixture at Mosshouses on Sunday
Reappearing just six days after finishing a close second behind Steely Addition at Corbridge, the Julie Ross-trained 11-year-old was always travelling well under Lyall Hodgins and took it up at the top of the hill on the final circuit before forging clear from three out to score by ten lengths from odds-on favourite Shaughnessy (Joe Wright).
The Pavillion Partnership, comprising Bob & Lindsay Middleton, Amanda Pigg, Russell Ross and Lawrence Crosthwaite, deserved this change of fortune after watching Emory and Cuneo finish runner-up 10 times between them in the last few years.
It had been a long time between drinks for ex-hurdler Cuneo who was visiting the winners' enclosure for the first time since landing a 23-runner Leopardstown Handicap Hurdle under Rachael Blackmore in December 2018 when trained by Henry De Bromhead. A few months later he posted a career-best effort off a mark of 137 when three-and-a-half lengths 4th of 24 in the Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Darius Des Sources relished the soft ground when taking the Davidson Land Services Conditions Race by half a length under a well-judged ride from Lois Teal. Always up with the pace and jumping well, the 11-year-old led with a circuit to go until headed two out by Corbridge winner Design Plan (Lyall Hodgins) before battling back to regain the initiative inside the last fifty yards.
This was a first success as an owner/trainer for Malton-based Iana Stoyantcheva who works full-time for John Quinn and bought the gelding for £8,000 out of Chris Grant's yard at the Goffs UK Horses-In-Training Sale in October 2022. She made her riding debut on him at Dalton Park five weeks ago but after pulling up decided a more experienced pilot was needed.
Sheriff Hutton raider Cullin Hills had little more than an exercise canter under the in-form Paddy Barlow when beating solitary rival Killer Crow (Jack Holliday) by a distance in the Kelso & Musselburgh Racecourses Owner-Trainer Conditions Race, her fifth win of the season. The 14-year-old runner-up was retired after the race by former amateur jockey Jack Clark who coincidentally also finished second here on Sandy Lad in the Adjacent Hunts Maiden Race at the 25th anniversary fixture in 1973.
The Will Milburn-trained 6-year-old winner is now the outright leader in the National Horse Championship and her next target is the valuable Heart Of All England Hunters' Chase at Hexham on May 13.
Charles and Gilda Brader's home-bred Duke Account got off the mark on only his third career start between the flags in the 10-runner Charlie Baxter Bloodstock Maiden Race. Given a confident ride by John Dawson, the 8-year-old was always lying handy behind the leaders before taking it up after three out and had five lengths to spare at the finish over fellow Yorkshire raider Tobshiba (Jack Power).
Dawson, who also trains the winner, said: ''He has improved with every run this season, has bags of stamina and the penny seems to have finally dropped. The race turned into a sprint from three out but he did it nicely and there is more improvement to come.''
The winner's dam Duchess Account was a legend on the Yorkshire circuit between 2004 and 2008, winning 14 of 28 Pointing starts including the 2008 Grimthorpe Gold Cup as well as being placed 7 times.
Take It Upstairs (William Easterby) made it four winners on the day for Yorkshire in the 2m Dalgleish Subaru Point-to-Point Flat Race. Fulfilling the promise shown when runner-up on debut at Alnwick, the 4-year-old produced an impressive turn of foot two furlongs from home to settle the issue in a matter of strides and won by fifteen lengths from It's Unbelievable (Pippa Brown).
The well-related youngster, picked up for only £5,000 at Goffs UK Store Sale last May, will now be aimed at the Aintree Point-to-Point Bumper on May 19. His dam Buche De Noel won 4 times over jumps in France as a 4-year-old, and other multiple winners in the pedigree include Kyrie and Unextase.
There was high drama at the end of the 3-runner Belhaven Brewery Ladies Open Race with the winner Oscar Wilde (Amy Coltherd) and runner-up Okey Dokey (Emma Brown) both being disqualified at the subsequent stewards enquiry for taking the wrong course after mistakenly jumping the fence alongside the winning post. Their error gifted the prize to Tabitha Threadgall's mount Paddling who was around twenty lengths 3rd at the time. This was a second career success for Tabitha and also a second Pointing win for ex-chaser Paddling who had ended a five-year losing run at last season's Haydon fixture in May.
The 2 George Crawford Legacy Trust-sponsored pony races which preceded the main action were won by Mohammed Ali (Cara Wilson) and Judge Fox (Kaden Beasley) with the latter partnership recording a fifth success of the season.
The next Northern Area fixture is the Overton Races-Fife card at Overton Farm, Crossford on Saturday 29th April. It has total prize-money of £3,650 on offer including the £1,250 Ineos Grenadier Mixed Open with £750 to the winner. The latter contest is the most valuable race across all 12 meetings nationwide that weekend.
For the record, this season's 8 Northern Area fixtures have attracted a healthy total of 354 runners with an average of 6.68 per race.