Round-up from Notts/ Romford on Monday
MONLEEK COWBOY (6-1) ended a losing run of four when holding off Romeo Maldini to claim the final of the William Hill 480 Trophy at Nottingham, a race in which just over a length separated the first four home.
Having started his British career with three wins in four starts, a short-head defeat on debut foiling a perfect sequence, the David Pruhs-trained dog had suffered a few bumpy runs subsequently and was comfortably beaten by Driving Up Ben in the heats of this event.
However, that dog was unable to dominate this week and it was Monleek Cowboy who found himself in front off the second bend, digging deep to repel all challengers, the last of whom was Romeo Maldini who kept on well on the wide outside but went down by half a length to the 29.22sec winner.
At Romford, the judge could not split Jim Reynolds’s Craighall Horse (11-8F) and Elaine Parker’s Step On Lee (6-4) after a thrilling opening heat of the Coral on TV Standard over 400m.
Step On Lee led from the outset, but the rapidly-improving Craighall Horse shrugged off a first bend bump to close the leader down, joining him on the line, which the pair crossed in an excellent 23.83sec.
Parker did get a winner in her own right when Step On Lee’s litter-brother Step On Brett (7-4F) made all to beat Tearaway John in heat three, clocking 24.21sec, while heat two went to David Allen’s Bubbly Toby in 23.93sec.
*Draw for Friday’s £750 Coral on TV Standard final: 1 Step On Lee, 2 Step On Brett, 3 Bubbly Toby, 4 Craighall Horse (m), 5 Tearaway John (m), 6 Courtenay Ranger (m).
