'The whole yard is buzzing' - Original Thinker off the mark to continue Harriet Bethell's brilliant form

Trainer Harriet Bethell’s superb run of form continued when Original Thinker made it 13th time lucky to get off the mark in the 7½f handicap.

The 6-1 shot’s success under Joe Fanning means Bethell has saddled four winners and three seconds from her last eight runners.

“Original Thinker has always shown a lot at home and she was second at Newcastle off a higher mark," the trainer said. "She was dropped 2lb the other day for her run at Doncaster, so she was about right.”

Bethell’s father William temporarily oversaw the licence at the family's yard near Hull in East Yorkshire while the trainer recovered from life-threatening injuries sustained from a freak fall on the gallops in 2019.

“The Wrigleys [owners] are long-time family friends and they came to see me quite a lot when I was in hospital,” said Bethell.

Since returning to the training ranks in November 2021, Bethell has enjoyed career-best seasons in 2022 and 2023, and looks likely to better last term’s haul of 13 winners if maintaining her 30 per cent strike-rate.

“The whole yard is buzzing,” Bethell added after her sixth winner of 2024.

Listed aim for Harswell

Call Me Harswell could run in the Listed Marygate Fillies’ Stakes at York on Friday week after landing the feature 5f maiden by a length and a half.

The daughter of Soldier’s Call was bought for £5,000 as a yearling in August and, after finishing three-quarters of a length behind Larchill Lass on her debut at Beverley last month, reversed the form with Karl Burke-trained favourite in the £30,000 opener at the same track.

Call Me Harswell’s joint-trainers Roger Fell and Sean Murray completed a double when She’s Got Bottle backed up last Wednesday’s win at Pontefract in the 1m½f handicap.

Burke gained some compensation when Princess Alex defied a 5lb rise to follow up her victory at Haydock last month.

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