The untapped seam of pointers: trainer-owned horses for staff to ride

An untapped source of horses for the sport can be found in licensed trainers' yards.

That is not a reference to hurdlers and chasers who are sold to continue their careers in the point-to-point field, but to horses who are owned by licensed trainers for their staff to ride.

This season alone Fergal O'Brien has sent out five horses, each one ridden by a different member of staff. Two of these eager amateurs have yet to ride a winner and the other three have ridden five winners between them, so O'Brien is not using top-flight, experienced jockeys, and his six runners have yielded just a single victory in a novice riders' contest.