Cromwell's Stumptown wins on racecourse bow

Stumptown (12/1) made a successful racecourse debut in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Maiden Hurdle.

The Laverock gelding, runner-up in his only point-to-point start in the spring, raced in mid-division and was being pushed along in fifth entering the straight with two to jump.

The 4-year-old responded to Conor McNamara’s urgings to move into third before the final flight and stayed on well on the run-in to lead close home.

He scored by three quarters of a length from Figurehead with Top Bandit another half a length away in third.

Winning trainer Gavin Cromwell said: "Coming here if he finished fourth or fifth, I'd have been delighted but happy days and that was great.

"He was second in a point-to-point so we knew he'd stay well. He was a little green the whole way around, they went a good gallop and he stayed going well.

"He loved that soft ground, he'll stay further and I don't know where we'll go now, maybe for a rated novice."

Quotes from Thomas Weekes