The cheers were loud and long as Oxford favourite Jolly Poacher (5-2) triumphed in a dramatic Blanchford Oxfordshire Gold Cup final, winning for the second year running on Saturday, writes John Gaisford.
All eyes were on Poacher and hot favourite Ballymac Ace (4-5 fav) as the traps opened.
But within yards, the slow trapping Ace ended up on the floor, victim of his own early pace in trying to recover his poor start.
Meanwhile, Poacher, owned by Shane Lee and Mel Shorter and trained by Nick Colton, was out and gone.
Halfway up the straight, with his usual rails slot in the bag, it was as good as all over.
The consistent Brickfield Class was always going to be second as Poacher came home three and a half lengths clear posting a very healthy 26.67 secs.
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