TOP 5 - NORTHUMBERLAND PLATE WINNERS SINCE THE YEAR 2000

The Northumberland Plate takes place this weekend and Dafydd Lloyd looks back at the biggest winners since the year 2000 and gives his top five. Do you agree with his ranking? 5th - CALLING THE WIND In 2023 at the age of 7, Calling The Wind won the Northumberland Plate ridden by Neil Callan and trained by Richard Hughes and went off at 14/1. He went two years without winning a race prior to him landing the contest in July 2023. Whilst carrying 9st 4lb on the day he was always looking comfortable in midfield and just saw off joint-favourite Golden Rules by half a length. A very consistent horse in his own right, Calling The Wind previously appeared three times at Royal Ascot in the summers of 2021, 2022 & 2023. On each occasion he finished in the top 3 of his races, (2nd in 2021 - Queen Alexandra Stakes over 2m5f, 3rd in 2022 - Queen Alexandra Stakes over 2m5f, 2nd in 2023 - Ascot Stakes over 2m4f).

CALLING THE WIND (Purple and White Silks)

4th - SERGEANT CECIL Victorious in the Northumberland Plate in 2005 at the age of 6, he began his career in underwhelming fashion by winning his first race at the 14th attempt. Trained by Rod Millman, he then remarkably won a treble of big handicap races in 2005 when winning the Northumberland Plate, the Ebor Handicap and Cesarewitch Handicap. In the 2005 edition of the race, Sergeant Cecil raced towards the rear of the 20 runner field before weaving his way through the pack, overtaking the front-running Tungsten Strike inside the final furlong and winning by one and a half lengths. 2006 saw him win more big races, taking the Lonsdale Cup at York, the Doncaster Cup and Prix Du Cadran at Longchamp. The following year he won the Yorkshire Cup adding to his CV. A proper hold up type of horse, he would usually drop to the back of the fields in his races and come with a late surge towards the end. He sadly died in June 2024 at the grand age of 25.

SERGEANT CECIL

3rd - NICHOLAS T At the age of 9 in 2021, Jim Goldie’s charge Nicholas T won the race at odds of 33/1 by coming from last to first to land the renewal. He had a slow start to the contest and trailed the rest of the pack by some three to four lengths at the rear of the field. With three furlongs out he still had plenty to do. Going by some of the horses with two furlongs left he picked off many of the stragglers and kept on strongly inside the final furlong before leading inside the last 110yards, yet still looking as if he had enough in hand to go around the track again. A remarkable performance by the horse to win “the Pitmen’s derby” under jockey Ben Robinson.

NICHOLAS T

2nd - OVERTURN The first ever horse to complete a unique double of winning both Newcastle racecourse’s major flat race (Northumberland Plate) and major National Hunt race (Fighting Fifth). He won the 2010 edition of the Northumberland Plate by making all the running under Eddie Ahern for trainer Donald McCain, setting reasonable fractions at an ordinary gallop and then quickened three furlongs from home but keeping on strongly to beat the horse in second, Drunken Sailor. A memorable horse for winning signature races on the flat and over jumps, some other notable wins included the Galway Hurdle, Chester Cup and Ascot Hurdle. He also finished second behind Rock On Ruby in the 2012 Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

OVERTURN

1st - TRUESHAN In 2022 aged 6, Trueshan defied all the statistics against him to win this race on a handicap mark of 120, carrying 10st 8lbs on his back. Ridden by jockey Hollie Doyle the majority of time throughout his racing career, Trueshan was sent off the 3/1 market leader and gave the horse that finished second 23lbs. Despite the recency bias, this is one of the most remarkable weight carrying performances of all time, made even more remarkable because he was beaten in the 2021 race on a lower mark of 118. A true stayer in all it’s own right he has also won some big stakes races in his career, such as the Goodwood Cup, two Prix Du Cadran’s, and three Long Distance Cups at Ascot.

TRUESHAN

written by Dafydd Lloyd