TRAINER Harry Fry and jockey Noel Fehily teamed up to score a double at Exeter, on Sunday, with Lorna Squire and Richard Metherell’s Overtown Express scoring in the opening Bathwick Tyres National Hunt Novices’ Hurdle and Unowhatimeanharry landing the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle.

Fehily always looked confident aboard Overtown Express, who came away readily from 8-11 favourite Rolling Dylan, whose habit of jumping left lost him plenty of ground.

Co-owner Richard Metherell, who lives in north Devon, bought the gelding as a four-year-old and after a spell in point-to-points sent him to Fry.

‘It was a bit unexpected, but he was running a nice race at Warwick last time until he fell, and he appears to relish this ground,’ he said.

A run under a penalty while the heavy conditions prevail could be next on the agenda for the eight-year-old.

Unowhatimeanharry made it four in a row when he won the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle, and the final could now be a possibility for the gelding.

‘He won a grade II novice at Cheltenham in December but it wasn’t the strongest renewal of that race,’ said Fry.

‘On official ratings he’s still got quite a bit to find with the best novices in the Albert Bartlett.

‘That’s why we came here, to try to qualify and give ourselves another option.’

Midnight Prayer secured victory in the feature veteran’s chase, where he was the only finisher on the testing ground.

Golden Chieftain had run a huge race until two out when he fell, along with Shotavodka, leaving Midnight Prayer to finish alone. But it was no plain sailing for the Alan King-trained 11-year-old and Richard Johnson had to work hard to coax him home to the line.

Politologue had no trouble landing the odds in the Bathwick Tyres Novices’ Hurdle.

The Paul Nicholls-trained grey was left to come home 59 lengths ahead of Trans Express after his nearest rival, Ghost River, took a tired fall two out.

After that Sam Twiston-Davies was able to cruise home on Politologue to collect the listed prize after finishing second to Barters Hill in the grade I Challow Hurdle on his previous start.

The Fergal O’Brien-trained Chase The Spud was happiest in the conditions in the four-runner Bathwick Tyres Bridgwater Graduation Chase with Paddy O’Brennan pushing him out to score an 11 lengths win.

Southfield Vic was 1-8 on to win the two-runner Bathwick Tyres Bideford Novices’ Chase but he never appeared happy on the ground and De Bene Esse, trained by Evan Williams, landed the spoils with Tom O’Brien on board.

Richard Johnson went home with a brace of wins with Westend Story easily winning the Bathwick Tyres Taunton bumper for Philip Hobbs and the Mick Fitzgerald Racing Club.

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