MIDDLEHAM raiders on both Saturday meetings vied for honours as Patrick Haslam and Karl Burke knocked in the winners.

Burke sent down three winners from Spigot Lodge to Lingfield and Southwell, but Haslam had no less than four on the two courses from his Manor Stables base.

Southwell, incidentally, was chosen to host the planned Wolverhampton meeting to make sure there was plenty for the TV punter to watch and no repetition of last week's abandonment because of frost lumps at the Wolverhampton track.

The freeze held for much of the week and only the sand tracks provided any racing.

Haslam's first winner was at Southwell where Tyrone Williams partnered Dazzling Rio. He later followed up on Soldier Point. His wife, amateur rider Carol Williams, was not to be outdone and landed the Lingfield two-miler on Positive Profile.

Apprentice Lee Enstone made Haslam's fourth partnering Just The Job Too in the Southwell seller. Connections had to go to 3,750gns to keep their winner at the auction which followed.

Burke got off the mark at Southwell when Dean McKeown won well on Greenaway Bay, followed up at Lingfield with Legal Set, partnered by Darren Williams, and rounded off at Southwell when David Nolan won on Foronlymo.

Nolan is apprenticed to Les Eyre and there was a sting in the tail for the youngster, who gained a one-day ban for careless riding to add to a three-day ban for excessive use of the whip in an earlier race.

It took Steve Kettlewell's Thursday winner at Lingfield seven hours to make the trip south from Middleham, as the water in the screen-washer bottles kept freezing. But it was all worthwhile as Sara Bosley won on Hout Bay in the amateur six furlong sprint.

Mark Johnston also sent down a runner from the northern headquarters and Atlantic Quest took the maiden race under a fine Joe Fanning ride.

Bobby Elliott, representing the trainer, said the colt had had problems, including a chipped knee, but was pleased "the penny finally dropped."

David Barron has made a flying start at Southwell and on Friday Dean Mernagh added the Maunby trainer's fourth this year, all at the course, on Supreme Salutation.

Barron's daughter Nicola said that the stable's horses were running well, although "we've not had them out of their boxes for a week because everywhere has been frozen."

The weather relented somewhat farther south and Wolverhampton was able to run on Monday, where Brian Rothwell was off the blocks at last with Reasoning, Dean Mernagh notching another win. This was the trainer's first victory since last June.

Rounding off our winners on the sand, both Burke and Haslam returned to Lingfield on Tuesday for a win apiece, the former with Inchcoonan, the latter with Tuscarora.

Jumping was back on Monday at Fontwell and Fakenham and it was to the latter track in Norfolk that both Norman Mason and Ferdy Murphy trekked.

The Brancepeth permit holder was delighted with a Richard Guest-ridden double, both Nephite and Able Native winning, as it had been a fight to keep them fit in the weather.

It was not so long a trip for the Murphy winner, as Pealings is based at the West Witton trainer's satellite yard in Suffolk, the home of the late Geoff Hubbard, where John Supple runs matters. Pealings was owned by the late Mr Hubbard and Supple was pleased with the win by the grey, ridden by JP McNamara.

Rothwell followed up his AW win with a Leicester jumps success on Tuesday, young Nicky Tinkler partnering Smudger Smith to take the amateur hurdles race.

THE WEEK'S WINNERS

Key: All racing is now National Hunt (jumping) except for Flat racing on all-weather surfaces (AW); * = evening meeting; f = furlong (8f = 1 mile); chs = steeplechase; hdl = hurdle; NHf = National Hunt flat race (bumper); nov = novice; juv = juvenile; hcp = handicap; mdn = maiden; amtr = amateur riders; cond = conditional (jumps apprentice) riders; Hb =homebred by owner (or one of the owners).

Racing Week's 12 to Follow (TtF): Altapeter (Peter Beaumont); Barton (Tim Easterby); Benbyas (Les Eyre); Dibea Times (Malcolm Jefferson); Fatelhalkair (Brian Ellison); Gralmano (Kevin Ryan); Hindiana (Ferdy Murphy); Major Sponsor (George Moore); Noshinnanikin (Mick Easterby, replacing Banker Count); October Mist (Mary Reveley); Ryalux (Andy Crook); Tyneandthyneagain (Norman Mason).

Thursday last week. - Lingfield AW: (6f amtr) Hout Bay (trained by Steve Kettlewell, at Middleham; owned by Hout's Partnership), ridden by Mrs Sara Bosley; (8f) Atlantic Quest (Mark Johnston, Middleham; Atlantic Racing Ltd), Joe Fanning.

Friday. - Southwell AW: (6f) Superfrills (Lynn Siddall, Colton; Podso Racing), Chris Catlin; (7f) Supreme Salutation (David Barron, Maunby; J Baggott), Dean Mernagh.

Saturday. - Lingfield AW: (16f amtr) Positive Profile (Patrick Haslam, Middleham; Chelgate Public Relations), Mrs Carol Williams; (6f) Legal Set (Karl Burke, Coverham; Platinum Racing Club Ltd), Darren Williams.

Southwell AW: (8f) Dazzling Rio (P Haslam; Rio Stainless Engineering Ltd), Tyrone Williams; (11f) Greenaway Bay (K Burke; Asterlane Ltd), Dean McKeown; (7f) Soldier Point (P Haslam; Mrs B Hawkins & S A B Dinsmore), T Williams; (7f) Foronlymo (K Burke; Maurice Charge), David Nolan; (12f) Just The Job Too (P Haslam; A Stancliffe & J Trevillion), Lee Enstone.

Monday. - Fakenham: (hcp chs) Nephite (Norman Mason, Brancepeth; permit holder), Richard Guest; (hcp hdl) Able Native (Norman Mason), Richard Guest; (nov chs) Pealings (Ferdy Murphy, West Witton; Exors of the late G A Hubbard), JP McNamara.

Wolverhampton AW: (8f) Reasoning (Brian Rothwell, Musley Bank; Cleaning and Paper Disposables Ltd), Dean Mernagh.

Tuesday. - Leicester: (amtr hcp hdl) Smudger Smith (Brian Rothwell; S P Hudson), Mr Nicky Tinkler.

Lingfield AW: (8f) Inccoonan (K Burke; David McKenzie), R Smith; (6f) Tuscarora (P Haslam; J Roundtree), L Enstone.

Wednesday. - No DST area winners at Newbury or Lingfield AW.

l The final part of Jo Scott's review of 2001 is on page 22.