IT'S a busy point-to-point weekend in the county. The rearranged Kent Grand National meeting will be held at Detling on Saturday and the usual meeting will be staged at Aldington on Monday, May Day.

Both meetings are hosted by the West Street Tickham Hunt and start at 2pm. Entries for both are good and with suitable weather forecast ground conditions should be favourable and large fields are anticipated. The Detling meeting, always popular with owners, stages the Premier Race of the Area The Kent Grand National carrying maximum prize money and run over the extended distance of four miles.

Todd’s Brother, trained by Di Grissell, stays well and if the ground gets soft will have a great chance.

In the Ladies, Cedar Chief now back to his best form will have to battle hard to beat the persistent Little Worsall who beat the favourite Heracles when they met at Catsfield recently. Shoveontommy who disappointed at the last Charing meeting should make amends and take the Confined. There are 27 entries for the Maiden which makes it even more of a lottery, but I stick with The Rollerskater who ran well at the last Penshurst but found one too good for him.

Aldington starts with the Maiden Race and here Blakes Road should lose his maiden ticket. Jac An Ree and Balau should have an interesting battle in the Confined and my vote goes to Jac An Ree.

Being a left hand course, the Jenny Gordon trained Magnolia should have an easier run here than at Catsfield and take the Restricted. In the Ladies, Millenium Way has only to jump a clear round to make the win no 5 this season. The Men's Open should be a battle between course winner Trickey Trevor and Little Farmer.

RUNNERS were not abundant at Penshurst on Saturday where The Old Surry Burstow & West Kent held the second of their two meetings with just 27 horses going to post for the six races, one of which was a walkover.

Horses from East Anglia won four of the six races so the home team did not fare too well.

Joe Turner, from Suffolk, had a double, taking the Intermediate and Maiden races and was a little unlucky in the Ladies when his Spring Gale slipped up after the second last when laying down a serious challenge to the ultimate winner Minino, now owned by local owner Caroline Taylor.

Minino had only been bought a few days before having previously run in East Anglia. Taylor also owns and rides Milleniumn Way and certainly looks the favourite to win the Area Ladies award.

Rider Jamie Owen had a field day when riding a three timer Running with Moon in the first, West Field John to take the Intermediate and finally winning the Maiden on Shannon Quest. Eighteen-year-old jockey Matt Jackson and owner Brian Sillis will certainly remember this particular meeting when they had a walkover with Silver Lake to record their first winners, the horse having only been bought three weeks previously.

Cedar Chief was back to his better form when taking the Mens Open winning easily by 15 lengths and will now be prepared for a Hunter Chase at Folkestone in May but will take in another race beforehand.