Updated: Borders racehorse trainer Sandy Thomson a winner at double at Kelso's Morebattle Hurdle meeting

Not content with fielding the Morebattle Hurdle’s first Scottish winner for 16 years, 11/1 chance Benson, earning prize money of £51,440, he then went on to oversee Empire Steel finishing first at 4/1 in the Bet365 Premier Chase, taking its top prize of £34,170.

Victory in the day’s 1.50pm feature race puts Benson, an eight-year-old bay gelding co-owned by football club director Jimmy Fyffe and his friend Scott Townshend, in the running for a £100,000 bonus if he can go on to win any race at Gloucestershire’s Cheltenham Festival.

He’s been entered for both the Coral Cup on Wednesday, March 15, and Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle on Friday, March 17, with bookmaker Coral offering odds of 20/1 for each.

Ridden by Thomson’s son-in-law Ryan Mania, Benson beat top-weight Colonel Mustard, trained in County Meath by Lorna Fowler and with Kieren Buckley in the saddle, by two lengths to become the first native horse to win the hurdle since Hawick’s Alistair Whillans pulled off that feat with Brave Vision in its pre-handicap days in 2007.

That was Benson’s second win of 2023 following one at Musselburgh on New Year’s Day, also with Mania riding.

Thomson said: “He’s in both the conditionals handicap hurdle and Coral Cup but I’d be favouring the latter as he’s a horse that needs strong handling.

“He’s done very well since coming to the yard and this is the second decent prize he has won, so the bonus at Cheltenham would just be the icing on the cake.

“The great thing is he has only been out of his box for about four hours, which can make a great difference when you are thinking of going again, and we will obviously have to go. You have got to try.

“How good he is, nobody actually knows.

“I’ve got to speak to the owners about it. He will get into the Coral Cup now. On 134, he was perhaps on the brink, and what weight he has and what Ryan can do could influence it. Ryan obviously struggles a bit with his weight, but if he gets 10st 9lb or 10st 10lb, hopefully he would be able to do that.”

Dundee United director Fyffe added: “I own him with my mate Scott, who picked him up for just £7,000 last May, and he’s turned out to be a very shrewd buy.

“It’s been great day to win such a big race in Scotland with one of our horses.”

Mania was also in Empire Steel’s saddle at 3.35pm for a 59-1 winning double, beating Le Milos, a contender for Merseyside’s Grand National in April, by three-quarters of a length.

Thomson was chuffed to see the nine-year-old grey gelding, owned by Cockburnspath farmer Alan Wight, edge out Warwickshire trainer and jockey Dan and Harry Skelton’s 10/11 favourite, saying: “He loves it here and it was another great ride from Ryan.

“He didn’t jump the fifth last too well but he finished strongly all the way up the hill.

“His owner rides him out at home and he’s been a tricky horse in the past. One day here he wouldn’t even go down to the start.

“I’m delighted for the horse that he's won a decent race. We’ve always thought a lot of him.

“You are always delighted when a horse who has ability gets one in the bag and no one can ever take it away from him.”

That was Thomson’s second victory in the listed chase, his previous win being with Seldom Inn in 2017, and he’s now lining up Empire Steel for the Scottish National at Ayr next month.

“I’ve been lucky. Seldom Inn won it, Seeyouatmidnight was third and Hill Sixteen was second, so it was nice to get another winner in the race,” he said.

“Although the Skeltons will be annoyed they got beaten, they will be delighted with the Grand National trial that their horse ran.

“If we get 4lb or 5lb and up to around 146, then I would be quite happy and the Scottish National would be the aim.

“The great thing today is he has won on good-to-soft ground, whereas in the past his better performances were on soft and heavy ground, so I’m absolutely delighted with him and I don’t think you will see him before the Scottish National.

“There’s nothing really at Aintree that fits the bill and I think the Scottish National will be his sort of race.”

Thomson added: “It’s been an unbelievable day. To have one winner is great, but to win the two big races here is incredible.”

Thomson had one other runner in action on Saturday, Carcaci Castle, ridden by Mania, being pulled up in the 2.25pm Bet365 Premier Novices’ Hurdle, won by Nemean Lion, trained by Herefordshire’s Kerry Lee and with Richard Patrick riding, for a top prize of £28,475

Perth and Kinross trainer Lucinda Russell won the final race on Kelso’s richest racecard of the year, the 4.45pm Bet365 Handicap Chase, with the Derek Fox-ridden Bollingerandkrug, finishing over six lengths ahead of Selkirk handler Stuart Coltherd’s Gandhi Maker, with Sean Quinlan as jockey.

The day’s opener, the 1.15pm Bet 365 Cyril Alexander Memorial Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase, was won by Bill Baxter, ridden by Sean Bowen and trained in Berkshire by Warren Greatrex; the 3pm Bet365 Handicap Hurdle’s £13,008 top prize went to Dan Skelton’s Santos Blue, with Ben Sutton in the saddle; and victory in the 4.10pm Bet365 Juvenile Hurdle went to Charlie Hammond on Planet Legend, trained by Worcestershire’s Richard Newland.