VALE of Clwyd horse racing enthusiasts have discovered two reasons to be cheerful.

Racing syndicate Rasio Cymru Racing has started the new flat season with a bang, courtesy of a quickfire back-to-back.

The first meeting of the flat racing season was held at Doncaster.

Here, Stonific, the David O'Meara-trained six-year-old gelding won easily at odds of 14/1.

Stable jockey Danny Tudhope literally stepped off the plane at Manchester Airport after riding Lord Glitters in Dubai and he came up to ride his first winner of the season on turf.

Rasio Cymru's latest purchase is four-year-old Tabaahy, who was bought at sales in January, having previously been trained in Ireland.

Tabaahy is a 260,000 guineas yearling purchase who raced in the famous blue and white Hamdan Al Maktoum silks at the start of his career.

Unraced at two, he demonstrated bags of promise when fifth in a five-furlong Curragh maiden last June.

Earlier this month saw him have his first run for the Rasio Cymru syndicate at Wolverhampton.

Also trained by David O'Meara, Tabaahy bumped as he came out of the stalls, but he settled quickly.

As the gaps opened up around the final bend, jockey Cam Hardie steered Tabaahy clear and went on to win by three-quarters of a length at odds of 16/1, crowning a perfect start for the owners of both horses.

A syndicate spokesperson said: "(We) would like to thank all owners for their continued support, and not to forget to all locals who ask about the horses!"