THE claret and blue colours of Burnley were quick across the ‘turf’ as the granddaughter of a former club legend rode to victory – claiming a national title along the way.

Natalya Irvine has followed in her grandfather Willie’s footsteps when in comes to her love and dedication for sport – something which was evident in her latest win at Kingston Blount Point-to-Point, where she was crowned the National Ladies Novice Champion.

The 20-year-old, who left home at just 16 to pursue a career in the racing industry, was onboard Blazing Tom, a horse owned by her parents Stephen and Gaynor Irvine.

Nat boarded the 10-year-old gelding in the claret and blue colours of her hometown – giving a nod to both Burnley and her grandad Willie, who made 126 appearances for the club in the 1960s, scoring 78 goals.

Speaking about the special connection, Natalya said: “The win feels even better as I’ve done it for the family and the colours that I ride in.

“We came up with the idea as a whole family, my uncles and grandad too. We wanted to represent Burnley with my silks – it’s great to do this in these colours, I love it.

“Its also nice to do something for grandad and to give him something back for all he has done for us.”

Natalya moved down to Oxfordshire in 2017 before she started working for Tom and Gina Ellis, where she remains today.

Blazing Tom was bought by her parents and put into training with Tom in November, with Nat admitting it wasn’t a case of love at first sight with the horse.

She said: “It was a bit up and down to start with – to be honest I hated the horse. The second day I rode him I cried my eyes out and wanted him to go.”

But the young rider persisted – claiming a win on Blazing Tom during their very first outing at Mollington in April.

Then came a win at Dingly while carrying a five-pound penalty followed by another at Chaddesley Corbett where the pair won again.

Nat said: “At that point we were in a bit of a situation as I was in the running to win the National Novice Lady Championship, so we were thinking of running him again to try and win that.

“That’s when we went to Kingston. It was a very good race and the biggest test out of them all.”