Football manager Sir Alex Ferguson was celebrating with a huge crowd of punters at York Racecourse's Dante Day 2003.

Manchester United supremo Sir Alex, at the races with newly appointed Leeds manager Peter Reid, happily chatted with racegoers and signed autographs.

He was one of a number of famous faces at the Dante meeting, including several Blackburn Rovers footballers and actors Paul Fox, Ian Carmichael and Michelle Hardwick, of the YTV period hospital series, The Royal.

Sir Alex spent time with racegoers in the paddock disabled enclosure, where he signed more autographs and posed for pictures.

He said: "It is always lovely here. It is one of the best courses in the country. I've backed two winners today as well."

Mo Child, a volunteer with Skylarks Respite Holidays for the Disabled, said Sir Alex was "brilliant".

She said: "I asked him to come over and he did. It was a really nice gesture."

Wheelchair user Ian Jones, of Boston Spa, near Tadcaster, was at the races with Skylarks.

He said: "He was fantastic, it was really nice to meet him."

Dante Day is traditionally the busiest day of the May meeting, and there was a real buzz about the place yesterday, cranked up by Sheriff Hutton jockey Kevin Darley, who rode the winner home in the big race.

Darley's win completed a local double in the opening two races, as the winner of the first, Matty Tun, is owned by a York family.

Kilted scotsmen Iain Mackay, Bob Stafford and Robbie McSkimming were making their annual trip to the Dante meeting - although none had backed the winner.

"My wife has though," said Iain, of Tadcaster. "We come racing at York once a year and it's always to the Dante. We love it."

Friends Mandy Sowter, Bianca Dunlop and Rosalyn Noonan, all of York, were enjoying yesterday's lively atmosphere.

Rosalyn, 20, said: "It is fabulous here. You can come and feel really posh, even if you are not posh at all."

A ten-strong female group made its way from Barkston Ash, near Tadcaster, to celebrate Linda Jackson's birthday.

"We are having a brilliant time," she said.

Course spokesman James Brennan hailed a successful day's racing.

He said: "It has been another good day. A highlight was Matty Tun's win, as while we are delighted with all our winners, we are delighted that a comparatively small, local yard has had a winner on a big day.

"The new Ebor Stand has continued to perform as well as we expected, if not better."

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Updated: 11:02 Thursday, May 15, 2003