MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS sufferer John Brown achieved a personal ambition and raised in the region of £1,000 for MS charities when partnering Mudlark into fifth place in the Bounty Amateur Riders' Handicap at Southwell yesterday.

Brown, a 37 year old father of two who was diagnosed as having the disease in January, headed back to Huddersfield after the race to begin his nightshift as a wire factory foreman.

In the race, Brown held a prominent pitch aboard the John Norton trained four year old, who then faded in the straight to be beaten just over 20 lengths behind Les Eyre's 5 to 4 favourite Onefourseven.

Backed by two coachloads of supporters and watched by three camera crews, Brown said on dismounting: "I am shattered - absolutely shattered. My legs have gone, but it was absolutely brilliant. It proves that us MS sufferers cannot be written off and one day we will prove we can do it.

"It is a magic feeling - hard to put into words.

"The horse ran well - we didn't do too badly together. I got a bit boxed on the home turn and then the others just had too much speed for us.

Brown, who worked in racing for 13 years, including two years riding as a professional in Belgium, was granted a licence to ride for the day by the Jockey Club.