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Who will ride Yanworth ?

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  • Who will ride Yanworth ?

    Paddy Power are betting on this ?
    8
    Wayne Hutchinson
    12.50%
    1
    Mark Walsh
    37.50%
    3
    Richard Johnson
    25.00%
    2
    Aidan Coleman
    0.00%
    0
    Barry Geraghty
    25.00%
    2

    The poll is expired.


  • #2
    Johnny Ward

    There was a rumour going around on Saturday evening that Barry Geraghty might do the unthinkable and ride at the Cheltenham Festival.
    Apparently, Geraghty had received a much happier assessment of his rib injuries than had first been the case last weekend after his bad fall at Kempton seven days earlier.
    It turned out that this was true, but X-rays nevertheless confirmed that he has three broken ribs, while his collapsed lung will need some time to repair itself. He is optimistic about making it to Aintree's meet.
    This followed another outlandish rumour that Tony McCoy was coming out of retirement for one last Festival in his old boss JP McManus' apparent hour of need. In a subsequent interview, the 20-times champion jockey of England admitted that he was tempted to a degree, but added: "The only fellow that made a successful comeback was God, really."
    Earlier in the week, Yanworth's trainer Alan King said publicly that the issue of who would partner the Champion Hurdle favourite needed to be sorted.
    With Noel Fehily announced as the rider of Buveur D'air, it has looked as though one of Aidan Coleman, Wayne Hutchinson, Richard Johnson or Mark Walsh will ride Yanworth.
    Coleman rides almost exclusively for McManus as second jockey when Geraghty has been in action in Ireland, but the Cork native has teamed up just 33 times with King in the last five seasons.
    McCoy likes to quote his former boss: "Imagine all the fish in the world that'd be alive if they'd learned to keep their mouths shut."
    Mark Walsh can attest: one of the best jumps riders in the world tends to turn down interviews and tends to let his riding do the talking.
    A colleague didn't even reach the conclusion of his sentence when asking the rider if he might be willing to do a small piece for another paper yesterday.
    For all of his desire to keep a low profile, the Clane, Co Kildare native is respected as one of the gentlemen of the weighing room and, now in his 30s, he is at an age where he deserves a proper platform.
    Walsh, like McManus and racing manager Frank Berry, is unassuming and certainly not one to brag about his talents. One wonders if he is making a modicum of effort behind the scenes to lobby for the ride on Yanworth.
    The McManus operation has been keeping pretty quiet about what might happen, but a decision on the horse is possible tomorrow. King has apparently been quite flexible and the understanding is that Walsh has a chance of riding the horse for the first time.
    This is how it should be. The only jockeys other than Geraghty to steer the son of Norse Dancer, which takes a bit of knowing, are Gerard Tumelty and McCoy. So the case for Walsh above the British-based riders is compelling.
    Partner
    He's second rider to McManus and, while he rarely takes mounts in Britain, now is the time for him to be truly treated as Geraghty's deputy. I'm told he will partner some British-trained horses for McManus next week - which opens the door for Yanworth and other high-class mounts.
    The shortest-price favourite he will get on will be Cantlow in the cross-country. He is also booked for More Of That in the Gold Cup.
    Walsh is arguably better than any jockey based in Britain, yet he has never ridden a Festival winner. His time is surely nigh and nobody in the Irish weighing room will consider that anything other than overdue.
    FWIW I agree with that.

    Absence of a winner in last few weekends probably not helping the argument to get on the GB ones but hope he breaks his duck.

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