Jockeys
To Watch for the 2009/10 Season
Alexander Voy
Alexander Voy's winning ride on handicap hurdler Francesco at Ayr in March this year reminded me of Brian Hughes early in his career, in that he got the horse home in front but wasn't always spot on when getting his mount over the obstacles; but, as with Hughes, when you've already got half the equation sussed - riding the winner - the rest is likely to follow.
It was all the better when you consider that Francesco looked held at the second last, but Voy rode a strong finish without overdoing it with the whip to get him up by three parts of a length and post his second career winner.
Attached to the Duncrievie, Perthshire stable of trainer Lucy Normile, he got his all-important first victory on his employer's Strobe at Musselburgh on February 1st 2009. Voy got his first chase winner on the board, and third in all, when the 12-year-old Flaming Heck won at Hexham in May.
All Voy's winners so far have been for his retaining yard, but he's clearly prepared to travel, as a tie-up with Trevor Wall, who trains in Church Stetton, Shropshire, has seen Voy go all the way to Taunton to take rides.
With a willingness to travel from one end of the British Isles to the other in the line of work, and victories over hurdles and fences on the board, these are good foundations on which Voy can build. I don't know if he likes to be called 'Alexander' or 'Alex', but either way, you'll see and hear a lot more of him in 2009/10.
* Update: Thanks to a couple of emailers, it can now be revealed that Alexander Voy likes to be called 'Zander'. Many thanks for that, and it's 'Go on Zander!' when you're cheering his rides home.
Paul Townend
The jockey who's quite possibly poised to take over from Ruby Walsh as the number one to Willie Mullins, really started to make a name for himself in the 2008/09 season. That rider is Paul Townend, and he is surely on for another successful campaign in 2009/10.
Townend didn't take long to win his first big pot, steering Indian Pace home in the 2008 Galway Hurdle for John Kiely in late July, and has already been trusted with the rides on some of Mullins's stable stars and won on them. He was in the plate for Cooldine's chasing debut-win at Thurles in November, and has posted victories on the likes of Mikael D'Haguenet, Shakervilz and Pomme Tiepy.
Townend then rode three winners at Leopardstown's Christmas meeting, including another big race when Hurricane Fly took the Grade 1 Future Champion Novice Hurdle on December 27th. Not quite done for the year, Townend rode a treble for three different trainers at Tramore on New Year's Eve.
At the time of writing Townend has yet to ride a winner in Britain and didn't have the greatest of books for the 2009 Cheltenham Festival, but couldn't have gone much closer when riding Fiveforthree in the latest renewal of the Aintree Hurdle. He travelled well and looked like going close three out but couldn't stay on as strongly as Solwhit, going down by half a length. Townend continues to ride winners in his native Ireland, and was on the mark again at the latest Galway Festival.
Expect Paul Townend to have a stronger set of rides at Cheltenham 2010, and to achieve a first British success - probably in a big race - sooner rather than later.
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