No more grey areas as Ruby goes for gold

14 April 2012

The phrase old head on young shoulders could have been invented for Ruby Walsh. Much to the amusement of his more mischievous colleagues, the ongoing battle between the grey and the black in the Irishman's hair is becoming all too one-sided.

Looking like the "before" half of a Grecian 2000 commercial may not be ideal for a 24-year-old about town, but Walsh is laughing all the way to the bank in his new role as top jockey to the powerful Paul Nicholls yard.

Nicholls demands the highest standards from his riders on and off the track.

Tony McCoy's link with him was broken after disagreements over his availability, while Timmy Murphy's successful spell as stable jockey was doomed from the moment he went on a drink-fuelled rampage on a flight home from Japan last year.

The dependable Joe Tizzard remains a key player in the Ditcheat operation, but in Walsh it seems Nicholls has finally found the man to challenge McCoy's position as the dominant jump jockey on either side of the Irish Sea.

Though fiercely competitive, Walsh is less driven than McCoy and, having been champion jockey twice in Ireland, now takes the view that quality is more important than quantity. "Every rider wants to be a champion, but winning the big races means more to me," he said. "My one aim in life has been to ride good horses in the top races and working with Paul has given me the chance to do that."

Walsh's current role involves satisfying the requirements of top Irish trainers such as Willie Mullins while making himself available wherever possible when Nicholls has runners.

It's a fine balancing act - and one that has put him on first-name terms with most flight crews between London and Dublin - but Walsh is relishing the challenge after returning from two months off with a fractured hip. "It seems to be working well and with Paul you always know that you are riding a horse with a live chance of winning," he said.

Keen form students will be well aware that the Nicholls stars were hitting the deck more often than Robert Pires during Walsh's absence. Valley Henry, Azertyuiop and Strong Flow all failed to complete the course in important trial races, but normal service has been resumed since Walsh returned with big wins on Rigmarole and Azertyuiop.

"Ruby always has horses in the right place at the right time and has a real way of getting them to relax and jump well," said Nicholls.

"He has a lot of faith in me and vice versa, and I don't think we've ever had a cross word since he joined us."

Plenty of words have been expended on the issue of whether Walsh will partner the exciting Strong Flow in the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury on Saturday.

Throwing a horse who has had just four runs over fences into one of the most unforgiving handicap chases of the season won't be done lightly, yet Walsh is confident that Strong Flow has enough experience for the £110,000 contest. Nicholls is keen to see further rain at Newbury before committing himself, but there is no mistaking the regard in which both men hold the handsome six-year-old.

"Ruby thinks he's quite special and so do I," said Nicholls.

"He had an unlucky fall at Aintree but I think that taught him a lot. He has other options besides the Hennessy, and we certainly wouldn't risk him on fast ground, but if everything is right we'll have a crack as he certainly won't get in with a rating like 140 again."

However he fares this weekend, Walsh has been given a grim reminder of the cruel nature of his job following the deaths of two of his Irish colleagues in recentmonths.

Kieran Kelly was fresh from his first Cheltenham Festival success with the world at his feet when he was killed in a fall at Kilbeggan in August, while Sean Cleary died from severe head injuries sustained at Galway last month.

Walsh was never in danger of taking life for granted before their loss and is even more determined to make the most of his talent now.

His father Ted, an outstanding amateur rider in his day and now a successful trainer and television pundit, constantly reminds his son about the need to savour his success.

"You have to enjoy the good days, because you can be sure enough there will be some bad ones coming along," he said.

It's the sort of measured analysis you would expect from a man who has seen more triumph and disaster than most in racing.

Ruby Walsh is bred to have an old head on young shoulders, all right.

The only surprise in such a savage trade is that half of the other jump jockeys in the weighing room haven't gone grey along with him.

No more grey areas as Ruby goes for gold

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