A RYEDALE jockey is facing the remainder of the year on the sidelines after discovering that he had ridden in a race last week with a broken leg.

Danny Cook finished sixth on the 7-2 favourite Serenity Now in the bumper at Newcastle on Friday after being kicked at the start by another of the runners.

Although in some discomfort, it was only when he got the leg X-rayed after racing that Cook, who had ridden Yesyoucan to a nine lengths victory earlier on the card, found to his horror it was broken.

“I wasn’t in too much pain during the race, but after I got off the horse and went back to the weighing room, it was swelling up a lot and I could feel it rubbing against my boot and clicking,” explained Cook. “I thought I’d broken it and had to go to hospital to get it sorted.”

X-rays confirmed that Cook had broken his fibula and the leg was put into a cast.

“I am hoping to be back at the beginning of January; that’s my aim,” said the jockey, who is frustrated that his injury has happened at such a bad time.

“I was on course for my best-ever start to a season with 13 winners and the good horses are just starting to run,” he explained.

Cook’s success on Yesyoucan earlier in the afternoon at Newcastle had been a milestone victory as it was his 50th winner for Norton boss Brian Ellison.

The triumph was also a significant one for Ellison as it supplied him with his 95th winner over Flat and jumps during 2013 and equalled his previous best total, achieved last year.

“It’s been a great year,” said the Norton trainer, whose undoubted highlight was the soaring fortunes of Top Notch Tonto, a winner at Group 3 and Listed level and runner-up in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot after being supplemented at a cost of £70,000.

Ellison is now aiming to top a century of winners in a calendar year for the first time before 2013 draws to a close.

He looks odds-on to achieve that goal but will be without the services of his number one jockey.

 

• RUN RUCTIONS RUN was the first of doubtless several winners Cook will miss when the Tim Easterby-trained hurdler ran out a determined winner in the opening race at Wetherby on Saturday.

With booked jockey Cook obviously unable to ride, Dougie Costello stepped in for the mount on Run Ructions Run, who had shown promise on her previous hurdles start on this course a fortnight earlier when chasing home Malcolm Jefferson’s high-class Oscar Rock.

“She ran a super race last time when she was beaten by a very good horse,” said Easterby. “She’s a nice filly with a lot of talent and we will try to find another similar race for her.”

Tony Coyle continues to roll out the winners and the Norton trainer provided Costello with his second success of Wetherby’s programme when Flicka Williams defied top weight in the long distance handicap hurdle.

It was the gelding’s third win in three starts since joining Coyle, who is looking forward to switching Flicka Williams to fences. “He’s going to make a lovely chaser, but that won’t be until next season,” he said. “He has to have cut in the ground and that will dictate where we go with him, but I might step him up in class and let him run off bottom weight next time.”

Coyle was completing another good week. He had also been on the mark on the Flat at Southwell with 10-1 shot Dynastic, well ridden by stable apprentice Laura Barry.

 

• IF anyone had placed a £1 wager on all of Dean Pratt’s mounts in the past five seasons, they would now be showing a profit of £21.50.

The Ryedale rider has an enviable strike-rate, which he improved at Wetherby on Saturday when he rode his tenth winner from 37 rides in that five-year period with a sterling effort on Zaplamation, trained by Norton boss John Quinn.

Owned by popular former trainer David Barker, Zaplamation got home by a short-head in a thrilling finish with Zafranagar in the two-mile handicap hurdle.

Quinn had also been on the right side of a photo-finish at Wolverhampton the previous evening when Giant Samurai, ridden by Raul Da Silva, clinched a short-head victory at 20-1.

 

• URBAN HYMNS, who made a sparkling debut for Norton trainer Malcolm Jefferson at Huntingdon earlier this month, may turn out again at Haydock this weekend.

The highly-talented gelding is lined-up for Friday’s novice hurdle over the fixed-brush obstacles which should be meat and drink to this former point-to-point winner.

Jefferson’s Attaglance ran a mighty race in last Saturday’s Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham, finishing fourth at 16-1 under Brian Hughes and picking up a prize of £8,500.

 

• ANYONE fancy riding in a race around York’s famous Knavesmire in 2014? Then get your skates on.

Applications are now being invited to take part in the Macmillan Cancer Support Charity Race on Saturday, June 14.

The race, now in its third year, forms part of the hugely successful Macmillan Charity Day, the largest charity raceday in Britain, which has raised £5.5 million over 40 years.

Each of the 12 selected riders in the nine-furlong race will need to raise a minimum of £2,500. Training will be required for those without race-riding experience and there will also be tuition on an equiciser by ex-champion jockey Kevin Darley. This year the race was won by Venetia Wrigley, wife of former York chairman Nicholas Wrigley.

She had prepared for the race by riding out regularly for Malton trainer Richard Fahey, who provided her with a winning mount in Extraterrestrial.

Anthea Morshead, assistant clerk of the course at York, said: “Applications for next year’s race have been brought forward and have to be submitted by Monday, December 16. Successful applicants will be notified by December 31, so it gives them more time to get fit, to organise fund raising and find a horse – plus it becomes their New Year resolutio.!”

Morshead added: “We all know someone who is suffering from cancer and we all know what wonderful care the Macmillan nurses provide. Riding in the Macmillan Charity Race offers those taking part the opportunity to make a real difference. The race raised more than £70,000 this year and it would be brilliant if we could break the £100,000 barrier next year.”

 

• THE Flat turf season may have been put firmly to bed for 2013, but the all-weather action continues week on week, much to the delight of George Chaloner, who was on the mark at Southwell last Thursday on a most productive afternoon for the Ryedale fraternity.

Chaloner’s narrow success on Boston Bob for Michael Wigham took his tally for the year to a highly creditable 31 winners and left him just three shy of reducing his claim from 5lb to the minimum allowance of 3lb.

The Ryedale flag was flown high in six of the eight races at Southwell. Tony Coyle and Laura Barry won with Dynastic, Sledmere trainer Declan Carroll and Neil Farley teamed up with Bousfield and Brian Ellison and Paul Pickard were on the mark with Silly Billy. Add to that little lot wins for Norton’s Julie Camacho with Tom Sawyer and David Bergin scoring for his boss, Nawton’s David O’Meara, on Sharaarah and it turned out rather a good day on the sand for the locals.

 

• DANNY TUDHOPE gained a century of winners in a season for the first time in his career at Lingfield on Saturday when Tabaayun romped home in the claimer and initiated a treble for David O’Meara.

The Nawton trainer also sent out the first two winners at Wolverhampton’s evening meeting, courtesy of Pim Street, the mount of Julie Burke, and Dansili Dutch, ridden by Dave Nolan.

The previous evening under the Wolverhampton floodlights, Red Shadow had obliged for Ryedale trainer Alan Brown and jockey Dale Swift with an 8-1 win.

 

• THERE was no fairytale ending to Ollie Pears’ originally aborted French assault with No Leaf Clover at Maisons-Laffitte.

Having been thwarted first time round by a strike by racecourse workers which brought racing at the track, which is threatened by closure, to a standstill, Pears brought his juvenile home and sent him out again to run in the re-arranged Group 2 contest last Saturday. The ground, however, was very heavy and No Leaf Clover finished out of the placings in the hands of Robert Winston.

 

• DURAN FENTIMAN rode a 6-1 winner on Ad Vitam for Mel Brittain at Wolverhampton last Friday evening.

But he won’t be riding on the Fibresand course this Friday – for a very good reason.

Fentiman, who rides primarily for Tim Easterby, is getting married on Friday to his long-time partner Kirby. A whole host of jockeys and trainers will be celebrating the occasion with the happy couple, to whom we send sincere congratulations.