TRAINERS and jockeys want to sit down with Turf Club officials as soon as possible to discuss major changes to the non-triers rule which are due to be introduced at the end of the year.

The rule was changed following a number of high-profile cases earlier this year which saw stewards’ decisions reversed on appeal or challenged in the law courts.

Turf Club chief executive Denis Egan said: “We have been working on a redraft of the rule following on from a number of difficulties which arose earlier in the year with the application of Rule 212.

“One of the problems we had was that the same part of the rule was used to meet minor and major offences and there was a view that this wasn’t right. We expect to be able to publish the new rule in the next few weeks.”

There are four main parts to the running and riding part of the new rule.

Part 1 deals with situations where any person deliberately or recklessly causes or permits a horse to run other than on its merits

The second part deals with any rider or other person who either rides a horse in a race or causes, contributes to or permits the running and/or riding of a horse in a race in such a way that the horse cannot be seen to have been the subject of a genuine attempt to obtain from the horse timely, real and substantial efforts to achieve the best possible place.

Part 3 deals with running a horse where the horse is found to be in a condition which the person concerned knew or should have known would preclude its chance of winning or achieving its best possible placing having regard to its ability; and running/or riding of a horse in a race for the purpose of giving the horse concerned a school.

The final part deals with a rider who fails to obtain the best possible placing as a result of negligent misjudgement, including a misjudgement of the winning post or the number of circuits, easing his mount without good reason or stopping riding.

There will also be a section dealing with improvement in form and ‘general matters to be taken into account’ when dealing with Rule 212 breaches such as the provision of veterinary information and its validation by the Turf Club veterinary officer.

It is proposed that the penalties for the most serious breach of the rule will increase to a fine of €6,000 for trainers and a ban of up to 90 days on the horse.

Egan said: “It will be one of the most comprehensive running and riding rules anywhere in the world when it is implemented. We believe that the new rule is far clearer and will be easier for the stewards and the various committees to implement. We are planning to meet with the jockeys and trainers’ associations next week to go through the rule in detail with them before it is published.”

Andrew Coonan, spokesperson for the Irish Jockeys Association, said: “I would be concerned that the element of discretion is being taken away from raceday stewards. The fact is that every case is different and the evidence can vary. I would argue that non-trier cases should always be referred and heard in Turf Club headquarters in the cold light of day rather than in the immediate aftermath of a race when some evidence may not have come to light.”

Michael Grassick, chief executive of the Irish Racehorse Trainers’ Association, commented: “Any changes should definitely be up for discussion. We need to see where the Turf Club is coming from on this. No two cases are the same and it all comes down to the interpretation of the rule. For example, if a jump jockey feels his horse is tiring how can he balance safety concerns with the need to obtain the best possible placing?”

The new rule was drafted following extensive work carried out by the legal expertise available within the Turf Club and INHS Committee and the Compliance and Regulations Committee.