IT is hard to believe that it is more than four decades since Golden Cygnet had the racing world at his feet, only to be cruelly robbed of a glorious future when he fell in the Scottish Champion Hurdle, failing to survive his injuries. Though his hurdling career consisted of just one season, such was the impression he made that the venerable Timeform organisation rate him among the best hurdlers of all time.

Raced in the colours of Galway man Ray Rooney, and owned in partnership with Christy Feerick, Hubert Hardiman and the late Dr Tony Browne and Pat Butler, Golden Cygnet was trained by Edward O’Grady who had purchased him at Goffs as a store for less than 1,000gns. From the first crop of Deep Run, later to be a multiple champion sire and an enduring influence on the breed, Golden Cygnet was bred by John O’Brien and was the only produce of his unraced dam.

Flat career

Golden Cygnet appeared to have made the perfect start to his racing career in a two-mile maiden at Leopardstown in June 1976, finishing first past the post ahead of Star Of The Arctic.

However the stewards reversed the placings. A fast-finishing third next time out at Navan, he then made amends for his debut reversal and landed the Terry Rogers Standard Plate at Naas in October. He was to make three starts from September to November the following year, finishing fifth in the Leopardstown November Handicap after a gamble on him went astray.

Explaining why his hurdling career was delayed for so long, Edward O’Grady said that “he was very fresh and kept hitting his knee on his teeth, so we had to have the knee blistered and he was put by for a year.”

Golden Cygnet started on the road to racing greatness over hurdles on Thursday, December 8th 1977 at Clonmel. On a day which saw Willie Mullins and Frank Codd win the two divisions of the bumper, it was another amateur, 18-year-old Niall Madden, who stole the riding honours with a double, the first leg of which came on Golden Cygnet in the Redmondstown Maiden Hurdle. The five-year-old was three lengths clear at the line from Carrow Boy.

Next stop was Leopardstown on St Stephen’s Day and here Golden Cygnet turned the Roundwood Hurdle into a procession, returning an easy 20-length winner in the hands of Madden. Such was the authority, and ease, of this victory that his trainer turned him out again just 12 days later at Naas in the Slaney Hurdle, now a Grade 1 race. Here he faced the experienced Oisin Dubh but had the measure of him to win comfortably. Tom McGinty wrote at the time that it would “take a really good one to beat Golden Cygnet” at Cheltenham.

Offer refused

Reports after the race suggested that the owners had refused an offer of £40,000 for the gelding, and this was later confirmed by the trainer and Ray Rooney. “There’s no way he’s for sale. He’s the best I’ve ever trained,” O’Grady explained, while Rooney added, “money could not buy him now.”

Edward O’Grady indicated that Golden Cygnet’s Cheltenham target was to be the Waterford Crystal Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, but there was one final test for the six-year-old, the Fournoughts Hurdle at Punchestown three weeks before his trip to the Cotswolds.

On yet another day to remember for the trainer/jockey combination of O’Grady and Madden, they initiated a double when Golden Cygnet cantered to victory, and an hour later Jack Of Trumps added the Poulaphouca Chase.

Such was the ease and comfort of his first four victories that Golden Cygnet travelled to Prestbury Park as most people’s idea of a banker. He faced 19 opponents, only one of which was also trained in Ireland. That was Brian Lusk’s Leirum, who won five on the bounce on the way to the meeting. Edward O’Grady was no doubt hoping on day two to eradicate the memories of 24 hours earlier when Flame Gun was beaten and Jack Of Trump fell.

History

The rest is history. Golden Cygnet strolled to a 15-length victory from Western Rose, in a time that was fractionally faster than the Champion Hurdle later in the afternoon, prompting Graham Rock to write that he “will give Monksfield plenty to think about in the Champion Hurdle next year if his insultingly easy victory in the Waterford Crystal Supreme Novices’ Hurdle is any guide”. Fred Rimell, who trained the runner-up, said: “If I had not seen it I would never believe that any horse could do that to my horse. The winner must be super.”

Less than a fortnight after Cheltenham – trainers didn’t wrap their stars in cotton wool then – Golden Cygnet turned out at Fairyhouse where he sought to extend his unbeaten record over hurdles to six – and did so magnificently. The Irish Field summed up the performance best: “All the superlatives that can be used have been already accorded to Golden Cygnet, so, suffice to say that never have I seen a more impressive novice, if one can use that term in connection with this superb jumper.

“The opposition he encountered in the Fingal Hurdle may not have been out of the top drawer, but the sheer style of the win will remain etched in the memory when the names of the beaten horses are forgotten.”

Golden Cygnet lined up on April 15th for the Scottish Champion Hurdle at Ayr, attracting a top-class field that included Sea Pigeon and Night Nurse. The latter was in receipt of 6lb from his two principal rivals who were sent off as joint favourites.

Night Nurse went on two out but at the last was being pressed by Sea Pigeon and Golden Cygnet, with the latter going best of all. Then tragedy struck. The six-year-old Irish hero never rose and ploughed through the hurdle, sustaining a crashing fall. A little later, Golden Cygnet got to his feet and all appeared well, except to trainer Edward O’Grady. He had the horse sent for a thorough examination to Edinburgh University where, a few days later, he died in his sleep. The dreams of his owners, trainer and all in the yard at Ballynonty lay in ruins.

Jonjo O’Neill, who won the race on Sea Pigeon, said afterwards: “Maybe we were a bit lucky. Golden Cygnet was murdering us”.

Tributes paid

The Irish Field at the time paid the following tribute to Golden Cygnet. “In his brief but brilliantly exciting career, he had shown all the attributes of a great racehorse. Above all, he possessed the exhilarating ability to sprint away from his rivals in just a few lightening strides. He looked a readymade champion and his death leaves a huge void in the ranks of top hurdlers. It is ironic that his fatal injury should have occurred at the very moment he was about to beat the finest hurdlers in Britain.”

A philosophical Ray Rooney said afterwards: “That’s racing. Everything possible was tried, but there was nothing that could be done to save him.” He added: “When we bought him he was an awful bag of bones at first, but he turned out to be a horse in a century. He had all the right ingredients. He cannot be replaced. It has been said he was the greatest hurdler since Hatton’s Grace who won three Champion Hurdles for Vincent O’Brien nearly 30 years ago.

“Everybody in Galway seemed to follow the horse. I would need a full-time secretary to answer all the letters and telephone calls of sympathy I have got.”

Edward O’Grady perhaps summed the gelding up best, and most succinctly. “Golden Cygnet was not the horse of the decade – he was the horse of the century.”