RIDING a winner in a new country is always special but to do so at the first attempt makes it sweeter.

So, to come home in front on Fleetfootsoldier at Dundalk last Thursday was a significant milestone in my career. Having only arrived in Ireland the previous month, I was anxious to make a bright start and get my name out there.

In being one of only a select few South African jockeys to ride a winner over here, my recent success has already gone some way towards achieving those ambitions.

Rugby and cricket are the main sports in South Africa but because of my size and stature I was never going to excel at either. It was my dad who first suggested that I should give racing a go. He felt that, as it was a sport I could potentially be good at, I should at least explore that avenue.

With no previous experience of horses, I was starting from scratch when I left school at 16 to join the South African Jockey Academy. In one sense, the academy is like a boarding school, in that you live there throughout your training period.

Apprentices are sent out to racing yards to ride out in the mornings, then return for study in the afternoon. You are not based with one particular trainer, instead, you try to build contacts and ride out in as many yards as possible.

After three years in the academy in Durban, I moved on to the Johannesburg centre. In South Africa, apprentices have to spend five years under the academy umbrella before they are allowed go it alone.

Opened doors

I was fortunate in that I rode a winner for Sean Tarry, champion trainer in South Africa, early on during my time in Johannesburg. That success opened up more doors for me, as other trainers started to use me after that.

I rode winners for a lot of different trainers in the months that followed, including for Mike de Kock. Although I hadn’t much experience of Ireland prior to arriving here in February, I did ride a few ex-Irish horses for the latter trainer.

In June 2017, I represented South Africa in the Prix Longines Future Racing Stars Challenge in France. It was my very first time outside of my home country and I was fortunate enough to ride a winner at Chantilly at the first attempt. Prior to that trip, I was on the 23-winner mark back home, so my career was really progressing.

Unfortunately, shortly after coming back from France, I suffered a serious knee injury which kept me out of racing for over a year. Initially, it was deemed to be a career-ending injury but I refused to accept that diagnosis. I was determined to get back race-riding again and I have no doubt that my positive mindset contributed to my full recovery.

As I was now more than five years into my career, when I did eventually return to the track, I had to do so as a fully-fledged professional jockey. So, having left the sport as an apprentice based at the academy, I was now forced to go it alone and compete on level terms with the best in the country. Initially, it was very difficult to get going again, as the jobs I had prior to my injury had been filled by others.

Essentially, I was starting from scratch again, even though I had done quite well as an apprentice just a couple of years earlier. I decided to leave Johannesburg and return to Durban, where I linked up with trainer Kom Naidoo.

Aside from his yard in Durban, Kom also had a satellite yard in PE (Port Elizabeth). We enjoyed plenty of success together over the last three years and Kom certainly helped resurrect my career.

Opportunity

The opportunity to come over to Ireland came via Paddy Wynne, my old riding master at the SA Jockey Academy. He had been in contact with Kevin Coleman and recommended me to the trainer. Calvin Ngcobo, a fellow South African, who I knew from the academy, has also come over to work for Kevin (Coleman).

Having Calvin here has certainly made it that bit easier to settle in, as obviously it is strange for us being in a new country so far from home.

The two was us started off in Durban together, went to Johannesburg at the same time and more recently, returned to ride in our home town.

I had a few riding commitments to complete before moving to Ireland, so Calvin was here a week before me. Seeing a familiar face to greet me definitely made those initial few days that much easier. We are both based full-time with Kevin Coleman; riding out in the yard and going racing.

In South Africa, you lose your claim after riding 60 winners, whereas it is 95 in Ireland. I was delighted to be informed that I get that 3lb back, as it is a great help starting out here.

Hopefully, trainers will recognise that I am a very experienced apprentice who had three years riding successfully in the professional ranks without any claim.

Chance

Kevin had told me early on that I would be riding Fleetfootsoldier when he ran. The horse missed an intended engagement prior to last Thursday but I knew when he was entered again that I would get my chance.

I hadn’t ridden in a race in Ireland before so I was relieved to discover that it is similar to South Africa in that horses break quickly from stalls, the pace eases, they go through the gears, then sprint in the closing stages. In that respect, it wasn’t anything new to me; I had been doing that since I started race-riding.

While winning a race wasn’t anything new, I still got a great thrill from Fleetfootsoldier, as it was my first Irish winner. I think, similar to Chantilly back in 2017, riding a winner in any new country is always exciting.

I was delighted to ride a winner for Kevin, as he put his trust in me by giving me this opportunity. He is a good man to work for, especially as he is very hands on and doesn’t sit back giving orders. As a former jockey himself, he knows the sport and what is required to succeed as a professional rider.

I am really excited to be here in Ireland and hope to make a success of it. This season, my main goal is to get my name out there, ride more winners and show what I’m capable of.

I can do light weights and hopefully that, and the fact I am so experienced, will help me become more established in the near future.

Mpumelelo Mjoka was in conversation with John O’Riordan