IT HAS been a good week for the Power family in terms of having exceptional achievements honoured. While Robbie had to give way to his boss Jessica Harrington in the National Hunt category at the Horse Racing Ireland Awards in Leopardstown on Tuesday, he joined the trainer on stage along with the Harrington sisters Kate and Emma, as Sizing John was named Horse of the Year.

The jockey had been chief lobbyist for pushing the seven-year-old up in distance after too many views of Douvan’s rear end over two miles, and was rewarded as part of a historic triple Gold Cup-winning season.

The previous Saturday, his father Con was inducted into the Showjumpers Club Hall of Fame at the National Showjumping Awards Gala in the Killashee House Hotel in Naas. Power père was Captain Con when joining the late Paul Darragh, James Kernan and Eddie Macken on the Dream Team that claimed another treble, three consecutive Aga Khan Cups from 1977-79.

There is no mistaking Robbie’s pride in his father’s feats, and delight that they had been accorded such a fitting status.

“It was a fantastic achievement to win three Aga Khans in a row, which has never been done since by any nation, which shows how difficult it is to do,” says Power. “The others rode the same horses, and he rode three different horses. That was just the way it was in the Army. He rode Coolronan the first year, Castle Park and then Rockbarton.”

Rest assured, Con had just as much pride in his son’s unprecedented spring. Power fils has won 17 Grade 1s in his career. Seven of those came from February 12th, when Sizing John bagged the Irish Gold Cup, to April 26th, as the son of Midnight Legend and La Perrotine just held off Djakadam in the thrilling Punchestown equivalent.

In between, three of the Grade 1s arrived in two days during the Aintree Festival, while Our Duke’s stunning processional victory in the Irish Grand National has parity with the Cheltenham Gold Cup in the personal rankings.

SPOTLIGHT

The 35-year-old’s profile shot through the roof. Given the spotlight, the pressures and the increasing demands on his time, one wonders if he took any time off?

“I was forced to take time off!” comes the grinning reply.

“There’s no better leveller in sport than National Hunt racing. Two weeks after Punchestown, down to Killarney, get a fall off Woodland Opera who’d won at the Punchestown Festival, break two ribs. Back down to earth with a bang.

“I had four or five days in Spain with my cousin Pierce Power, and Johnny Burke. The ribs healed themselves. I went to Sligo the middle of July and got a fall at the first hurdle in a maiden hurdle, got knocked out and lost four teeth.”

Being knocked out meant he was stood down automatically for a week. He was advised by Turf Club chief medical officer, Dr Adrian McGoldrick not to go back for the concussion test for 10 days. When he did however, he still failed and so missed out on the Galway Festival.

“As good as the spring was – it couldn’t have been any better – the summer just proved that National Hunt racing is a proper leveller. You don’t’ be on your high horse for too long.”

Irish racing is close to being a market leader in terms of its dealings with concussion. Thanks to McGoldrick, it is a market leader in terms of safety and wellbeing on the broadest level and is striving to raise the bar in all areas.

“Adrian McGoldrick has done huge improvements in the welfare of jockeys. He’s been fantastic. I never wore a gum shield before but after I lost my teeth, I went to see David Murnaghan in Boyne Dental Clinic. He’s put in three implants in my teeth but he wouldn’t do it unless I wore a gum shield. Adrian has been saying a long time that all jockeys should be wearing gum shields. When I first got them, they felt awkward in my mouth so David made a special one for me. I wear it now and don’t even know it’s in there.

“All these things help. Anything that can help you safety-wise, the jockeys should be using and Adrian is always pushing that. And while you hate missing out, if you’re not passing a concussion test, it’s not safe to ride so that’s good. Adrian has raised all these standards and is pushing to raise them higher.”

ROLLERCOASTER

In reality, it was the continuation of a rollercoaster. His career was in danger of being finished little more than a year ago before the discovery of the super goggles that addressed double vision, the result of a kick in the head after a fall the previous summer. Then there was a serious back issue that threatened to derail his spring. He has always known ups and downs so he was never going to get above himself.

“Definitely being older helps because you appreciate it an awful lot more. Since I won the Grand National in 2007 (on the Gordon Elliott-trained Silver Birch), there’ve been lots of highs and lows since. I never, ever thought I was gonna ride a Gold Cup winner. I never thought I was gonna get a Gold Cup horse.

“It all started in January when Sizing John won the Kinloch Brae. We knew he’d stay and I was always confident he’d stay further.

“Then I ruptured a disc in my back just before the Irish Gold Cup. I had to rush to get back for that and got back in time. Thankfully the whole way through the spring the back held up and from the Irish Gold Cup on, everything went perfectly.

“Supasundae winning the Coral Cup on the Wednesday (of Cheltenham) – I don’t think it changed anything later in the week but obviously to get a win before the big day is great for your confidence. I think horses and jockeys both thrive on confidence. To get your head in front early in the week just takes the pressure off a little bit.

“Sizing John winning the Gold Cup was great but there was no pressure on us. All the media didn’t think he’d stay, the people involved didn’t think he’d stay, myself and Jessie were confident he’d stay. So we were able to do our own thing and everything worked out perfectly well.

They were keen for me to ride other horses outside of Alan’s. Since this season has started I’ve been over and back a bit riding for Colin

“The week after Cheltenham I took a phone call from Colin asking if I’d ride all his horses for Aintree. I said ‘Definitely!’ I knew Jessie had nothing going to Aintree only Supasundae and I was thinking Fox Norton, Finian’s Oscar – they were the big two. But then Pingshou won on my first ride on the Friday and I’d a Grade 1 double. Finian’s Oscar was favourite for the novice hurdle on Grand National day and won. Sizing Codelco was a bit of a shock to me winning the handicap chase but it wasn’t to the Tizzards.

“That opened new doors for me with the Tizzards. I’ve ridden against Joe a good bit, he’s a great fella. They were keen for me to ride other horses outside of Alan’s. Since this season has started I’ve been over and back a bit riding for Colin outside of the Potts horses.

HUGH KICK

“The Irish Grand National meant as much to me as winning the Gold Cup as it was at my local racecourse, it was a race I always wanted to win from when I was a kid. And then the manner in which the horse won as well. I got a huge kick out of that.”

There are worse times to be injured than the summer if you’re a jump jockey and Power, as first jockey to Harrington and Alan Potts, had equine riches he could never have dreamed of at his disposal.

But then Bryan Cooper was given the job of riding all the Potts horses in England. It is clear that Tizzard rates Power highly. He gave the Meathman the nod to get the highly-rated Slate House’s hurdling career under way, successfully we should add, and just eight days ago, Power hopped across to Newbury to win on Lostintranslation in another maiden hurdle for the former dairy farmer.

Power would have been willing to do more of the cross-channel shuffle and, with Cooper still battling a shoulder injury, Power has been called up to ride Fox Norton at Sandown today.

“I had it organised with Jessie that she was going to let me go over to ride the likes of Fox Norton, Finian’s Oscar and Pingshou, all the good horses in England, but Alan wanted a commitment for a jockey to ride all his horses in England. I couldn’t give that commitment ‘cos I have a fantastic job with Jessie and I wasn’t going to turn my back on that to ride all Alan’s horses in England. So Alan elected to go for Bryan after he lost the Gigginstown job.

“It was a disappointment but I have a fantastic job for Jessie and we have some great horses there. I’m still willing to go over when Colin rings me to say ‘Can you go over on Friday and ride in Sandown, or Ascot or Ludlow or wherever it may be?’ Every time he rings up you’re going over for a horse that has a chance so I’m willing to go over.”

The conversation takes place the day after Alan Potts’ funeral.

“It was just very sad that so quick after Ann had passed away, he did too and it was so sudden.”

It is very much a case of ‘as you were’ with the Potts battalion however.

“At the moment everything is gonna run as normal. Alan had plans with all his trainers for his horses for the winter. His two daughters, Julie and Stephanie, and his PA Judy are keeping the show on the road. Hopefully we can fulfil some of the plans he had been hoping for during the summer.”

One such plan was to win the Gold Cup. It is hard to believe that Potts and his wife Ann, who was battling illness at the time, were both in Cheltenham, and are now no longer with us. Delivering their dream was is all the sweeter now.

“Exactly. I suppose then as well that it was Sizing John that did the Gold Cup treble for them. Both Ann and Alan were in Cheltenham and Punchestown to see him win the second two Gold Cups. He was the apple of their eye. He was the horse they all loved. For him to come and do it for them, in what was to turn out to be their last season, and them there together, was just fantastic.”

Meanwhile, Sizing John is “a 100%” ahead of his seasonal bow in the John Durkan at Punchestown, having been prepared for the aborted trip to Haydock for the Betfair Chase last month.

“I rode him work this morning (Tuesday) and he felt really, really good. He’s really sparking. I’m looking forward to the Durkan. It’s going to be heavy ground – nothing we can do about that. We all know he’s a better horse on better ground but he’s better to go.

“I think if the Betfair Chase had been over two and a half miles, we still would have gone. It was just to travel over, three miles and one furlong, very heavy ground, would have been the wrong thing to do for the horse.

“Alan always said that whatever is the best thing for the horse, you do. We were all keen to try and go for the million bonus but the best thing for the horse wouldn’t have been to run in Haydock on bottomless ground over three miles one furlong so we knocked that on the head. So he can start off over two and a half, over what will be testing ground, but he’s kicking the door down to run now so he has to start.”

The general belief is that there could be so much more to come from the Gold Cup winner, having achieved what he did at the relatively tender age of seven. But the previous two Cheltenham heroes failed to even line up 12 months later. The two before that were never really the same after.

“That’s the main aim at the moment, to get him to Gold Cup in sparkling form. He’s in the right place to get back there. The horse management in Jessie’s is second to none. We all know through Coneygree, Don Cossack and horses before that how difficult it is to not just get back and win a Gold Cup, to get back there at all. Hopefully we can get back there in as good shape as he was last year.”

As a result of the success, Power has taken on some more commercial roles and that has meant giving in to Twitter. He writes a blog for Boylesports and doesn’t share the concerns of some about any negative perception surrounding such arrangements between trainers and jockeys, and betting firms.

“Anything that can improve the profile of racing, I’m all for it. I enjoy the game, do little bits of pieces here and there. If it gets one more person interested in racing, isn’t it worth it?

“I’ll never get sick of talking about the spring of 2017 anyway! I don’t tip this and that. It’s more just a general talk about horses and maybe a small insight into horse racing, to allow people look behind the scenes.”

SHOCKED

A major topic of discussion in Irish racing was the positive tests for cocaine returned by jockeys Danny Benson, Ger Fox and Roger Quinlan and subsequent suspensions. Reaction within the industry has been mixed, between expressions of sympathy and the need to adopt a hardline approach.

“I was shocked to hear it because if you’d have asked me before this came out, is there three jockeys in the weigh room on drugs I’d have said no. It’s the way I’ve been brought up, I’ve never been involved in any of that circle.

“I have sympathy sometimes but at the end of the day, professional athletes shouldn’t be tampering prohibited substances.

“The Turf Club have decided that they’re gonna increase the ban in the future and I think that’s a good idea. Four years is the minimum that should be given for jockeys (that use drugs). Obviously there are going to be jockeys with difficult circumstances but there are other ways of solving the problem rather than turning to drugs.”

Irish racing been very good in the area of mental health, ever since Mark Enright highlighted his own fight with depression.

“Mental illness is a problem in racing because it’s such a tough game, especially National Hunt racing. A lot of lads struggle with their weight, falls, getting injured. But there’s better ways to deal with it than turning to drugs. There are plenty of people to talk to, people that can help.”

All is good in Power’s world right now thankfully.

“November was a great month. I’d two Grade 2 winners in Gowran with Woodland Opera and Jury Duty. Hopefully now we’ll get another Grade 1 now with Sizing John.”

Horses to follow...

“We have what we never had before. Thanks to Alan Potts and a few other good owners in the yard, we’ve got a lot of four-year-old maiden point-to-point winners. It’s a new challenge for us.

"It’s great to have horses with a proven level ability. What level they will reach, we don’t know but by winning a four-year-old maiden point-to-point, you know they have some level.

“THE HOLY ONE ran very well, he was second in a bumper at Punchestown on his first start (November 19th). He won a four-year-old maiden (in Broughshane).

MADISON TO MONROE won a four-year-old maiden (in Monskgrange) and was bought by Alan Potts in Aintree (via Tom Malone for £300,000). They’re two nice horses. We like what they do at home and it’ll be interesting to see what way they go.”