Townend star shines bright

By Alan Conway

If you are good enough, then you are old enough, they say. The first day of the Punchestown Festival did nothing to disprove the hypothesis as we saw the Paul Townend star continue to rise. With the unfortunate injury that Ruby Walsh sustained at Aintree, Townend has a choice book of rides from the Willie Mullins yard this week. For a young jockey making his way in the game, this could have been a highly pressurised week. However Paul Townend doesn’t seem to be affected by pressure. A Grade 1 double on the opening day when he guided Blackstairmountain and Golden Silver to victory confirmed that we have a unique talent on our hands.

From the outset it appeared that Townend was destined for success. He was a precocious talent from an early age, enjoying much success on the pony circuit. When he left school at 15, the Co. Cork native joined the Willie Mullins stable. His first public ride was when he finished third on Temlett in 2007. He didn’t have to wait long to get off the mark, landing two wins in quick succession on The Chip Chopman before rounding off his season with a winner at Dundalk on the last day of the flat season.

2008 was Townend’s breakthrough year. He grabbed the headlines when he drove Indian Pace to land a monster gamble in the Galway Hurdle and also when he partnered Solwhit to land the November Handicap. That same month saw the Corkman being given his first real shot at the big time. Once again with Ruby Walsh on the sidelines, having ruptured his spleen at Cheltenham, Townend was entrusted with riding Hurricane Fly and the rest of the powerful Mullins string that winter. Hurricane Fly provided Townend with his first Grade 1 success when they won the Royal Bond at Fairyhouse together. They also struck gold when they destroyed Go Native in a Grade 1 at Leopardstown that Christmas. All this success propelled Townend into the limelight and he has continued on an upward curve since, including striking up a successful relationship with Golden Silver. His style in the saddle has drawn comparisons with Ruby Walsh. They are cut from the same cloth. Both slick and quiet in the saddle.

When watching Townend in action it is hard to believe that he still so young. He rides with such a cool and logical style. You can see the influence that Ruby Walsh has had on him even at this stage of his career as he never panics when things go wrong for him in a race. He doesn’t rush a horse, he is more Walsh than McCoy. He lets a horse find its own racing speed and gets it settled and jumping from an early stage.

His ride on Blackstairmountain on Tuesday was a good example of how a race should be won. He hugged the rail for the majority of the race and waited until he got the gap he wanted. Even when he got the gap he still kept a cool head. He let the horse flow into the lead and guided him home.

With all the success that he has enjoyed so far it is easy to get ahead of ourselves and demand too much from Paul Townend at this stage of his career. Of course he will make mistakes. However the raw talent that he possesses will ensure that any mistakes will be kept to a minimum. Shy and unassuming, he has not been spoiled by the success that he achieved so far. He is with the right trainer in Willie Mullins and has the right mentor in Ruby Walsh who will keep him on the right track.

By Alan Conway