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As much of an Arse, Albertas run has made me look, and thats what horses can do to those of us that have an opinion.Sam Thomas is being made to look a lot worse, and why? Through no fault of his own he is being
dumped by Kauto star, Gwanako, and now Big bucks in a series of errors
made by the horses! Todays mistake was made even more dramatic by the fact Sam looked more like a bucking bronco than a jockey! Bad luck
pure and simple,his style hasn"t changed in the slightest in the last year
and yet a year ago he was the greatest thing since sliced bread, with victorys aboard Kauto, Twist, Denman etc, Luck was on his side! Ruby walsh is a brilliant jockey, right up there with Tony McCoy, Sam Thomas
aint that far behind them and when lady luck shines back down on him, this unfortunate episode will be forgotten!Absolutely no-one would have stayed with Big Buck’s yesterday – that was a monumental jumping error and how the horse stood up is in itself a miracle. Big Buck’s looked like he was running pretty much on empty, was going off a straight line to the last and wouldn’t have won … I could hardly look as I was sure he was heading for a pearler …
He is a good jockey but that as far as I would go with Thomas. You don’t get to be a professional by not being proficient at what you do. However, a good jockey on a very good horse does not sit together as well as a very good jockey on a very good horse. Perhaps that is being over simplistic but Walsh aside (and he was obviously a special horseman long before his association with Nicholls) Nicholls’ choice of stable jockey/understudy has not been great for some time when you think of the likes of Williams, Tizzard (especially Tizzard) and now Thomas.
I believe there are more talented jockey’s than Sam Thomas more deserving of big rides, Noel Fehily for one or even young Tom O’Brien who is a very sympathetic horseman. C’mon Paul, bite the bullet, admit you were wrong, you know you the Irish make better horsemen.
I felt a bit niggled/annoyed at Pn when he made his comment directed at Sam Thomas and his ride on Kauto Star……I think he can be a total ass at times. Sam himself is a very good and capable pilot,
I actually thought he gave Big Buck a brilliant ride, Switched off for most of the race Sam brought him into a challenging position at exactly the right time.
What happened from there was the front 2 quickened and Sam’s horse just couldn’t go with them for a few strides and was on an uphill struggle from there on in. Sam however managed to stoke him up and get him back with a fighting chance but the horse was very tired and made a complete hash of the last just when Sam needed a big one……….horse jinked Sam went out the side door. Maybe Spiderman would have stayed with him but apart from him I can’t think of anyone else. ……….
You tell me Mr Watson what else could Sam have done? Do you think he rode a bad race? Do you think PN should replace him?
BTW I have no time for armchair jockeys I find them a total pain in the backside………….and right now I am finding it difficult to sit
I’d agree with that comment above regarding PN’s reaction to Kauto Star’s fall. I couldn’t really work out whether Nicholls was trying to support Thomas by saying ‘listen, Ruby’s got a very special relationship with Kauto and it’s a very difficult job for Sam taking over.’ Or he thought that Thomas had somehow not done the right thing.
Either way, he (PFN) looked under a lot of pressure last week and that hasn’t really changed this week. Owners such as Smith and Stewart seem decent people, and they make the right noises when questioned about the stable and staff, but there’s a momentum gathering here. Momentum perhaps driven by journalists, or even some within the racing game themselves, I’m not sure. But with the RP reporting that Nicholls is going to make a further statement today, and speculation about the ride on Master Minded next week, it looks a worrying time for Thomas.
In very competitive sport, at the highest level, the big players have to make decisions which can be unpopular. Yet, I don’t see any evidence whatsoever that the rides on Kauto Star, Big Buck’s, Gwanako or any other Nicholls horse in the last fortnight contributed to their defeats. Any decision to replace Thomas or ‘lighten the load’ by sharing big rides would be very bad judgment.
I wasn’t overly happy with his ride on Kauto because if you look at the head on, he was head down pointing the horse directly at the wing of the third last.
Other than that it’s just been an incredibly unlucky patch for the him & the stable for that matter but it began before Ruby got injured. Its also laughable that people cannot believe it when they aren’t winning the big races every Saturday.
And no, I don’t think Paul Nicholls has helped the situation – everytime he’s been asked about Kauto he has subtly hinted that Sam was to blame and then his latest statement regarding the Hennessy – ‘I have my own opinion on what happened today but I’ll say more tomorrow after I’ve watched the video’ doesn’t help matters at all.
What exactly did Paul Nicholls say, regarding Sam Thomas’ ride on Kauto Star last week? ? ?
Remember Ruby was riding Kauto Star the day that he fell and was remounted having been slightly injured; he nearly lost the ride for good and Kauto’s career nearly ended before it had properly began; poor Granit Jack last his life when ridden by Liam Hear when, as a novice he was put into a very competitive handicap; Mr Pointment and Turko were both entered in the National when, in my humble opinion they were far too young..could it be that Paul Nicholls can, on occasion enter horses for big races that are not quite ready for the challenge, and he has an exceptional jockey in Ruby that gets the right results for him…because he’s champion trainer dowsn’t mean that he’s incapable of making errors of judgement himself…
Jockeys are a bit like footballers in that they can look very exposed when their confidence goes.
What Sam Thomas needs is a nice hack round and a ten length win on master Minded next weekend. Let’s hope he gets the opportunity.
But, if MM were yours and with Sam seemingly looking like he is struggling (even if only relatively so) would you be confident of putting him up or would you be eyeing up someone like McCoy, Geraghty or O’Regan?
Corm , I agree , its easy to be over loyal in this game , and your question is a very good one , personally I would not be having Sam under any circumstances the way things stand , he is an accident waiting to happen
its tough game , and no doubt he will be back , bur for now I feel he is just having a torrid time and no way would I have him riding any of my horses right now if I were a an owner connected to PN
can AP deputise please
cheers
rICKY
Team Nicholls are having a run of desperately bad luck..look at Ireland last week! I honestly don’t know what I’d do about Master Minded next week if he were mine; however if Sam is a sportsman at the top of his profession he should be able to cope with the pressure..but then look at McCoy and his Aintree hoodoo.
Hello,
Are we turning into a forum of Francomes??
In all walks of life and occupations, individuals make mistakes!!
I cannot see how jockeys are excluded from an error ridden society?
I wish some people within the horse racing broadcasting industry acknowledge, as with all professions, there are individuals (jockeys) better than others. If they were all of the same standard why has McCoy won the Championship 13 times? It cannot solely be the good horses he rides.
I believe Sam Thomas could have stayed on Big Bucks and K/Star on another day, and a jockey that is considered "better" than Sam would have stayed on, or not got himself into that position in the first place, on most days!
I respect Sam Thomas immensely, but in my humble opinion, I wouldn’t rate him in the Top 5 jockeys’ riding today, and I am entitled to say that, as I am entitled not to use the word "Great" every five minutes when describing a particular jockeys performance when doing his job.
Never have I heard John Francome say "That was a poor ride", or "The jockey lost that horse the race"….when in this mean world, those sort of scenarios happen at race courses every week, it must do, otherwise we would have 40 "great", "fantastic" jockeys riding in this day and age, and we don’t!!!
regards,
doyley
Khyber kim was not given the greatest ride yesterday in my opinion but Johnny Francome seemed to think under the circumstances it was fine and that no one else could have done any better! I personally think A.P McCoy would have slipped his foot back in the stirrup and still won easily,
its all about opinion! I"m just glad Mike Cattermole wasn"t calling the race
as Khyber kim would have been the winner!!Best thing Sam Thomas can do at this stage is to just go away somewhere for a short break and let him gather his thoughts and come back.
I think he is a very capable jockey other wise he would not have won the Betfair,Hennessy,Becher and Tingle Creek Chases last year.
Im sure he is suffering now from a lack of confidence after these past couple of Saturdays.
Sam and Paul will bounce back its just that sport like life does have its ups and downs and sadly at the moment he is in the down position when he knows he should be firmly bolt upright.
In my humble opionion Thomas has good hands and much like Walsh is capable of switching horses off and getting them into a rhythm; it’s when push comes to shove that he still has a way to go before he can be compared to Ruby or AP. He has an unlucky habit at the moment of seeing a completely different stride to the horse that he is on.
FoF, "what happened….." is that Thomas fell off another horse (well, better than wrestling it to the ground I guess) by yet more inept riding. You absolutely do not jump a fence (especially on a dodgy jumper) on buckle end and giving them no help whatsoever. Identical to what happened with Kauto Star last week, Thomas had no contact with or hold on the head whatsoever thus giving the horse zero assistance from the saddle, unbalancing the animal and himself.
It’s a basic, basic error that a jockey shouldn’t be making on a regular basis, nevermind one that rides as second jockey to the most powerful yard in the land. It’s pretty much lesson number one when you’re learning to jump!
Poor horsemanship from Thomas yet again.
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