‘No quick solution’ to jockey drought
AS dozens of horses are scratched around the state each month because no jockeys are available, officials say the solution is going to take some time.
In August, no less than 57 horses were scratched from non-TAB meetings in Queensland simply because no rider was available.
This included 12 at Prairie on August 17 (where just five jockeys rode at the meeting) and eight at Julia Creek and Yeppoon during the month as well.
In the past fortnight there have been 15 scratchings because of the issue, following eight withdrawals at Bundaberg on September 7.
Queensland Jockeys Association representative Glen Prentice said it was a combination of dwindling numbers and for those who are still riding, going where there are more opportunities.
“It’s disappointing when it gets to that situation, but a jockey will always go where they can get five rides rather than a venue where they will only have one or two,” Prentice said.
Queensland jockey numbers took a dramatic crash during the equine influenza disaster of 2007.
Before EI, Queensland had more than 400 registered jockeys. The next season, registrations fell to just 270. That number has continued to fall steadily, with the number currently around 200.
On a national level, jockey numbers have also fallen, but not to the same extent, with the latest tally of registered Australian jockeys coming in at 929 (1012 a decade ago).
Racing Queensland chief executive Brendan Parnell said measures were in place to combat the shortage, but it was not going to be a quick fix.
“A nationwide jockey shortage is something that the racing industry has been grappling with – not just Queensland – for quite some time,” Parnell said.
“In recent times, Racing Queensland staff have been active in a number of recruitment initiatives including school visits, attending expos, pony clubs and job-seeking agencies to help facilitate pathways into the industry.
“The proposed State Training Centre at Deagon is a key long-term solution to address the issue by providing an environment that can cater for best-practice education, training and mentoring for apprentices and other related racing roles.”
The Queensland branch of the Australian Trainers Association believes scratching numbers could be reduced with better programming.
“The lack of jockeys is a problem, especially in some parts of the state where you can have 700km between tracks,” association secretary Cameron Partington said.
“The programming side of it needs to be looked at. There’s so many meetings on a Saturday and sometimes they will be programmed in relatively close proximity to each other.
“It wasn’t that long ago there were horses scratched at Toowoomba because the jockeys didn’t have time to get back from the various afternoon meetings they were riding at.”
Partington also said RQ had an obligation to compensate owners when they were left without a rider.