Grand National
Arthur’s day at Aintree as Irish jockey Derek Fox rides One For Arthur to victory
Fifty years after 100-1 shot Foinavon won the most famous Grand National ever run, 40 years after iconic Red Rum landed his historic third and 20 years since the bomb scare race, One For Arthur served up the type of story that makes 800 million people around the world tune in to the iconic steeplechase.
Aintree has served up some fairytale results but the first winner trained in Scotland since Rubstic in 1979 and only the second ever from north of the border will rank alongside them.
The 14-1 shot’s four-and-a-half length win from Cause of Causes with Saint Are third and 8-1 favourite Blaklion fourth makes trainer Lucinda Russell only the fourth female trainer to win the Randox Health-sponsored £1million contest. He carried the colours of Belinda McClung and Debs Thomson, old school friends who call their racing partnership the Golf Widows because of the amount of time — all but three weekend a year — their other halves, McClung’s husband Fraser and Thomson’s partner Colin Dempster, spend on the fairways.
In a riding career in which he secured eight jockey championships, Peter Scudamore never got closer than third to winning the National, but the partner and assistant to Russell now can say he has helped train three winners of the race his late father Michael won as a jockey on Oxo in 1959.
Scudamore previously assisted trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies, who won in 1998 with Earth Summit and 2002 with Bindaree.
Completing the emotional jigsaw on a sweltering Aintree day in front of 70,000 spectators was 24-yearold County Sligo-born jockey Derek Fox. His build-up to the race had been fraught with anxiety. On March 9 he fell at Carlisle, damaging his right collarbone and, more worryingly, breaking his left wrist.
Fox, riding in his first National and securing only his 17th win of the season, admitted: ‘I was very low some days and thought I would not make it.’
To make sure he won his race against time to make the ride, Fox has endured three tough weeks of physiotherapy at the Injured Jockeys Fund’s rehabilitation centre, Jack Berry House, at Malton.
Fox insisted his arm was not put in plaster to make sure he retained as much movement as possible.
Compared to the build-up, the race was a relative piece of cake for Fox, who only returned on Wednesday and had managed just four rides in preparation.
Patient on the first circuit, he coolly bided his time at the back before easing his way into contention second time round.
The accelerator was pressed crossing the Melling Road as Fox moved One For Arthur, named after famous Irish brewer Arthur Guinness, into a winning position.
Watching from the stands, Russell and the Golf Widows could hardly believe what was unfolding before their eyes.
Russell, who had kept £60,000 buy One For Arthur fresh since winning at Warwick in January, said: ‘Before the Melling Road, I was up with the owners and we just shouted “We’re going to win the Grand National’’.
‘Derek is great at getting these horses to finish strongly. I knew it was a bit bold but I knew he would stay so it was right.
‘Peter is wearing his dad’s tie so that brought us some luck. I am so proud of the horse. He has done us proud and done Scotland proud.’
The first Grand National Russell can remember was Red Rum’s 1977 win. She remembers rushing out, a Pony Club-mad youngster, to tell her pony Magic who had won.
She and Scudamore will have to scour the sales for more ponies. Scudamore had promised granddaughters Margot and Myrtle that he would buy them a pony each if One For Arthur won.
The gift horses will help to dispel the disappointment that their father and Scudamore’s son Tom finished close but not close enough on sixthplaced Vieux Lion Rouge.
Looking on in the winner’s enclosure as the Golf Widows received their trophy, resplendent in his tartan trousers, was McClung’s father Michael Wares.
He recalled am amazing coincidence. Back in 1979, Rubstic was No 22 on the racecard, the same number as One For Arthur.
Recalling how The Golf Widows had acquired One For Arthur, McClung, whose phone went off during the press conference to the tune of Flower of Scotland, said: ‘On a day at Kelso about three and a half years ago, we drank a lot of gin and Debs said “Let’s get a horse’’.
‘I looked at him in the paddock at Warwick and he looked trained to the minute.
‘I have never seen him looking better and it was the same today. When he pinged the Canal Turn I said he was lobbing along.’
Thomson added: ‘We never dreamed of getting One For Arthur to the National, let alone winning it. I can’t believe it.
‘I thought this morning it was baking hot and at Warwick he preferred soft ground.
‘I said there was no pressure because I did not think he could win but he showed his class.
‘When we got Arthur, we did not realise we had just bought such an amazing horse but he has taken us on a wonderful journey.
‘The husbands were here today. They were not going to miss out.’
There were few hard luck stories behind One For Arthur and no complaints from the team behind Gordon Elliott-trained Cause of Causes.
Noel Fehily said he was enjoying a great ride on Blaklion, until ‘he ran out of puff two out’.
The only jockey and trainer to perhaps feel unlucky were Danny Cook and Brian Ellison.
Their well-backed 10-1 shot Definitly Red was hampered jumping Becher’s Brook first time.
The gelding’s saddle slipped out of position and he was forced to jump two fences without stirrups before pulling up.