Winning the 2007 John Smith’s Grand National on Silver Birch gave his rider Robbie Power a level of self confidence which was not there before. The Irish jockey commented: “The success on Silver Birch at Aintree has made a difference to my life. I have a confidence in big races now as I know if things go right on the day I can do it. I have loads of self belief.”
There was a mixture of emotions when he came to the end of the long run from the last fence ahead of all rivals. “When I went past the winning post, I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh - for five minutes I was in a state of shock. It was not until I got back into the weighing room and sat down with other jockeys that it began to sink in - an unbelievable achievement.”
It is no surprise that the jockey, successful on his second mount in the John Smith’s Grand National - he finished 18th on Spot The difference in 2005 - wants to ride another winner of the great chase, but he is also realistic. “I would love to do it again - on the law of averages it is likely I won’t win the Grand National again but the record books are there to be broken. Most important is to have the chance to do it again. Unfortunately, Silver Birch will not line up this year but, hopefully, I will get a good spare ride. Fingers crossed.”
Talking about the injury to Silver Birch, which has ruled the horse out of running in the 2008 John Smith’s Grand National, the jockey commented: “Gordon (Elliott – the trainer) knows what can go wrong with racehorses and he took what happened to Silver Birch on the chin. These things happen to racehorses and you have got to accept that. “I’m gutted too but at the same time you need to look on the bright side. Silver Birch should come back to the racecourse after a year off and when the owner paid 20,000 guineas for him at Doncaster Sales if you told him he was going to win the Grand National he would have been happy with that. Silver Birch owes nobody anything.”
Robbie, born on May 27, 1981, is the son of Con Power, who was a talented international show jumper and promising trainer of chasers and hurdlers before he fractured his skull in 1989. He inherited his father’s passion for horses and was Ireland’s leading pony show jumper for three years during his teens, winning a silver medal at the European Junior Championships in 2000. Disillusioned with being based in Essex and the constant travelling, Robbie decided to return to Ireland and become a jockey.
He made a good start by winning on his third mount. Younevertoldme, owned and bred by his mother and trained by Jessica Harrington, was successful at Punchestown on December 19, 2001 for the 7lb-claiming amateur jockey. Robbie decided to turn professional at the end of that year, having been offered a job by veteran trainer Paddy Mullins and the pair enjoyed their first success together when Bob What scored in a handicap hurdle at Leopardstown on February 10, 2002.
The winners got better and included the Grade Two Guinness Greenmount Park Novice Chase scorer Intelligent at Limerick in December, 2002. This was a welcome success for Robbie as he had just returned after being sidelined for three months with a broken wrist. He continued his successful partnership with Intelligent in March, 2003 when scoring in the John Smith’s Midland Grand National at Uttoxeter, while he was also triumphant in the Galway Plate on the Paddy Mullins-trained Nearly A Moose at the end of July in the same year.
Robbie was the leading conditional jockey in Ireland, with 28 victories in 2003/04, winning more than £250,000 in prize money for connections. He gained his fi rst Grade One success when Carrigeen Victor led home a Jessica Harrington one-two in the Dr P J Moriarty Novice Chase at Leopardstown on February 6, 2005. Newmill was an impressive four-length victory of the Grade Two Kinloch Brae Chase at Thurles with Robbie up in January, 2006.
But a broken bone in his foot sustained while schooling ruled him out of riding the John Murphy-trained gelding to victory in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at the Cheltenham Festival in March of that year. Robbie was not first choice to ride Silver Birch in the John Smith’s Grand National, but got the mount when Jason Maguire committed to Idle Talk for Donald McCain Jnr. The race went without incident. The rider recalled: “We knew Silver Birch was in great order. He jumped and travelled well and was full of running crossing the Melling Road. I could see we were going best turning for home and he winged the second last.”
Just two weeks after his Aintree success, Robbie partnered the Harry Rogers-trained Silent Oscar to glory in the ACCBank Champion Hurdle at the Punchestown Festival. His main supplier of winners remains Jessica Harrington, whom he started out with, and there should be more to come from that source as the trainer potentially has her best team of horses ever.
