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St Leger: Kevin Darley on Bollin Eric and ‘brilliant day’

By Racing TV

Last Updated: Tue 5 Dec 2023

It is 20 years since Kevin Darley enjoyed one of the best days of his career when Tim Easterby’s Bollin Eric galloped to St Leger success.

The strapping son of Shaamit was the last Yorkshire-trained winner of the county’s only Classic, primed for victory in the historic racing town of Malton and the only St Leger winner trained in the region since Peleid in 1973.

Bollin Eric first entered the racing public’s consciousness when following up a Beverley maiden win by striking on Town Moor in his final start as a two-year-old.

Always held in the highest regard by Easterby, connections then began to plot a Pattern-race campaign for his three-year-old season. However, he had drawn a blank in his Classic term right up to the point he renewed his love affair with DN2, with his next start at the South Yorkshire track a winning one in the September Classic.

Although the man in the saddle had already tasted big-race glory overseas, Bollin Eric was the Wolverhampton-born pilot’s first British Classic winner and he recalls a special day in Yorkshire.

“It was a massive day,” said Darley. “I know it was for Lord and Lady Westbrook, but I said afterwards it was nice to win the race for real people. It was a time when the likes of Godolphin and the Maktoums were ruling the roost, so to do it for Tim, Yorkshire and the Westbrooks was great.

“I think it would sit pretty high up in my career, simply because he was my first English Classic winner and I didn’t have many, I only had two. But also for the circumstances surrounding it – a winner in Yorkshire, for a Yorkshire trainer and owners who I would consider real people – they supported Tim and had a few horses in training, but weren’t your flamboyant owners who spent fortunes.

“It was a brilliant day, absolutely brilliant, bang up there.”

Prior to the St Leger, Darley had ridden Bollin Eric in three of his nine racecourse outings, but had never won the horse. He was a key part of the horse’s early education, aboard for the bay’s first two appearances as a juvenile and then returned to the plate during his three-year-old season at Royal Ascot, when the duo had to settle for a silver medal in the King Edward VII Stakes.

However, in Darley’s mind there was only one horse he wanted to be on for the 14-furlong challenge the final Classic of the season presented.

He continued: “Tim always had a lot of faith in him, I rode out at the Easterbys quite a lot at that time, and he always had the makings of a good horse. He was an out-and-out stayer, but a quality stayer.

“He was one of the few rides I actually rang up for myself. I didn’t know if I was in line to ride him, but after his run in the Voltigeur and knowing he was going to run in the Leger, I asked Tim if I could ride him and I think we agreed there and then.

“I thought after watching him in the Voltigeur with Kieren (Fallon) that he was a Leger horse. Kieren didn’t do anything wrong with him, but because he was a strong traveller, he went in the Voltigeur like a horse who only needed to pick up and he’ll win, but he didn’t pick up and he just kept going.

“You always felt like he’d pick up and find a turn of foot. But I think the bottom line was when you let him go, he’d maybe find two or three lengths and then just gallop.

“He had such a big, long stride, he was really imposing physically, you wouldn’t get a better looking horse then him.

“He had this big, long action and I think because he was often ridden for a turn of foot and he was a strong traveller, I think one or two people may have been a bit misconceived thinking, ‘well he travels that horse but he doesn’t find. Is he putting it all in?’, when actually it was the other way round, he was an honest horse who tried his best and when you let him go, he was a stayer and that was it.”

Sent off the joint third-favourite at 7-1, Bollin Eric, who did have a tendency on occasion to be keen, travelled like a dream for Darley in mid-division as the field descended Rose Hill and made their way into the long Doncaster straight.

It was once straightening up Darley made his race-winning move as the two-time champion jockey switched out on Bollin Eric and they began to sweep past the field and head for home.

The duo hit the front two furlongs from the winning post and all that Bollin Eric had left to prove was his enduring stamina as he galloped to the line.

“I knew I wanted to get him rolling early because I knew he would stay,” said Darley.

“I think probably the good thing I did was take him back half a length to get him into a bit of daylight. I switched around and once he got into daylight, he could use his big, long stride and the further he went, the better he was.

“I think the key was the step up in trip and the fact I got into daylight. I didn’t take any prisoners, I got him rolling three and half to go and the further he went, the better he was.

“He didn’t feel like he was pulling up or stopping in front. I think he had done the damage from sort of the two pole. I was conscious that Highest was coming back at me, but I think if we had gone round again, he wouldn’t have got past me.”

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