Universally known as ‘Strawberry’ O’Connor due to the fact that he is from Wexford, Matt O’Connor emerged as one of the most promising young National Hunt jockeys in Ireland in 2008. Despite suffering a life-threatening injury in March 2009, he made a miraculously fast return to the saddle and continues to improve his riding all the time from his new base in Britain.
Principal Trainers: Colm Murphy, Dermot Weld
Notable Wins: Paddy Power Dial-A-Bet Chase (Big Zeb 2008), GPT Handicap (Loyal Focus 2007)
Early Days
Matt took his first ride in public when partnering the Frances Crowley-trained Slaney Scape in a qualified rider’s maiden at Leopardstown on June 6th 2006 and while he made little impact on that occasion, or indeed on the other two rides he got during the remainder of that Flat season, 2007/8 would see him burst onto the scene in no uncertain terms.
Galway Success
He gained his first win on the Liz Doyle-trained Penny’s Bill in a bumper at Fairyhouse on May 5th and the win didn’t go unnoticed by a number of good judges. In fact, it impressed Dermot Weld enough to give the inexperienced O’Connor the leg up on Loyal Focus in the GPT Handicap at the Galway Festival the following July. Trainer and jockey worked out the tactics beforehand and O’Connor carried them out to a tee, coming home no less than nine lengths clear. Weld was generous in his praise for the winning rider and expressed the opinion that the 19-year-old had a very big future. That win gave O’Connor the perfect springboard into the public eye and his workload soon rose significantly, riding winners on the Colm Murphy-trained Bennys Quest in a bumper at Tramore and the Dermot Weld-trained Summer Soul in a qualified rider’s event at Bellewstown in the weeks that followed.
O’Connor’s momentum continued into September, riding Ard San Aer to win a handicap hurdle at Down Royal and the Colm Murphy-trained Megans Joy to win a bumper at Roscommon in the early part of the month. The following month he began what would prove to be a profitable partnership with the Colm Murphy-trained Zaarito, riding him to success in a winner’s bumper at Tipperary. Indeed, O’Connor would form a lucrative partnership with Murphy-trained bumper horses in the weeks that followed, gaining wins on Prince Roco, Sheriussa and Kimberlite King, with him giving the last-named horse a tremendously strong ride to prevail by a short-head at Galway.
O’Connor ended a quiet spell that extended from November well into January when riding the Dermot Weld-trained Endless Intrigue to a narrow success in a red-hot bumper at Leopardstown on AIG Champion Hurdle day. He gained his second win on the aforementioned Zaarito in a winner’s bumper at Naas a fortnight later before Grab A Grand won a bumper at Clonmel later that month. Two wins in quick succession in bumpers in early-March set O’Connor up nicely for his first ever ride at the Cheltenham Festival, which came on Climate Control in the Foxhunter Chase. With his mount not jumping at all well at the head of affairs, O’Connor did well to coax him into keeping going, eventually finishing a highly-creditable fourth. O’Connor wrapped up his season with a fine win on the aforementioned Endless Intrigue in a winner’s bumper at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival.
A Grade 1-Winning Campaign
The 2008/9 season started well for O’Connor, with him again enjoying success at the Galway Festival for Dermot Weld, riding Lady Alicia to success in the 12f qualified riders maiden. O’Connor’s season erupted into life in December, with him riding no less than eight winners during the month, including two separate doubles at Fairyhouse. However, the highlight of his month and indeed his entire career to that point was unquestionably his win on the Colm Murphy-trained Big Zeb in the Grade 1 Paddy Power Dial-A-Bet Chase at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting. It was a remarkable achievement for such an inexperienced rider to win at the highest level and it stamped him as an exciting prospect. However, just a few short months later, O’Connor suffered life-threatening head injuries in a horrific fall at Thurles in March 2009 and any ambitions he had in the saddle were swiftly thrown to one side.
The Long Road Back
Once he began to recover, O’Connor made rapid progress. Indeed, his recovery was described by some in the medical profession as being remarkable in terms of its speed. Less than seven months after suffering the injury, O’Connor made his return to the racecourse at Punchestown in mid-October. Unfortunately, racing is a cruel sport and just three weeks after returning, he took a heavy fall and suffered a broken collarbone. It took O’Connor quite a while to get back into the mix of things once he returned from that injury, but he finally returned to winning ways on the Colm Murphy-trained Kimberlite King in a maiden chase at Fairyhouse in February 2010. However, despite enjoying sporadic successes, O’Connor struggled to get opportunities in Ireland and took the decision to move to Britain and try his hand there. He wasted no time getting off the mark, riding the Neil Mulholland-trained Just The Job to success in a handicap hurdle at Plumpton in early-November.
Matt O’Connor showed at the backend of 2008 that he has the talent to make a serious impact as a jump jockey and while it is taking him time to return to form following his life-threatening injury in March 2009, it is only a matter of time before things start to fall right for him and he returns to top form.
Info supplied by Horse Racing Ireland - Updated January 2011
