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GRANT COBURN: amongst the talented young riders set for another season between the flags
photo: Grace Beresford

There has been no shortage of amateur riders who have been acquitting themselves with distinction under Rules this summer, and the good news for Point-to-Point followers is that the intention for the majority of them is to retain their unpaid status for a while longer yet.

The current leader at this early stage in the National Hunt Amateur Championship is last season's Men's title race runner-up John Mathias, but he is giving his rivals plenty of chance to overtake. John, accompanied by fellow rider Nick Williams, is taking some time out to holiday in New Zealand and will not be returning until late October, when he will be rejoining trainer Dai Rees. John and Nick set off with no plans to become involved with horses, though, laughed John's mother Jan, "If they run out of money they may have to find a few boxes to muck out!"

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Ryan Mahon, who has been seen to good effect on horses trained by his boss Paul Nicholls, spent some time in France with Guillaume Macaire, as he had done the previous year, and partnered four winners to add to the six he clocked up in 2009. His career tally has now gone over the half-century, and he will be looking to add substantially to that total when the Point-to-Point campaign gets under way. A professional career awaits in due course, but maybe not until the end of the 2010/11 season.

Ryan will have plenty of youngsters to ride from Richard Barber's yard, but would also like the opportunity to partner some more seasoned performers, pointing out that the stable provided him with just one Open ride in 2009/10. "I could do with a few more," he admitted, acknowledging the fact that to have the backing of a big yard could sometimes be a deterrent to other owners and trainers, who may not be aware of his availability.

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Another Nicholls-based rider to have shone in the saddle is David Prichard, who struck up an outstanding partnership earlier in the year with Bella Haze. The mare is now in foal to the Arc winner Helissio, but her owner-breeders Phil and Kath Dando have some more youngsters coming along. David, who hopes to turn conditional at some stage, but not in the immediate future, is looking forward to a fruitful Point-to-Point season in Wales, where he will be riding for, among others, Rob Luke, who is building up a successful yard near Haverfordwest.

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Joint-winner of last season's Wilkinson Sword, Grant Cockburn, is another who is in no hurry to relinquish his amateur status. Grant, who recently rode his first winner on the flat for his boss Lucinda Russell, is currently doing his Category ‘B' course in Newmarket and is hoping that this will enable him to gain a few more rides under Rules. He would like to ride professionally in the future, but will be sticking to the Point-to-Point route for at least another season.

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Josh Hamer is being given plenty of opportunities by Donald McCain, and his ability has not been lost on other trainers, as he is picking up a number of spare rides, with a first success on the flat (for Micky Hammond) recently being added to his c.v. Josh's intention is to remain as an amateur until next summer, and in addition to partnering the Pointers trained by Donald's wife Sian he is hoping that other handlers will provide him with rides between the flags.

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Last season's national Novice Champion Tom Cannon has been on the receiving end of plaudits from trainers and pundits alike, and to earn the accolade of "Splendid ride" from one Iain Mackenzie after his victory on Swordsman at Stratford was praise indeed! Tom is another who will be having at least one more season in the unpaid ranks, and with Chris Broad as his agent he is sure to be busy under Rules as well as between the flags. He has been working full-time for Alan Fleming, but is now cutting down his commitment to the stable in order to ride out for a number of yards.

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Two riders who have very recently joined the professional ranks are Jerry McGrath and Alistair Findlay, both of whom had their initial paid ride at the weekend.

For Jerry it was a first ride back since breaking his collarbone at Cothelstone in May. The young Irishman, who came from a show-jumping and eventing background and did not sit on a racehorse until he was 16, created a favourable impression in his first season between the flags, booting home five winners. He spent 12 months with Brendan Powell, for whom he rode three winners, but has now had an amicable parting of the ways with the trainer and has joined the powerful set-up that is Nicky Henderson's. Coincidentally, two of Jerry's Point-to-Point winners, namely Cavite Beta and Loose Preformer, have also ended up at Seven Barrows, having been purchased to run under Rules. Jerry, whose agent is Dave Roberts, is hoping that his career path can follow that of another Henderson conditional, David Bass, who is already making a name for himself.

Alistair has had plenty of experience between the flags, having ridden 30 winners, and he has also enjoyed success under Rules for his uncle George Charlton. At 27, Alistair is just above the age limit to be classed as a conditional, but his 7lb allowance will stand him in good stead, with the majority of his rides likely to come initially from his permit-holder mother, Jane Walton, and from his uncle, for whom he works.

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One rider who is doing things the other way round and is reverting to amateur status, although only temporarily, is Adam Nicol. Adam's attempt, earlier in the year, to get a Category ‘B' licence was unsuccessful, as he was deemed not to have met the required criteria, so on the advice of his employers, Rose and Tony Dobbin, he took out a conditional licence to enable him to gain more racecourse experience during the summer.

He is hoping that his Cat ‘B' will soon be forthcoming, but plans in any case to have another season Point-to-Pointing with a view to permanently joining the paid ranks at the end of it. Adam, who has been based at Rose's yard for almost a year, has already been earmarked for a number of rides between the flags, and will be hoping to get the better of his friend and rival Grant Cockburn whenever the pair are in opposition!

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