On a morning that only the Scottish word “three” can accurately describe, it's straightforward to choose indoor living, a nine-to-five job in a centrally heated office. But where's the fun in that, right?
As the days tick by until the winter solstice, racehorse trainers around the islands are instead out in the slate-gray drizzle that a lethargic sunrise can't shake. The veterans among you could be forgiven for dragging your wellies a bit at this time of year, but Jack Morland isn't thinking about that at all. The affable 29-year-old is the latest addition to Newmarket's training ranks and is full of optimism as he embarks on the career path he has dreamed of for half his life.
“I’ve wanted to train racehorses since I was 15 years vintage. This is my passion,” he says simply as we follow two of his colleagues to Warren Hill.
“Every year I've been racing, and especially since I've been back working in England, I've thought to myself that everyone says it's doom and gloom, but you just have to look at the record year at Tattersalls Book 1 and there is “There are still a lot of people wanting to train their horses in the UK.”
The week before the start of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale, with its breathtaking skirmishes in Books 1 and 2, Morland officially launched his training business. On the first day of October he had two horses in the 17 stalls he rents from Charlie McBride at Exeter House Stables in the heart of Newmarket. Now he has 13.
“I've been very lucky and been supported by some very nice customers, like Derek [Lovatt] and Colin [Bacon]as well as Charlie Rosier and Brownsbarn Thoroughbreds and many more,” he says. “We need to run some older horses over the winter that will hopefully get a few wins and get my name out there. I like to think of this first year of training as a time where I'm trying to prove myself and if I can do that, hopefully we'll be able to do a few more.”
He will do well to match the support enjoyed by his former bosses in Australia, Ciaron Maher and David Eustace. The latter is himself a former Newmarket boy who now trains independently in Hong Kong.
“I ran a barn for Ciaron and David at their training base in Caulfield, which no longer exists,” he says. “It was a very good place to learn how to train horses on a huge scale – when I left there were about 700 horses registered.”
Previously, having decided his previous job in London wasn't for him, Morland had worked his way up to Manton's stables as a student assistant at Brian Meehan before leaving for Australia. He has been back in Great Britain for five years and during this time he worked as assistant coach to Ed Dunlop.
“Ed let me be involved in all aspects of the business, which was a large facilitate when I was setting up my own training,” he says.
“Ciaron was fantastic at training two-year-olds and stayers too, but we never trained uphill like we did at Newmarket and each horse did two or three trials before the race. There it was much more about steady work and tiny jumps, whereas here it was more about progressive canter movements and building fitness through conditioning work. Ed is a very classic trainer and very patient. He always gave the horse time to develop and often his horses’ best years are the four or five year vintage seasons.”
Morland grew up in Oxfordshire and has now made the UK's largest training center his home.
“It’s competitive but fun at the same time,” he says of life in Newmarket. “I love the camaraderie here. James Ferguson was phenomenally good to me. Ollie Sangster used to work in the city and I got a lot of advice from him, as well as George Scott. [Next-door neighbour] Ben Brookhouse lent me his Champagne City as a lead horse and everyone was very helpful. The facilities are second to none and it's fun to talk to all my comrades at Warren Hill in the morning. I especially love it in the spring when everyone is talking about their two-year-olds.”
Angel Of Antrim (Ire) (Murky Angel {Ire}) became the trainer's first runner when he finished fourth at Newcastle on November 8th. He has subsequently driven two more horses, with Serenity Rose (Ire) (James Garfield {Ire}) recently finishing second at Lingfield.
“Now we’re just waiting for the first winner,” says Morland. “I’m really looking forward to riding a few more horses now and seeing where it goes. As a newborn coach, people are drawn to you, so hopefully it goes well and we can grow the business from there.”
However, he has both feet firmly on the ground.
In addition to supporting the aforementioned Brownsbarn Thoroughbreds, run by the Allen brothers Thomas, Charlie and George, Morland also brought Nick Bradley Racing to his yard in these early months, and with his father Giles, a long-time racing fan and owner, founded the Maxwell Thoroughbreds syndicate.
“I think this is really the right way to go,” he says. “And if we get this right, like the Australians have done, then this could be a large seller for our industry. I really want to make it available to as many people as possible.”
