Kudos to rookies Seow and Leck

What did apprentice jockeys Jerlyn Seow and Clyde Leck have in common at the Kranji races last Saturday?

Well, while the day belonged to the two Brazilians – Bruno Queiroz (four winners) and Manoel Nunes (three) – Seow and Leck also deserve accolades for their last-gasp wins on Nineoneone and Super Posh respectively.

From the get-go, the pair’s mounts looked like forlorn hopes – Nineoneone was last by about a dozen lengths while Super Posh was trapped wide after jumping from the outer-most barrier.

But, with dexterity and composure, they certainly won praise on the way they brought their mounts home to win. In doing so, they ended their brief drought.

Leck, who won the junior and senior jockeys’ titles in Malaysia in 2022 with 72 winners, had not won after scoring on his first day of riding at Kranji on Aug 6, aboard the Donna Logan-trained May.

Seow had not greeted the judge since Golden Sentience on Sept 9.

But she is still heading the apprentice’s premiership table on 10 winners, two more than Jamil Sarwi and Rozlan Nazam.

Despite trailing by a street as Nineoneone turned into the back straight in the Class 5 race over the Polytrack 1,700m, Seow was as cool as a cucumber.

Mr Big Brother ($20) led from Happy Warrior ($106), the mount of Leck.

The field became more compact turning for home and, although still last, Seow had made up half the deficit.

Happy Warrior tackled Mr Big Brother and seemed to have the upper hand 200m out. But, on the outside, Queiroz brought class dropper and $10 favourite Tony’s Love home with a powerful spurt.

A game Happy Warrior fended off Tony’s Love, but found no answer to Nineoneone’s blistering finish. Nineoneone ($39), trained by Desmond Koh, went on to win by half a length in 1min 47.11sec.

Seow was not concerned with Nineoneone trailing by so far from the start.

“I trusted that he would respond well and finish home well,” said Kranji’s only female rider, who will turn 30 on Sunday.

“The instruction was just track behind them, because his racing pattern doesn’t have early speed.

“The horse was impressive to fly home from last, as Happy Warrior ran a good third last start and Tony’s Love was dropping from Class 4.

“When he responded and flew home, it was very smooth finishing and I felt he was going to win.”

Seow also felt victory was satisfying as she rode with a painful right ankle.

“I fell on the way to the barriers in Race 5 (on Forest Gold) and I sprained my old fractured right ankle. Luckily, it was just a sprain. After the last race, I could barely walk,” she said.

Leck, 25, also showed maturity in the saddle on the Logan-trained Super Posh in the Class 5 race over the Polytrack 1,000m.

He jumped the $65 shot swiftly and hunted him up but was trapped wide before crossing in. From there, he sat behind the leader Maze ($24), who led from Supermax ($11) and Fabu ($26).

Nunes brought Supermax to overtake Maze at the 200m and looked poised for victory.

But Leck deftly steered Super Posh to get the better 50m from home for a neck success in 59.62sec. Mister Dynamo ($31) flew home on the inside for third, another neck away.

“I was drawn the widest. So I knew, if I were to ride a forward race, I had to ping him out of the gates and race him forward first, hoping there will be a pocket for me to slot myself in,” said Leck, who booted home a double in Kuala Lumpur last Sunday.

“Thankfully, there was a slot for me to come in one-off, so I took that and sat while maintaining my distance to the leaders.

“When I took him out and he responded, I knew it would be a very close fight. I just kept grinding and grinding the horse and, when he started to travel beside the leader, I knew I had the race won.”

loon@sph.com.sg