Finger injury sidelines champion jockey
A broken finger on his right hand will have last season’s National Jockeys’ Premiership winner Craig Grylls out of action on raceday for the next few weeks.
Grylls fractured the middle finger on his right hand in a trackwork incident last week and while he shook it off as a minor issue at the time, it wasn’t until he tried to fulfil his next raceday commitments that the extent of the injury became known.
“I did it at trackwork and didn’t really think much about it, although it was quite sore once I had cooled down,” Grylls said.
“I was going to ride at Ruakaka last Saturday but when I tried to grip the reins I couldn’t close my fist, so I had to give that idea away.
“I went to the Doctor and got it x-rayed and it showed I had a fracture in the middle finger of my right hand. I’m right-handed so that probably makes it a little worse.
“They told me it should only take two to three weeks to heal so I’m hoping that’s the case as it is that time of the year when things are just starting to hot up.”
Grylls dominated the National Premiership last season with 141 wins, $6 million in prizemoney earned and 15 individual stakes victories, which had him keen to continue that momentum as he operates at the peak of his career.
“This year will be my 20th season of riding as I started when I was a 15-year-old,” he said
“I had a great six weeks off at the back end of last season and was raring to go after three weeks back in the saddle.
“I’m pleased with how things panned out over the past 12 months but I’m at that stage of my career now where I just want to keep building on the momentum I have established.
“This time of the year always gets the juices flowing as the better horses start their new preps as well as seeing the young ones kick off.
“I have some nice rides to look forward to and if I had to nominate a horse to follow it would be Hinekaha for Andrew Forsman.
“I think this will be her year as she has really matured into her frame and she did some pretty special things during her last campaign that told me she is only going to get better and better.”
While he may not be able to ride, Grylls has been keeping up his fitness levels with plenty of walking and is counting the days as he waits for a medical clearance to rejoin the raceday riding ranks.
