| Horse Racing Ireland

When County Kerry’s Oisin Murphy takes to the Epsom Derby this Saturday, he will be looking to follow in the footsteps of a storied rider from the same area who landed Britain’s richest flat race 114 years ago.

Bernard Dillon was the first man across the finish line on that occasion in 1910, riding the renowned Lemberg to victory ahead of rivals Neil Gow, ridden by Danny Maher, basking in acclaim from 250,000 spectators garbed in black and mourning the recent death of King Edward VII.

Yet it so nearly could have turned out different that day according to Tralee journalist Stephen Fernane, author of The Life and Times of Bernard Dillon: The Narie that Won the Derby’, a new biography on the Irish jockey.

Fernane said: ‘‘He was due to be at Epsom Downs early in the morning to canter Spearmint and his car broke down halfway to the racecourse, so he took off on foot to try and make it there in time.

‘‘Luckily there was a man coming from behind him on a horse and he confiscated the horse and rode it to Epsom, got changed, cantered Lemberg and a couple of hours later, won the Epsom Derby.’’

Born in 1887 to a horse-racing family, riding was in the blood for Dillon, with the Irishman’s father following his brother to England to train at the famous Druids lodge at the tender age of 13.

Entering a flat-riding scene dominated by American riders and trainers like Danny Maher, it didn’t take long for Dillon to make his mark, thanks to victories at the 1,000 Guineas (Flair, 1906 and Electra, 1909), Lincoln (1904), Cambridgeshire (Hacklers Pride, 1905), Eclipse Stakes.

But it would be victory at the 1910 Epsom Derby that would prove the high point of Dillon’s career, propelling the Irishman to worldwide fame.  

Fifteen runners lined up at the starting line on that June day, but the standout names were undoubtedly Maher and Neil Gow, with the duo having defeated Dillon and Lemberg at the 2000 Guineas earlier that year.

Later in 1910, the quartet dead-heated in the Eclipse Stakes, to this date the only dead heat in the history of that event.

It was a rivalry that brought out the best in each, driven by mutual antipathy, but it would not come to the fore for the Epsom Derby that year, with a hobbled Neil Gow placing fourth.  

Instead, Dillon and Lemberg’s greatest rival on the day was the little-known Greenback, ridden by Englishman Fred Templeton.  

The unfancied pair had led throughout the race and looked set to cause an upset, but Dillon and Lemberg kept pace until they rallied at the final stages to overtake, prevailing by a neck in a race record time of 2:35.2.

Fernane added: ‘‘Lemberg was favourite and Neil Gow was second favourite but the rivalry that manifested itself in the Guineas and the Eclipse Stakes wasn’t in the Derby.

‘‘Bernard was very keen at the start to find a pacesetter for Lemberg. He was hoping some other horse like Neil Gow would kick out in front and set the pace that he would sit behind but that didn’t transpire.

‘‘Lemberg set off and he didn’t have that but coming up the straight, Bernard started to assert himself and Lemberg and even though Greenback was only a neck behind him, Bernard said that if it had gone down further, he would have won by more.

‘‘That was the catalyst of Bernard’s career. His company was sought after in society at the time, and he became a household name after.

‘‘Bernard said that when he was just about to cross the line, it came into his head that he was about to achieve something a man could only achieve once in his life and that was to win the derby.’’

It would prove to be the high point of Dillon’s career, with the Irishman suffering a public fall from grace and seeing his license rescinded by the Jockey Club for repeated betting infractions.  

But Dillon remains one of the most notable men to emerge from County Kerry and 114 years on, Murphy wil look to repeat the feat as he rides Bellum Justum in the showpiece.

The Life and Times of Bernard Dillon: The Narie that Won the Derby will be launched on June 6 at the Kerins O’Rahilly’s GAA Club at 7pm by Mayor of Tralee Terry O’Brien. The book is available at Polymath Bookstore in Tralee and online at: www.buythebook.ie/bernarddillon