GROUP 1 WINNER ASH MORGAN: A DIFFERENT KIND OF PRESSURE

ASH Morgan had a candid response when asked about the pressure of handling his maiden Group 1 winner Private Harry at Rosehill Gardens yesterday.

The Welsh-born now Newcastle-based jockey had a totally different explanation of the word.

“That wasn’t pressure because I had full confidence in the horse,” he said this morning before heading off to fulfil engagements at the Country Championships Wild Card meeting at Goulburn.

“Pressure was when I didn’t have enough money to put fuel in my car to drive to race meetings back in the UK.

“I wasn’t getting many rides, and things were pretty tough.

“I was very close to my dear Mum (who sadly passed away a few years ago) and all my family, and I remember ringing her one time to mention that I didn’t have money to buy petrol so that I could get to a meeting.

“God bless her. She sent me twenty pounds.”

Morgan’s Mum no doubt would have been looking down with great pride when her son gave a faultless display yesterday to both put his name on the Group 1 honour roll and keep Private Harry’s unbeaten record intact.

And he gave tremendous credit to the colt’s Newcastle trainer Nathan Doyle for a brave decision to give the colt a searching Broadmeadow course proper gallop with stablemate Silvanito last Tuesday morning.

“It took a lot of guts for him to do that,” Morgan said.

“He had the favorite for a Group 1 race, and felt he wasn’t right at his top.

“Nathan could have taken a soft option, and asked me to give Private Harry an easy workout so close to the big race.

“But he wanted him to have a really good hitout.

“It was a winning move.”

Morgan sat one out one back on Private Harry ($3.50 favorite) in The Galaxy before calling on him in the straight.

As he did in his previous four wins, he responded, idling alongside leader Front Page ($12) approaching the 200m and then found plenty to make it five in a row.

“Private Harry travels so comfortably, and he is strong at the end,” Morgan said.

“He is a very nice horse, and I’m sure has more improvement.

“You can never accurately predict early on that a horse will be a Group 1 winner, but I said after Private Harry won his 900m Maiden at Newcastle in early November on debut that as far as maiden winners who have gone on to be future Group 1 winners, he was in advance of them.

“He has definitely lived up to that.”

Morgan has worked hard to get to the top, starting on country tracks after he came to Australia in 2018, then graduating to the provincials before finally making city pundits sit up and take notice of his ability.

At the same meeting 12 months ago, he had four rides at Kembla Grange on the eight-race card.

He managed two placings and rode $18 chance Bindi’s Choice for Sydney trainer David Pfieffer, which finished sixth in Ruby Flyer’s Provincial-Midway Championships Qualifier.

Racing’s wheel sure has turned full circle for the affable 34-year-old Welsh expat!

Story John Curtis, March 23, 2025 - Pics Bradley Photos