Trainer Open Morning

Three days away from his yard in Killylea was enough for Marshall Watson to know there is no place like home, writes Paul Martin.

The 31-year-old is from a family steeped in racing history, with father Keith approaching his half-century in the industry and uncle Archie having trained 1970 Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up French Tan.

Following them into the trade was therefore only natural and a brief dalliance with the London rat race only hardened his desire to stick to what he knew best.

“Coming home was the best decision I ever made,” said Watson, who moved to the English capital for a job in financial services a decade ago which he left within a week.

“I went to London because I had a degree [in Finance and Investment from the University of Ulster] and thought I’d better put it to use – I’m not sure three days counts as that!

“I was like ‘I am not getting on that hamster wheel’. Standing here now in the fresh air, looking out on the gallops with the winter sun blazing down and the peace and quiet, it’s home.”

Watson lives by a mantra of ‘celebrating each winner like it’s our last’ and there have been some particularly notable success stories along the way.

Amaulino’s 2019 Ulster National victory lives long in the memory but the success of the late-blooming mare He Knows My Name at Down Royal the previous year is pinpointed as a particular highlight.

“It was Ladbrokes Chase day and she won a handicap chase,” he said.

“She took four years to even win a point-to-point. She didn’t win until she was eight, won a hunter chase then finally pulled her finger out and won that big one as a nine-year-old.

“Mum owned her and any other owner would have given up on her. I have a lot of determined owners and they keep bringing their horses back, which has to be admired.

“A lot of people give up on horses after one or two bad runs. That mare must have thrown in 14 bad runs but she was a decent enough mare for her level.

“For her to win that on that big day for mum makes it my most poignant winner.”

Successes have been harder to come by of late and Watson has diversified his offering into pre-training, with several future Grade 1 winners starting out under his tutelage.

He is also not one to shy away from a challenge and knows a thing or two about overcoming adversity from his days in the saddle, which ended following a broken neck in 2015.

“To this day, I have reduced power in my left arm,” he said.

“Your mental health does take a knock after something like that.

“It’s a dangerous game and that fall changed my life. The journey out of that continues.

“But I always wanted to train horses and that’s why I came home.

“The riding part was a natural starting point, gaining the experience of what a horse who is ready to run should look like and feel like.”

Watson now uses that knowledge for the benefit of his tight-knit pool of owners, who have become an extended part of the family in Armagh and turned out in force over the summer for the latest in the yard’s string of successful trainer open mornings.

“We have a broad spectrum of owners, from Aberdeen to Halifax, London to Kerry and Galway,” he said.

“They have all become friends as a result of Springfield and they would never have met otherwise.

“The camaraderie is the important thing and that’s what is so important for smaller yards. Anyone can rock up here, 365 days a year, and they’ll get mum’s hospitality, food shoved down them, tea, coffee, alcohol, there’s a homeliness and warmth to it.

“You are part of the family, we have an open door policy and that’s vital for the likes of ourselves.”

A changing of the guard upon Watson Snr bringing up his half century had at one stage been on the agenda but there are no imminent signs of a handover amid a fresh lease of life for a trainer who has seen it all.

“I am going to let dad decide when he wants to change the licence name over,” he said.

“His health was quite poor a couple of years ago but since I told him we were changing the licence over, he’s made a miraculous recovery!

“But in all seriousness, he can keep the licence for as long as he wants it.

“It is a challenging environment at the moment but we are not for quitting and I have full intentions of this place still training horses in 50 years’ time.”