Galway Seven-Day Festival: Brian O'Connortalks to champion jockey Declan McDonogh who combines style with substance

The jockey's room in Ireland contains some genuinely legendary names. Stars like Michael Kinane and Kieren Fallon who have defined an era in flat racing. But take a straw poll around the betting ring at Galway next week as to who the best jockey riding in the country right now is and there's a good chance the majority of hardened regulars will declare Declan McDonogh. At Galway, where the punter is king, there can be no better compliment.

It's not hard to figure out why the 27-year-old champion jockey has powered his way to the forefront of the game in Ireland. When it comes to the process of passing the little red lollipop in front, McDonogh brings a raw determination that those betting fivers or thousands can empathise with. In the parlance of the racecourse, he gives everything a ride. That he does so while also possessing undeniable style in the saddle means McDonogh is for many the complete package.

"He's right up there with the best of them and he's still only 27," is the verdict of his main employer, the veteran trainer Kevin Prendergast. "He might not have the profile yet of Kinane or Murtagh but at the same age, they didn't have that profile either. Declan's a very dedicated, hard-working guy. And the more experience he gets, the better he's going to be."

So much was indicated last year when he wrestled the leading rider award at the Galway festival away from perennial winner Pat Smullen. It was a significant step on the way to securing a first jockeys' championship by the end of the season.

For those within the sport, that was just confirmation of McDonogh's position at the top table.

Not surprisingly, the man himself appears completely at ease alongside Kinane and Co. A bright, articulate customer whose steely determination in the saddle is matched by a quiet confidence off it, McDonogh resolutely returns to the mantra of not being able to do anything unless having the material underneath him. But at this level, there is always more to it than that. After all, how else does one get that material in the first place.

"I know people say I'm strong in a finish but I think it's more to do with riding more with my head in the last few years. During a race it seems like it's possible to see things happening even before they happen. I suppose that is confidence.

"Winning the title last year was great and I suppose it helped bring things up a level. It brought me to the fore a little bit more," McDonogh says.

That the tag of champion sits easily on his shoulders is not completely surprising however.

We are after all talking about a son of the man who trained the dual champion hurdler Monksfield. Des McDonogh also has another Cheltenham winner on his CV in Stranfield. Monksfield in fact was still champion when a future champion was born.

"But a couple of months after that, Sea Pigeon beat him in the Champion. You could say I was an unlucky charm!" he remembers. "The videos of him winning were worn to bits when we were kids though. But I was never that interested in the jumps. I've always preferred the flat and I was lucky that I was light."

A star apprentice, McDonogh secured the job as Prendergast's number one and in 2002 it paid off at Group One level when Rebelline won the Tattersalls Gold Cup. Frustratingly, that remains his sole success at the very top level.

Despite that however, McDonogh's name was near the top of the betting last year when bookmakers presumed that Kieren Fallon was on the way out at Ballydoyle and a replacement would be needed for the most coveted job in racing.

Given the uncertainty that still surrounds Fallon's future, the chances of a similar book being opened sometime soon can't be discounted. There are those within the sport who will tell you it's only the lack of an international profile that will prevent McDonogh from heading any more such betting.

Not surprisingly, he himself discounts such speculation. An unplaced effort aboard Anton Chekhov when he was one of eight Aidan O'Brien runners in last month's Epsom Derby remains the only time he has been called into service by the champion trainer. But making an impression outside Ireland, a la Kinane and Murtagh, is an ambition, and next week could be a sign of things to come.

Prendergast plans to run both Decado (Sussex Stakes) and Haatef (Lennox Stakes) at Goodwood, the major flat festival that runs parallel to Galway, and McDonogh could also be riding for the English-based trainer Sylvester Kirk for whom he rode a Royal Ascot winner last year.

Such expeditions are a challenge he relishes.

"It's something to get excited rather than apprehensive about. If you ride in Ireland, you have to be competitive because the standard of riding is so high here now. There's nothing between the top five or six lads and everybody fights so hard for their little bit of cake. So there's no problem going anywhere else to ride," he says.

As for a permanent switch to Britain at some stage of his career, McDonogh plays a straight bat.

"Everything is possible. You can't say definitely no to anything. Every year is different so who knows? It's not a game where you can plan too far ahead," he declares.

What he can plan for during the rest of the week is a return to Galway, a track that has always been lucky for him and one that rewards the sort of dash and power that McDonogh specialises in.

"The fact the ground will be testing means this year you will have to be on a horse that stays well. They're still going to go fast from the start and the hill takes some getting. Apart from that, it's like anywhere else. You have to be able to jump, travel and give yourself options.

"In a way, the wet weather we've had might make things a little easier. On fast ground, the ridges and bumps on the track are like the sprint course at Naas: you hit one of them hard and it's like hitting a speed ramp. That shouldn't be a problem this time.

"Apart from that, it's like anywhere else. It all boils down to getting on the best horses. Most of the flat races at Galway are low-grade handicaps but you still want the chance to compete in them. There might be more quality at Goodwood but it's still a challenge at Galway," he says.

Switching between the two this week looks like being a sign of things to come for McDonogh.

Ballybrit regulars would do well to make the most of him while they can.

Declan McDonogh ... Age: 27

First Winner: Aine's Pet, June 1995, Leopardstown.

First Major Success: Polaire (14/1) in 1999 Group Two Pretty Polly Stakes.

Group One win: Rebelline, 2002 Tattersalls Gold Cup.

Most valuable win: Miss Beatrix, 2006 Shelbourne

Hotel Goffs Million.

Champion Jockey: 2006 (89 winners).

Best Galway victory: Eklim in 2003 McDonogh Handicap.