I AM originally from Portlaw in Co Waterford. I am a proud Portlaw man and Waterford man! And hurling is a religion! No family member was ever involved with horses or racing. My dad did ride a pony bareback when he was a child, but other than that, there was nothing. My uncle, who was a priest in Dublin, was very good friends with a jockey named Sean Barker.

He used to ride for Tom Dreaper before later becoming head lad to Michael Kauntze. We would go up to my uncle for weekends when we were around seven or eight. It was through him and Sean (Barker) that the interest in horses began. After a short time going in to Michael Kauntze’s yard, I was bitten by the bug. I used to get riding lessons down in Waterford of a Saturday and just got going from there.

My uncle was also friendly with Seamus Hughes, a brother of the trainer Pat. Through him, I got a weekend job working with Pat Hughes when I was 14. The following year, I left school and went to RACE.

I did my work experience with Dermot Weld, then moved on to work full-time for Mick O’Toole after finishing the course. It was a great place to be at the time; Bobby O’Ryan was head lad. There were some great horsemen in the yard and I learned plenty during the three years I was there.

I always wanted to be an apprentice, but to be honest, I probably wasn’t good enough. I then moved on to work for Pat Flynn down in Carrick-On-Suir. He had plenty of good horses there at that time, the likes of Montelado, Aries Girl and Call Me Later. Being around horses like those, seeing how they were trained and campaigned, you couldn’t help but learn from it.

Gaining knowledge

I have been very fortunate to work for some very good trainers. I like to think that I took something from each of them that I can now apply to my own horses. I spent a season with Willie Mullins, when he was only just starting off. His first Cheltenham winner Tourist Attraction was there at the time.

I think she might have won a bumper while I was there, but she was only at the beginning of her career. Monalee River was one of the better horses in the yard, while Padashpan was another smart one. From there, I went over to England, where I worked for Kim Bailey for two seasons in 1995/96.

I was lucky enough to be there the year Alderbrook won the Champion Hurdle and Master Oats the Gold Cup. Again, just to have anything to do with such good horses was a real learning curve. Norman Williamson was stable jockey in the yard, while Timmy Murphy was conditional. Eddie Hales was assistant trainer. I always say to people that those two seasons were my college years!

When I came home, I gave up the horses for a while. However, the bug was too great and I ended up working for Matty O’Toole in Galway. Both Dougie Costello and the late Sean Cleary were also there at the same time. From there, I went to Tom Taaffe as travelling head lad.

I then went to Tony Martin, where I was travelling head lad for three years, followed by another seven as head lad. We had some great times together and won some big races. I learned an awful lot from Tony. From there, I spent 10 years managing a breaking and pre-training yard for Coleman Bloodstock.

Sure Reef, who won a Grade 2 hurdle for Willie (Mullins), was one of the better horses that passed through my hands. Around 2019/20, I started breaking horses for Andy and Willie Slattery.

I broke most of the yearlings for them during a two-year period. I also bought a two-box of my own and did a bit of travelling for other people.

Coping with good and bad

I knew John Lambe and his wife Valerie for many years. They have always been big supporters of mine. After they sent me a couple of horses to break, John asked why didn’t I take out the licence to train them. It kind of all started from there really. The Lambes are great people to train for; they enjoy the good days, but just as importantly, they know how to cope with the bad days.

John and Valerie are not just owners; they are good friends as well. In 2020, I took out the licence, initially training from a small yard in Tipperary. Smash The Lamp was the first winner for us, when Gary Noonan rode her to win at Punchestown. Mighty Jeremy and We’llgowats were multiple winners, while Dairy Force and Sunshine Diamond won earlier this season.

My wife Claire and myself do the horses together. Claire, who rides all the work, is the best judge that I know. She is a huge part of the operation and I couldn’t do it without her. After the place we were leasing in Tipperary was sold, we moved up here to Kilkenny to a yard owned by the Williams family. Well Del, our first runner from the new yard, won for us in Limerick last month. It was a great start.

At the moment, we have 12 horses in. I’d love to get up to 18-20 in time, but no bigger. It would be great to improve the quality of horse that we have, rather than the quantity. I feel that, with the smaller number, you can treat every horse as an individual and give it the attention it needs. A bigger horse might need more work, an extra scoop of feed or such.

We do two days of flat work with the horses every week just to keep them interested. Whether it is hunting, taking them to the beach or doing flat work, I find it pays to mix things up. As a small trainer, I give every horse the same individual attention, be they an 80-rated hurdler or a four-year-old point-to-point winner. Each owner pays the same fee, so it’s important that they each get the same service.

Having been involved with horses all my life, I love working out the puzzle that each one brings. There is nothing more satisfying than finding the key to a particular horse, so that it can run to the best of its ability.

Although in racing, the bad days far outweigh the good, those good days are worth waiting for when they do come along.

Liam was in conversation with John O’Riordan.