THE announcement of the split between influential owner/trainer Barry Connell and up-and-coming jockey Michael O’Sullivan came as something of a surprise but given the nature of the breakdown in the partnership, it may have been brewing for a while.

I don’t know and I’m not going to judge one way or another, so it’s not to besmirch Connell that I will say that the loss of that valuable retainer could be the making of O’Sullivan.

The general impression I’ve got speaking to people with a little knowledge of the racing terrain is that O’Sullivan has shot himself in the foot by precipitating the split by committing himself to a book of rides at Cork when his boss wanted him to school some of the stable’s star names instead.

Was going after the riding fees worth the inevitable falling out, they asked. Perhaps not, but the reasons for that decision are O’Sullivan’s to know and for the rest of us to guess.

The reality is that Sean Flanagan is now in the hot seat and that is likely to suit all parties, as a retainer like the one Connell can offer may sound ideal for a hungry young jockey looking for financial stability, but retainers are like marriages – they are often better second time around when the impetuosity of youth has worn off and the ties that go with the stability are more desirable.

Of course impetuosity, or a competitive spirit, is no bad thing, and sometimes trying to tame that spirit and curb the curiosity that leads to self-discovery is exactly what can quell the fire that created the attraction in the first place.

Precedents

There are plenty of precedents in racing, and one in particular when it comes to the situation that Michael O’Sullivan finds himself in.

For Danny Mullins, the job as retained rider for Barry Connell must have seemed like manna from heaven when he was offered the role when barely out of his teens a dozen years ago. It gave the promising youngster the chance to achieve his dream of riding at the Cheltenham Festival, but within two years that dream job ended ignominiously with the sack.

Danny is now one of the most astute riders in Britain and Ireland with a tactical brain superior to the vast majority, and he’s predictably in constant demand, but it is hugely unlikely that he would have developed into the jockey he is today had he not got what The Sun’s Claude Duval used to refer to as the Spanish archer (El Bow, geddit).

I hope Danny won’t disagree when I say that being tied down to a retainer may have done plenty for his financial security, but it did nothing for his riding.

Being a youngster tied to a financial contract with an exacting boss isn’t an ideal situation, and the emphasis is on obeying instructions and making sure you don’t mess up when the natural instinct is to take chances and maximise the sharp instincts of the younger man.

Danny didn’t ride badly but he rode without the confidence of an established rider or the brashness of a teenager, either of which would have been preferable to the restraint he must have felt in that role.

Minimising obvious errors often means cutting out enterprise, and it’s hard to equate the risk-averse rider he was a decade ago with the proactive approach he has taken as a freelancer.

Happier times at Cheltenham with Marine Nationale ridden by Michael O'Sullivan being led in after winning the Sky Bet Supreme Novices' Hurdle Race \ carolinenorris.ie

Stifles natural talent

That desire not to get it wrong stifles the natural talent inherent in any champion, and young jockeys must make mistakes on their way to the top. It’s much better when they can make those mistakes on their own terms.

Again, this is in no way intended as a dig at Barry Connell, who would naturally expect loyalty in exchange for a decent retainer; it’s merely that the nature of that contract is anathema to a rider who is not fully formed as a competitor.

A similar parallel exists with Paul Nicholls in the UK, where the trainer has always wanted a young jockey that he can rely on to be a disciple of his own approach to training and race-riding, but too many talented jockeys have found the demands of riding in such a high-pressure environment too much, only to find their identity when moving on.

Harry Cobden deserves credit for riding that storm and coming out the other side, but it hasn’t been easy, and the truth is that while Nicholls demands obedience and pliancy, by far his most successful period as a trainer came when he had to deal with a personality as strong as his own with Ruby Walsh.

Ideal job description

Having to share Ruby’s services with Willie Mullins won’t have been in the ideal job description, and it’s fair to say that when the guv’nor said “jump”, Ruby didn’t always ask “how high?”

Despite that, and indeed because of that to a large degree, Nicholls and Ruby were hugely successful together, and the presence of great horses at Ditcheat in those years was not mere coincidence.

So, going back to Connell and O’Sullivan, I believe that the current situation, while far from ideal on the surface, can work in favour of both men.

Connell needs a jockey who is both established and secure in his identity and O’Sullivan needs to have as broad an experience as possible in the coming years when he will hone his craft and mature as a rider and a person.

The chains of a retainer are too restrictive to ensure the success of either, let alone keep both content.