AFTER the Irish domination of Cheltenham and Aintree, British jumps racing isn’t so much licking its wounds as being stitched back together again in an attempt to avoid a repeat of its most embarrassing three weeks.

The scars left by such a mauling will stay visible for years and the wounds are sure to be opened again next season unless someone puts their finger on the reasons for the devastating failure.

The list of Irish big-race winners is matched in number only by the theories served up from every corner of the sport as to why the thrashing took place. Some are credible, others range from fanciful to utterly bonkers.

The finish of the Grand National underlined how dominant Irish-trained horses have been across the board.

Led by Minella Times, they filled the first five home. That came on the back of seven of the nine Cheltenham Festival handicaps heading across the Irish Sea.

History in the Grand National@rachaelblackmor becomes the first female rider to win the £750,000 Randox Grand National aboard Minella Times @AintreeRaces

A 1-2 for @HenrydeBromhead too pic.twitter.com/RRIsIdKFjA

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 10, 2021

The immediate reaction was to blame the handicappers and the evidence to support this argument is obvious as, after all, the weights are framed to give every horse a theoretical equal chance.

If the solution is to simply raise all Irish runners by 10lbs, as some have suggested, British jumps racing is in danger of plunging into terminal decline.

Ireland had 18 of the 40 runners in the great race at Aintree on Saturday. Welsh National winner Secret Reprieve narrowly missed the cut prompting calls to automatically include such horses in the final field. Lump more lead on the Irish horses and he’d have missed out by miles.

If the handicapper decided an across-the-board solution in an attempt to even things up, there is the very real danger of British-trained runners making up little more than a quarter of the Grand National field.

This would be replicated, to a perhaps lesser extent, across the Cheltenham Festival handicaps, so any attempt to coarsely level the playing field would most likely, in practice, just accelerate the Irish domination.

Given the pattern is even stronger in the graded races, merely adjusting the handicap ratings would do little to solve the problems posed by the inequal struggle British runners have faced in the last month. This is not a problem of pounds and ounces.

So, how can British jumps racing be returned to a position where it can compete with Ireland? That is the $64,000 question, only, in reality, the stakes are much, much higher.

Some suggest the better prizemoney in Ireland is a contributory factor but, out of the top 12 rated horses in British and Irish jump racing combined, only Chacun Pour Soi made the majority of his cash in Ireland.

That means Allaho, Minella Indo, A Plus Tard and Al Boum Photo all paid their way in Britain more than in Ireland. Out of those top dozen earners seven were trained in Britain.

Maybe, there is more money to be made in the lower grades in Ireland but the top end tells a different story.

Others have pointed to a broken race programme in Britain contributing to a downgrade in quality.

Too many graded races have made British jumpers soft, is the accusation. Maybe, some credence can be given to the argument but a lighter campaign was put forward as part of the reason why Best Mate was able to win three Gold Cups and Al Boum Photo has won Cheltenham’s greatest prize on the back of just one canter around Tramore earlier in the season.

Is it simply Ireland has the best horses? Given the quality jumpers Ireland’s point-to-point scene is producing maybe this is the reason but plenty of graduates of that industry find their way to Britain and there is hardly a desperate shortage of big-spending owners with horses stabled in the UK.

Perhaps, the training methods in Ireland have advanced quicker. Again, a possibility but pointing the finger at trainers with a track record like Paul Nicholls is surely stretching it way beyond reality.

One trainer, post-Cheltenham, suggested to me that the main problem was the way the British race programme forced the most promising young horses into unhelpfully hard races too early in their careers.

A shake up of the novice hurdling system by introducing races open to winners of one race, two races or three races rather than the traditional penalty system followed by handicaps or graded races is, perhaps, one way of allowing trainers to progress youngsters in a more beneficial way.

It’s going to be interesting watching the way British racing as a whole puts plans in place to tackle the problems this summer. One thing is for sure, it is not going to be easy, but if the root cause is not identified and addressed then expect Ireland’s top trainers to soon start planning to create satellite yards in Britain.

ROY ROCKET

I must admit to feeling quite sad on Grand National day and it certainly wasn’t the result.

That was possibly the most important victory in the race’s history with Rachael Blackmore becoming the first jockey to win the world’s greatest race.

It wasn’t even seeing the race played out in front of empty stands or the fact I was missing my favourite jumps meeting for the first time in years. It was some news totally unrelated to Aintree that broke on Saturday morning.

Newmarket trainer John Berry revealed his much-loved stable star Roy Rocket had suffered a heart attack on the gallops.

Roy never featured in any of the top races but that didn’t make him any less of a superstar, especially at his beloved Brighton where he won nine times.

A @BrightonRace legend and an absolute hero for the @JohnWathenBerry team – RIP Roy Rocket… pic.twitter.com/ycJuinCOSF

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) April 10, 2021

To see him walk around Berry’s yard tucked away behind Newmarket High Street in what can only be described as ‘free range’ was a delight.

One of racing’s great characters, with his snowy white coat, he stood out from the crowd.

He became a bit of a cult hero and to see him flashing home to win in the Brighton sunshine was what your lower grade racing should be all about. He took what some might describe as mundane racing and made it fun.

Perhaps, it was no coincidence he thrived in the holiday atmosphere by the seaside at his favourite course.

His passing left me with an empty feeling on my favourite day of the year but however sad that is, it’s nothing to how his trainer and all connected with Roy Rocket must feel.

He was a one off. Horses come and go but a lowly-rated 11-year-old made his mark more than many champions. I’m sure I’m not alone in saying he won’t be forgotten.