William Terence Casey was born in Co. Donegal on June 2, 1945, and would often skip school to indulge in his passion of racing.
Aged 15, he became apprenticed to Aubrey Brabazon, who later described Terry as ' a very well-mannered and trustworthy boy who never looked like making it as a jockey'.
In the 1960s, Terry rode six winners for George Dunwoody who operated just outside Belfast. George was the father of jockey Richard.
Sadly, Aubrey Brabazon's observation proved accurate and, resolving instead to become a trainer, Terry spent three years as head lad to Paddy Mullins.
Aged 30, he moved to Dorking, England and became the head lad at permit holder Frank Gilman's Leicestershire stable.
Personal tragedy struck shortly after when his young wife of six months choked fatally on a piece of meat.
Terry then threw himself into training: having ridden a career total of 46 winners, he established his own training yard at the Curragh from where he sent out his first winner, Town Special, at Clonmel in September, 1983.
That he went on to train Rough Quest to win the Grand National and trained the winners of the 1986 Whitbread at Liverpool and the 1988 National Hunt Chase at Cheltenham (plus scores of other good winners) is a matter of history.
Terry's last winner of note was Splendid Thyne in the 1999 Spa Hurdle.
A visit to his doctor shortly after changed everything: he was diagnosed with throat cancer. Initially, his treatment was declared a success, but the disease returned in 2001.
Terry Casey died at his partner's house in Somerset at 7.00 Tuesday evening, 24 July, that year. He was 56.
