Pat Crotty

Patrick Crotty

Patrick Crotty, known simply as Pat, was an Irish jockey who rode just one winner in England, albeit at the home of jump racing. 

Possibly the son of – or at least related to – John Crotty, who rode 13 winners over jumps in England between 1927 and 1934, Pat has his first win on Stockman, trained by Cecil Brabazon, in the Bray Handicap Chase at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting on December 27, 1948. Just two months later, he gained one of his most important successes when riding Stockman to win the prestigious Leopardstown Handicap Chase.

Pat rode for Northern Ireland-based Bobby Patton during the 1950s. He never managed a double-figure score in a calendar year but nonetheless rode a fair number of winners. Among the best he rode for Patton was Kilkilogue, on which he won the December Handicap Chase at Leopardstown and the Gap o’ the North Handicap Chase at Dundalk during the 1951/52 season, achieving their greatest triumph together when winning the Troytown Chase at Navan on December 5, 1953. Later that same season they combined to win handicap chases at Down Royal and Downpatrick, plus the Governor’s Cup Chase at Mullingar. 

Returning to Mullingar in June 1955, Pat and Kilkilogue landed the Mullingar Gold Cup. The pair were in fine form the following month, landing a Bellewstown hurdle contest and a Leopardstown chase. Back at Leopardstown in November, they won the Blackrock Handicap Hurdle. 

Despite all those successes, Pat was still able to claim an allowance. He finally rode out his claim when winning a Mullingar handicap chase on Lets Face It on December 11, 1955. Not surprisingly, his first win without a claim was on none other than Kilkilogue in a handicap hurdle at Naas in March 1956. 

During the 1956/57 campaign, Pat won three three-mile handicap chases on Fair Gale, two at Mullingar and one at Leopardstown’s Christmas meeting. Over the next two seasons, Faircairn, trained like Fair Gale by William Quinn, won hurdle contests at Downpatrick, Mullingar and Navan, while another Quinn-trained horse, the chaser Derg Castle, won for Pat at Downpatrick and Down Royal in the 1959/60 season. 

In April 1961 he won a Downpatrick novice chase on Prides Crossing, who went on to win further chases when sent to race in England the following season. He scored on Derg Castle at Downpatrick in June 1962, but from thereon Pat’s winners gradually dwindled. 

His sole English success came at Cheltenham on November 11, 1966, when riding Irish raider Vulgan’s Palace, owned and trained by Archie Watson, to win the Cowley Novices’ Hurdle, leading all the way to score by five lengths. It was the five-year-old’s first run under National Hunt rules. 

Pat kept the ride but the best they could manage in four subsequent outings was one third-place finish. They were out of contention when brought down at the last flight in Division 1 of the Gloucestershire Hurdle (now the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle) at Cheltenham in March 1967. 

Vulgan’s Palace would go on to win races in Ireland but Pat Crotty was no longer the jockey. He was nearing the end of his career by then. He rode for the final time when finishing unplaced on Duplate in the Kilbride Maiden Hurdle at Fairyhouse on February 21, 1968.