Henry Hicken

Henry Hicken

Article by Alan Trout

Henry Hicken – listed erroneously as ‘Hickin’ in the early part of his career - was born in New Zealand in 1880. He had one win on the Flat in England, followed by five over jumps in the first decade of the 20th century.  

His sole success on the Flat came at Sandown Park on October 19, 1899, when steering Pedant to victory in the Hermitage Selling Plate. Although Pedant had won an amateur riders’ race at Salisbury in July, he started the 20-1 rank outsider in the field of eight. Henry’s rival jockeys included one former champion in Morny Cannon, current champion Otto Madden, and Sam Loates, who was well on his way to being crowned champion that year, as well as two top Americans in Tod Sloan and Lester Reiff. Despite all this, Pedant won by three lengths.

Henry never rode another British Flat winner. Instead, he scored his first National Hunt victory at Plumpton on March 23, 1901, when Ocean Blue took the Ringmer Maiden Hurdle. It was the four-year-old’s first start over obstacles, and he beat Magnifique, the mount of Charlie James, by three lengths.    

It was not until Noorong won the Strawberry Hill Hurdle at Kempton Park by a length on February 27, 1902, that Henry was able to add to his total, and then not until an objection by Frank Hartigan, rider on the runner-up Elfdale, on grounds of ‘foul riding’ had been overruled.

A year later, Henry won again when Seahorse II, owned, like Ocean Blue by Mr Spencer Gollan and trained by James Hickey, won the Brook Maiden Hurdle by four lengths at Gatwick on March 19, 1903, although he may have been helped by the fall of the 5-2 on favourite Buckhunter.   

He had few rides over the next couple of years, but he did tackle the Liverpool fences, when partnering Seahorse II in the 1904 Grand Sefton Chase. Of the ten starters, only three finished, and Seahorse II was the last of them, the distances being six lengths and a ‘bad’ third.

Henry had no rides at all during 1906, but at Wolverhampton’s two-day autumn meeting in 1907, he enjoyed double success. On September 30, Golden Ray won the Juvenile Hurdle, and the following day it was the turn of West Ewell, who took the Staffordshire Handicap Chase. Both were owned and trained by Vic Tabor, who later in the year would become champion amateur rider, but now left the work to Henry. Both were emphatic victories, Golden Ray winning by ten lengths, while West Ewell beating sole rival Dathi, ridden by Ivor Anthony, by 25 lengths. 

He may have only won six races in England, but not too many jockeys can claim that they beat champion jockeys in their first and last wins, as Ivor Anthony went on to take the title in 1912.

Henry had his final ride at Hurst Park on January 17, 1908, when Worsted Stockings was a faller in the Walton Selling Chase. It is not known whether that fall was serious enough to end his career in the saddle. 

Henry Hicken’s British winners were, in chronological order:

1. Pedant, Sandown Park, October 19, 1899

2. Ocean Blue, Plumpton, March 23,1901 

3. Noorong, Kempton Park, February 27, 1902

4. Seahorse II, Gatwick, March 19,1903

5. Golden Ray, Wolverhampton, September 30, 1907

6. West Ewell, Wolverhampton, October 1, 1907