Robert Vergette

National Hunt jockey Robert Vergette, brother of Market Deeping trainer George Vergette (who combined training with race-riding), lost a large chunk of his career due to the Second World War. He was already in his late 20s when embarking on a career as a jump jockey.

Riding pretty much exclusively for his brother, Robert rode his first winner on Pelagos in the Stand Novices’ Hurdle at Catterick Bridge on November 5, 1948. He rode one other winner that season, on selling hurdler Slieve Ruadh at Market Rasen’s Christmas meeting.

It would be more than a year before Robert next visited the winner’s enclosure, courtesy of Golden Mickey in a four-year-old maiden hurdle at Doncaster in March 1950. He doubled his score for the season when winning a maiden hurdle at Huntingdon on Easter Monday aboard Helston.

He rode three winners during the 1950/51 campaign, beginning with novice hurdler Barometer, who had already won twice that season when ridden by George Vergette, at Catterick in October. He won on Slieve Ruadh at Southwell on March 22, then four days later landed an Easter Monday success on Stockman in the three-mile Easter Handicap Chase at Market Rasen. He had two other rides on that Easter Monday card, finishing second on one and third on the other.

Having ridden a total of just seven winners during the previous three seasons, Robert recorded a score of eight for the 1951/52 campaign. It was not until mid-January that he got off the mark, when winning Birmingham’s Packington Chase on Natty Bell, but from early March the winners finally began to flow. His success over fences on Fanton’s Hill at Warwick was his tenth, resulting in his claim being cut to 5lb.

Robert ended the 1951/52 season on a winning note when guiding Natty Bell to a three-length success in the Rufford Handicap Chase at Towcester on May 31, the Saturday of its two-day Whitsun meeting. It was his 15th winner (all of them trained by George Vergette), which in those days meant losing the right to claim an allowance – a 3lb allowance until a jockey had ridden 25 winners had yet to be introduced.

Sadly, and tragically, that Whitsun winner on Natty Bell was to be his last. On Thursday 4 September he had a bad fall while riding work on George Vergette’s gallops. He suffered serious internal injuries which proved to be fatal.

Robert Vergette died early on Wednesday morning, September 10, 1952. He was 33. Robert was buried at St Guthlac's, Market Deeping. He left £1,674. 11s 8d net.

His winners were, in chronological order:

1. Pelagos, Catterick Bridge, November 5, 1948

2. Slieve Ruadh, Market Rasen, December 27, 1948

3. Golden Mickey, Doncaster, March 20, 1950

4. Helston, Huntingdon, April 10, 1950

5. Barometer, Catterick Bridge, October 19, 1950

6. Slieve Ruadh, Southwell, March 22, 1951

7. Stockman, Market Rasen, March 26, 1951

8. Natty Bell, Birmingham, January 14, 1952

9. Golden Mickey, Southwell, March 3, 1952

10. Fanton’s Hill, Warwick, March 12, 1952

11. Barometer, Manchester, March 15, 1952

12. Monk’s Folly, Doncaster, March 18, 1952

13. Golden Mickey, Nottingham, March 27, 1952

14. Barometer, Southwell, April 12, 1952

15. Natty Bell, Towcester, May 31, 1952