Focus on quality pays off for Amy Murphy with Kalashnikov on course for Aintree

Few trainers have been able to ride out the coronavirus pandemic as impressively as Amy Murphy, who has sent out a stack of winners since racing's resumption and has her team ideally placed to attack in the autumn.

The dual-purpose Newmarket trainer has saddled 20 winners on the Flat, including four from her last six runners, and nine winners over jumps since the start of June.

A decision to ramp up the quality at her Southgate Stables base on Hamilton Road is starting to pay off and excitement is building for the yard's talented jumps team, which is headed by Grade 1-winning novice Kalashnikov.

"We've tried to up the quality and cut back the quantity this year and that's telling, and hopefully we can get more support into the yard and move forward," said Murphy, who has a 39 per cent strike-rate (9-23) over jumps this season.

"I set out from racing's resumption to have everything 110 per cent, because the owners have been so patient and we wanted to repay them as quickly as we could."

Kalashnikov: had wind surgery at start of SeptemberCredit: Alan Crowhurst / Getty Images

Kalashnikov failed to show his best in four starts last season, but Murphy, who has 50 horses with "plenty of space for more", is hopeful the combination of a long break and wind surgery can spark a return to form.

"He bled badly on his last two runs, so we pulled up stumps [in February] to try and get him right," said the trainer. "We've given him a good summer break and he had a wind operation two weeks ago. Plans are loose for him but he's pencilled in for the Old Roan, providing it does not come too soon."

The high point of the productive summer was provided by Really Super in the Grade 3 Summer Plate at Market Rasen and the versatile mare could join her stablemate at Aintree on October 25.

"She might have a bash at those small-field graded races and may also get an entry in the Old Roan," said Murphy, who mentioned Marlborough Sounds, Mercian Knight and Logan Rocks as other jumpers to note.

Although the results on the track have been encouraging, Murphy has not been unaffected by the Covid-19 crisis and she is demanding action to stop owners from leaving the sport.

"It's been a difficult time for everyone," she said. "Owners aren't in it for the money 99 per cent of the time, but for the experience. Obviously, we're finding it hard to give owners the day out they're looking for and paying for.

"It makes no sense to me that I can meet my owners in a pub, but they can't get into a parade ring to see their horse. We need to act on it soon otherwise we'll lose people left, right and centre. In terms of longevity, I don't think it can carry on."

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