'We will have more Grade 1 horses but we will never have another Ruby Walsh'

David Casey, Jessica Harrington and Mick Fitgerald are among those to give their verdicts on what made Ruby Walsh such a brilliant horseman.

The Team

David Casey, friend of Walsh and assistant trainer to Willie Mullins

It's sad and it's great. It's sad we won't get to see him on the racecourse again but it's brilliant that he's gone out on his own terms and will be able to spend time with his family.

He will be greatly missed by us around the yard, although I'm sure he will still have an input.

Friends and colleagues: David Casey (right) and Ruby Walsh share a laugh with Jackie Mullins at Naas in January 2018Credit: Caroline Norris

He had it all. From the front or behind, slow or fast pace, he just had an aura about him and I think other jockeys were intimidated riding against him. He could make other jockeys do things they didn't want to do, he had that sort of power over them.

I'm just privileged and delighted to have known him, in and out of the game, for 25 years.

Harold Kirk, bloodstock agent for Willie Mullins

Walsh has been the hardest, most honest professional I've ever dealt with, mentally and physically. When he was riding a horse that I bought in a top race, you knew you had everything going for you.

He made good horses into very good horses, and he made very good horses into superstars.

His mental strength was key. He got into a zone on the big days, and we all knew to leave him alone. Not only would he know how to ride his horse, he'd know what every other horse in the race was doing as well. A true professional and a genius.

He had what every top sportsman has – a sixth sense. It's like Messi, who has that sense of knowing where to be or what to do. We hopefully will have more Grade 1 horses, but we will never have another Ruby Walsh.

The Jockeys

Sam Thomas, former jockey and partner of Denman in two Gold Cup clashes with Ruby and Kauto Star

I was very privileged to be in the place I was with the horses that we had to ride, combined with Ruby being there as well. I think I learnt a lot from Ruby, who is an absolute genius in his race-riding.

You can't teach what he used to do, he was very natural but I certainly always watched him. The way he sat so still on a horse over an obstacle was what I tried to take from him.

As good as it gets: Kauto Star and Ruby Walsh (right) go head to head with Denman and Sam Thomas in the 2009 Cheltenham Gold CupCredit: Mark Cranham

You can never really copy anyone but that was certainly what I tried to emulate as much as I could. The way he sat motionless and, right or wrong at an obstacle, you never ever saw his hands come off the horse's wither.

You'll never see anyone else in the world doing what he does so I was very lucky to be riding alongside him. I was just trying to learn as much as I could because he was as good as you get.

Once you've ridden a horse, if you're any good as a jockey you’ll be able to relay that information back. But he was invaluable with information and was already a big part of the Nicholls team a long time before I ever came on the scene. He has racing in his veins with his background and his upbringing and plays a huge part in Willie's yard.

Davy Russell

He brought the sport to another level and you had to improve your riding to get to his level. He won everything, and he was a great role model for everybody in the weigh room.

You knew you had to be a lot better to compete with him. It was a pleasure to be around him and a pleasure to ride in the same era as him.

You'd learn a lot by listening: Ruby Walsh and Davy Russell at Gaway last JulyCredit: Caroline Norris

Conor O'Dwyer

He is an amazing man. In my lifetime he is as good a rider as I have seen. From a trainer's point of view, he was the only one who would come in and tell you what other horses were going to do. His homework was amazing and his information when he came back in was second to none.

As a person, he has a funny exterior in that he says it as it is. You like it or you don't but to me he is an absolute gent. He has been some ambassador for the sport from start to finish.

Robbie Power

He was a great help to me when I started off and gave me plenty of advice. He's definitely the best I've ever ridden against. He ticked all the boxes.

Ruby Walsh with Kemboy, the final winner of his incredible careerCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Noel Fehily

He's a great fella, as straight as a die. What you see is what you get with Ruby and he was just a brilliant jockey.

He was the best jockey I’ve ever seen and the best jockey I’ve ever ridden against. He was probably the last person you want to see joining you going to the last or to get into a battle with from the last to the line.

He was very hard to pass and tactically he was just unbelievable. Like all good sportsmen he made the job look easy and difficult horses were made to look easy rides.

Mick Fitzgerald

There was nobody better than him round Cheltenham, which is proved by his record. On the big days that's where Ruby stood out. There was the weight of expectation on him a lot of the time going into the festival. Just think of all those favourites he rode in the Supreme.

Everybody goes on about the roar when the tapes go up for the first race and he was normally riding the favourite. But you wouldn't have known. He went out to ride those big races like he would a maiden hurdle at Clonmel on a Thursday.

That's what sets him apart. It was another race and he didn't allow emotion to get in his way. He was almost like a contract killer. He knew what it meant but it didn't cloud his judgement.

I'm a coach now and one of the things I work on with the jockeys a lot is watching a race and trying to see what the best thing is for a horse. All I do is show them videos of Ruby.

He managed to get himself into a position where he gave his horse the best chance to win. That wasn't always in front and wasn't always behind. It was all about finding the right place for a horse and not upsetting their natural rhythm.

'You always knew he'd saved plenty' says Mick Fitzgerald, seen here coming out second best to Ruby Walsh on Gungadu (left) at KemptonCredit: Racingfotos.com

He wasn't too aggressive over the obstacles but at the same time he was sending the horse a signal and subtle in the way he sent those signals.

Other people you could think: 'right, I've got you beat,' but you just knew with Ruby that if he was there in a race, he had saved plenty.

He beat me on Gungadu in the Racing Post Chase when I was riding Kelami for Francois Doumen. I thought I was going to win going down to the last two but he just had a little bit more.

Tom Scudamore

I always got on very well with him but he was a very, very hard man to beat in the saddle. He was the best tactician there was – a phenomenal horseman.

You'd follow him in a race and he was just always in the right place. It didn't matter whether it was Cheltenham, Taunton or Galway, he was in the right place. He was just outstanding.

The Trainers

Jessica Harrington

It's the end of an era. The retirement of a legend. It will be a very long time before we see a better horseman.

Noel Meade

Ruby was a fantastic jockey, as good as there has ever been. He rode some winners for me and it was always a pleasure to watch him ride. I'm very happy for him that he has bowed out in one piece and I wish him all the very best for the future.

Ruby Walsh guides Dun Doire to Cheltenham Festival victory for Tony Martin in 2006Credit: Racingfotos.com

Tony Martin

For me he was the best of all time. He rode a good few winners for me and his positioning in a race was outstanding. He only had to ride a horse once and after that you never need to give him instructions. The feedback he'd give you after riding one was brilliant.

Harry Fry

He was as good a jockey as we've ever seen and are ever likely to see. I was very lucky to have had a small association with him at Ditcheat with Paul Nicholls and he did actually ride a winner for us, so it was nice to have his great name on the board for us.

It was great to see him go out on such a high on his own terms, which is what you want to see for a top sportsman. His ride on Kemboy was brilliant. He was just a fantastic jockey who will be sorely missed.

Ray Hurley, trainer of Imperial Call when Walsh won the 1999 Punchestown Gold Cup on the horse at the age of 19

Ruby had schooled Imperial Call a couple of times and was actually due to ride him in the Cheltenham Gold Cup but we had to scratch him. He was very young but at that point in time he was our first choice for the horse.

Imperial Call with Ruby Walsh being led in by Sinead O'Sullivan with Ray Hurley on right at PunchestownCredit: MSI Caroline Norris 50% NO PRIVA

I just thought he was exceptional, and after he rode Imperial Call at Punchestown you could see he was a star in the making. It was no surprise to me that he went on to do what he did.

He dictated the pace brilliantly at Punchestown. He had been six or seven lengths clear, but I remember the way he gave him a breather down the back the final time and allowed the others catch up. Then he pushed on again and the jumps he got out of the horse over the last three fences was something else. Florida Pearl was second and Ruby certainly didn't show any loyalty to Willie Mullins that day.

It was some ride for a 19-year-old, but you could see even then that he had some head on him. He just had something special, and it was great to see him go out sound and in full health on his own terms.

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