Samuel Rodd Morshead

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(11 June 1955 – 25 September 2018)Former jump jockey and Perth legend Sam Morshead dies at 63
/ref> was an Irish

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

who competed in

National Hunt racing In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

and later became a successful

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

administrator. Morshead's parents were from Cornwall but he was born and brought up in Ireland. He began his career as a jockey in Ireland and rode his first winner at

Fairyhouse Racecourse Fairyhouse Racecourse is a horse racing venue in the Republic of Ireland. It is situated in the parish of Ratoath in County Meath, on the R155 road, R155 Regional road (Ireland), regional road, off the N3 road (Ireland), N3. It hosted its first ...

in April 1973. He moved to Britain at the age of 20 and spent the majority of his career at the stable of

Fred Rimell Thomas Frederic Rimell (24 June 1913 – 12 July 1981), better known as Fred Rimell, was a British champion National Hunt racing jockey and horse trainer. He was champion jockey three times and leading trainer five times. Rimell was the fi ...

, continuing as jockey for Rimell's widow, Mercy, after the trainer's death in 1981. He retired from riding after a bad fall at Worcester in 1987. His most notable victory as a rider came when Another Dolly was awarded the victory in the 1980

Queen Mother Champion Chase The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. As part of a sponsorship agreement with the onli ...

after the disqualification of Chinrullah for failing a dope test. Morshead also gained

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Rac ...

successes on Gaye Chance in the 1981 Sun Alliance Novices' Hurdle and the 1984

Stayers' Hurdle The Stayers' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain. It is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 miles ...

. He rode over 400 winners in a British career lasting 14 seasons. After retiring as a jockey, Morshead developed a career in racecourse administration. He was appointed

clerk of the course A clerk of the course is an official in various types of racing. Horse racing In horse racing, the clerk of the course is the person responsible for track management and raceday preparation at a racecourse. Important tasks of the role include: ...

at Perth Racecourse in 1988 and served as racecourse manager there from 1994 to his retirement in 2015. Over his time as manager, the course saw increases in attendance and was honoured as best course in Scotland and the north-east in 2014. He was also clerk of the course at

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Subdivisions of Scotland, council area and the historic Shires of Scotlan ...

, Kelso and

Musselburgh Musselburgh (; sco, Musselburrae; gd, Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It has a population of . History The name Musselburgh is Ol ...

during his career. Morshead retired from his position at Perth due to ill-health in 2015 and died from cancer in September 2018. He was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

for services to horse racing and charity. Morshead was married three times and had three sons.

References

1955 births 2018 deaths Irish jockeys Horse racing administrators Members of the Order of the British Empire {{Ireland-horseracing-bio-stub