Episode 399: Allan Denham

Allan Denham’s intention to quit the training ranks was known only to family and a handful of close friends. Fittingly he went out on a winning note when Adios Steve won a BM 64 at Hawkesbury on June 30th 2022. The former champion apprentice jockey and distinguished trainer certainly isn’t looking for accolades, but I can’t possibly let him retire without presenting the tribute he so richly deserves. This week we replay a podcast recorded with Allan in 2019, in which he says the rumour mill had him pensioned off as far back as 2012. He talks of his daily commute from Wyong to Rosehill for several years before the passing of his father Jack Denham. Allan looks back on a decade of training from a Wyong base.  He takes us back to the days when his father trained with great success at Canterbury. Allan talks of Jack’s training technique. He pays tribute to the top horse Ricochet, arguably the best horse Jack trained from his Canterbury stables. Allan recalls Jack’s move to Rosehill and the beginning of his short career as an apprentice jockey. Many said he wouldn’t last twelve months. The multiple Gr 1 winning trainer remembers his very first race ride at Randwick. Somehow he claimed his full 7lbs allowance, and ran second. Allan had to wait 17 rides for his first win. He vividly recalls the big day at Newcastle. Surprisingly his first city winner was provided by an outside stable. He remembers it well. Allan explains how he managed to stay in the saddle for seven years. The sacrifices were many. He talks of his father’s appointment as private trainer for coal and trucking magnate Stan Fox. Allan pays tribute to the best horse he ever rode. Purple Patch, owned by Stan Fox and trained by Jack Denham possessed a dynamic finishing run. He pays tribute to a couple of outstanding mares he got to ride in the Fox colours. Allan talks of the riders with whom he shared stable duties in those heady days. He looks back on his association with Jack during his riding days. The former talented jockey/trainer talks of his memorable apprentice’s premiership win, and the surprise invitation it brought him. Allan looks back on the shock disqualification he and Jack incurred over the running of a horse called Bold Akkadian. Following Stan Fox’s death in 1974, his widow Millie appointed Ken Ennever to manage the entire racing operation. Allan remembers Jack’s reaction when asked to train exclusively for the company, and terminate his association with outside owners. Allan says Jack’s decision to freelance was the best thing he ever did. He recalls an influx of new owners and some of the best horses his father ever trained.  Allan’s solo training career began during his days as Jack’s stable foreman. He pays tribute to horses like Eremein, Spark Of Life, Heavenly Glow, Euclase, and Yippyio. The devoted family man talks of wife Michelle and their combined family of six. Allan’s many friends in racing congratulate him on a distinguished career and extend best wishes to he and Michelle for a happy and healthy retirement in sunny Queensland.