Lamb Bags Hundredth Jumps Win
- Thursday, 29 August 2002 00:00
Lamb became the 30th rider to reach the ton of jumps wins in NZ.
After a successful career as an apprentice jockey, gradually hindered by increasing weight, Lamb had his first jumping ride in 1986.
His first win came at his 24th jumping ride, aboard Justa Kiss at Woodville on 29th April 1987.
Lamb reached his 50th jumping win on 28th September 1994, aboard Sir Blanco at Te Rapa.
He and great friend Brett Scott have had a long-standing bet as to which of them would be first to reach 100 jumping wins.
Although the bet theoretically became easier for Eddie to win when Brett moved to Melbourne, Scott has succeeded so well on his occasional visits home that he is on 98 wins, and will be looking for the 100 at Paeroa on Sunday week.
Lamb's first major overseas win was the 2000 Australian Grand National Steeplechase on Vowtinsk for Robbie Laing.
He followed that up with a jumping treble at Riccarton on 9th August 2000, including the Grand National Hurdles on Rand. This was the first jumping treble by a jockey since Bill Hillis won three races on 8th August 1967, also including the Grand National Hurdles.
Lamb has not long returned from a three month contract riding in Japan, where he rode three winners.
His first experience of that country was last year, when he travelled with the grey flyer Rand to win the prelude to the Nakayama Grand Jump, before being brought down on the flat in the big race itself. They then went on to the U.S.A., where the highlight was winning the Iroquois Steeplechase, a Grade (Group) 1 race.
The only steeplechaser in New Zealand racing in blinkers, His Worship should have won two starts earlier at Otaki when he unaccountably pulled himself up close to home and was run down into third. He will now go to Paeroa in ten days' time for the National Jumps Day.
Media Release - TNZ