Jacob excited about big season after return from French adventure

Daryl Jacob is looking forward to getting back into full-time action in Britain later this month with an envious list of top-class young horses to ride for employers Simon Munir and Isaac Souede.

After only his tenth ride in Britain in the last three months at Worcester on Sunday, Jacob said: "I've had two and a half months in France and have ten days left over there. Then I'll be back full time here.

Jacob had French champion jockey James Reveley as a neighbour in France and has ridden three winners and plenty of placed horses at tracks like Compiegne and Dieppe as well as Auteuil, mainly for Guillaume Macaire.

Explaining his summer job, Jacob said: "A lot of the trainers didn't have summer jumpers and I could be used to good effect in France to give Simon feedback on his young horses."

Last time out Jacob had his best season in Britain, with 88 winners and more than £1 million in prize-money.

Asked about his ambition for this season, Jacob, 33, said: "Last year was a great year and I'm looking forward to riding a lot of nice young horses, bumper horses, and winning on good horses.

"I want to progress things forward, aiming for bigger and better things every year."

Jacob will be the envy of many of his colleagues with his retainers' light and dark green colours flying high with a host of trainers, from champion Nicky Henderson through Alan King and Nigel Twiston- Davies to Ben Pauling, who signed Jacob up as his number one jockey this summer.

"I'm looking forward to that new role and riding Grade 1 horses Willoughby Court and Barters Hill," said Jacob.

His weekend flying visit included riding out for both Pauling and Twiston-Davies, who has Grade 1 winner Bristol De Mai and Albert Bartlett third Wholestone among his Munir and Souede contingent.

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