Tom Marquand avoids serious injury in nasty mid-race unseat as fellow rider picks up 20-meeting ban

Tom Marquand has escaped serious injury after being taken to hospital following a nasty unseat during a mid-race incident at Randwick on Saturday, in which fellow jockey Josh Parr was hit with a mammoth 20-meeting ban for careless riding.

Marquand was riding the Annabel Neasham-trained Dorothy Gail in the A$2million Inglis Millenium when Parr's mount, Hellish, veered across the track in the final 300 metres and left Marquand's mount short of room before unshipping him.

Marquand, who was conscious on the track, was taken to St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney with a possible shoulder injury and while those scans have so far been clear, as well as a clear CT scan, he will remain in hospital on Saturday night after suffering a concussion.

Racing NSW tweeted: "Tom's CT scan of his head is clear, however he does have concussion and will be staying in hospital overnight. So far the scans on his shoulder have been clear."

Parr pleaded guilty to careless riding in a stewards' inquiry following the incident, in which fellow jockeys Jason Collett, Tim Clark and James McDonald were also called in for, and the rider's ban begins immediately until March 15.

Parr told stewards that he had to shift a "horse and a half" to get to the outside of the Collett-ridden Kundalini and said: "I have had to change direction. He [Collett] shifted left quite abruptly. His momentum from his shift just kept going on."

Marquand had only returned to riding in Australia, where he has ridden three Group 1 winners on globetrotting Addeybb, earlier this month, and had landed the opening Pierro Plate aboard Cafe Millenium on Randwick's card.

The jockey's other international ventures also saw him ride in Japan towards the end of last year, where he rode 16 winners.

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