Leading Irish trainer Gordon Elliott will be without his two first choice jockeys Davy Russell and Jack Kennedy with both of them suffering injuries over the last week and now facing some time off the track.
Both riders are said to be out for “a number of weeks” after suffering injuries at Limerick on Sunday and now Elliott will look to Keith Donoghue to fill in for the riders during their rehabilitation off the track.
Grand National and Cheltenham Gold Cup-winning jockey Russell was taken to hospital for precautionary X-rays on a suspected shoulder injury after a nasty fall aboard Doctor Duffy when crashing out at the first fence in the Munster National.
Kennedy has already recently took a fair bit of time off the track due a to a broken leg suffered t the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown in February and just as he was coming back he is back on the sidelines after falling three flights from home when partnering Etincelle Lioterie in the opening Listed novice hurdle.
(Credit ATR) The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board’s senior medical officer Dr Jennifer Pugh posted on Twitter read: “Davy Russell sustained a neck injury and has a fracture of his C6 vertebrae. Jack Kennedy fractured his left collarbone.
“Unfortunately they will both be out for a number of weeks.”Both riders are used regularly by Gordon Elliott, who hopes Kennedy could return to action in time to ride at Down Royal’s high-profile two-day meeting at the end of the month.
“Davy is having an operation tomorrow (Tuesday),” the trainer said.
“Jack has got a hairline fracture of an old fracture and he has to go back to the doctor on Tuesday week.
“We’ll know then where we are and we’ll be pushing to try to get him back for Down Royal.”