'Very disappointing' - former coach to Brandon Wilkie shocked at assault

Brandon Wilkie was handed a 14-month suspended prison sentence for a serious attack on fellow jockey Kyle McHugh last summer.

The two apprentice jockeys were sharing an apartment in Newmarket and the dispute centred around McHugh goading Wilkie about when he last rode a winner.

McHugh suffered a broken nose, a fractured jaw, six broken teeth and a fractured eye socket which led to Wilkie being found guilty of grievous bodily harm.

Brandon Wilkie sent a video of the assault afterwards to friends and Wilkie hasn't ridden in the UK since August. He had a few rides in Ireland between December and April.

He's now been given a suspended sentence and ordered to pay £500 to his former roommate.

Paddy Flood coached Wilkie as a youngster

Paddy Flood, who taught Brandon Wilkie, expressed his disappointment and said: “He's very lucky he's not doing time in jail, to be honest with you.

“I know Brandon because he came through the apprentice school with me, and I would have known a lot of his family from pony racing as well. Brandon did a lot of pony racing.

“This was a massive shock to me. He came across as easy to coach, easy to teach.

“He was full of beans as a young lad, full of life. But show me an apprentice who isn't - or a good jockey who isn't full of energy and just wants to go fast on horses.

“I was shocked when I heard it. I was disappointed for his family. I did see a little bit of the video, but the injuries the chap got were horrendous - really, really bad.

“To think that he was sharing a room with this guy. It's your fellow jockey, someone you're doing your job with every day of the week, and then you're living with them as well. To be able to actually do that.

“I was really embarrassed for his family and felt a little bit embarrassed myself that I'd had him through my hands as a young man and that he could resort to something like that.

“He's lucky he didn't do time in jail. Just very disappointing.”

Why was Wilkie allowed to ride in Ireland?

Emma Nagle added that it was interesting to see Wilkie being allowed to ride in Ireland following the assault: “Just seeing the pictures of Kyle McHugh afterwards, it looked fairly vicious, and you'd have to feel for him. He wasn't able to ride for eight weeks after it happened.

“It was interesting that he was allowed to come back and ride in Ireland as well, given that I imagine the charges had already been brought against him by then.”

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