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By Enda McElhinney
Padraig Roche took over a training licence from his father, the legendary Christy Roche, in January 2018, and is forging his way from their base in Co Kildare.
Roche has already got a Cheltenham Festival winner on the board as Brazil scored in the Fred Winter with lifelong friend Mark Walsh in the saddle, and he is continuing his quest to find a star name to represent his yard.
As a son of Christy Roche, racing was in the blood for Padraig from his childhood onwards.
He regularly rode Supreme Novices' Hurdle winner Like-A-Butterfly before heading to school and he watched on as his father made his way as a trainer following a riding career that included wins in four of the five Irish Classics and the Epsom Derby on Secreto and the Oaks on Jet Ski Lady.
He later trained Like-A-Butterfly to that Supreme Novices' win in 2002 and he won the Galway Plate with Grimes a year earlier.
His son got plenty of opportunities as an amateur rider, though Padraig freely admits he was never good enough to make it as a professional jockey.
His career spanned more than a decade but, by 2018, he was helping more and more in the yard at home and his father duly turned over the license.
Padraig Roche got a good education in his youth, both at home and in some world-class facilities in Ireland and abroad.
He spent two summers in Ballydoyle as a teenager, another with Conor O'Dwyer and had a short stint with Kevin Prendergast.
Later, he spent a year in Australia based at Randwick and learned how a different racing culture goes about their business.
By his mid-20s he admits his eyes were focused on training, rather than riding horses.
During his time in Ballydoyle, Roche formed a strong bond with Mark Walsh, who was also learning his trade under the guise of Aidan O'Brien's team.
He duly saddled his first winner when the Walsh-ridden Out Of The Loop scored a comfortable success in the Tommy Carberry Handicap Hurdle at Fairyhouse on Saturday, February 24, 2018.
That first Cheltenham festival winner came his way in 2022 when Mark partnered Brazil in the Fred Winter Handicap Hurdle in the silks of his boss JP McManus for Roche's yard.
The trainer had achieved a first graded success when Robbie Power guided Way Back Home to victory in the Grade 3 Winning Fair Juvenile Hurdle at Fairyhouse in February, 2019.
As with so many trainers that fit into the 'small yard' bracket, Roche is eager to find a torchbearer for his stable.
Achieving that is so much easier said than done, but he is willing to put the time and effort in and embraces the challenge, as the rewards are worth it.
"Cheltenham is major, but a good horse is always what you're looking for. They are so hard to come by, but hopefully we can get a really good horse," he told Kildare Live in 2025.
"When you're doing the work and your name is on it, you know how much work has gone into getting a winner. It is very satisfying when it comes off. They don't just win, you have to plan where they are going and it is always about looking long-term."
