Jockey Jenny Duggan knows her Scone fall was a close call but her passion is horses and she’ll be back

Racing mum-of-three Jenny Duggan broke just about everything you could in a recent Scone race fall but the gutsy jockey says it’s going to take more than that to stop her riding again.

Jenny Duggan was taken to hospital after the fall at Scone. Picture: Getty Images

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The doctor’s message to Jenny Duggan was deliberately blunt and shocking.

“You should count your lucky stars you are alive,’’ he said. “The neck injury is going to take at least 12 months to heal.

“If you try to return to riding any earlier and you have another fall, it could be a matter of life and death.’’

Duggan was seriously injured in a race fall at Scone this month when her mount, Steamboat Sally crashed to the turf at the top of the straight, bringing down another runner, Tombolo.

Robert Thompson, rider of Tombolo, was able to walk away relatively unharmed from the fall but Duggan lay unconscious on the track.

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Jenny Duggan with her children Max, Seb, and Maddy at their home.

The talented 41-year-old apprentice jockey and mother-of-three suffered a myriad of injuries in the fall — fractures to her neck, right shoulder, left wrist, right foot and nose, plus concussion and bleeding on the brain.

Race falls are accepted as an occupational hazard by jockeys. Duggan has been involved in a few during her riding career but revealed the Scone incident was the “easiest to cope with” as she has virtually no recollection of the fall.

“All I can remember is catching the heels of another horse and from there I can’t remember anything,’’ Duggan said.

Duggan suffered more injuries than you care to mention in her Scone fall.

“I came around when I was in the ambulance for a short while and then I remember waking up again in the chopper.

“I thought I have to appreciate this, getting a ride in a helicopter, but the novelty wore off pretty quickly.’’

Duggan’s most concerning injury is her neck fracture and prompted her visit to Dr Andrew Cree, a prominent orthopaedic surgeon, at Westmead Hospital last Wednesday.

Dr Cree was well aware of Duggan’s plight. Remarkably, he is a part-owner of Steamboat Sally and was watching the Scone race when the incident occurred. What are the odds!

Duggan’s neck fracture is the same joint that Tye Angland broke in his Hong Kong fall nearly two years ago.

Duggan hit the turf after her mount, Steamboat Sally, fell heavily at Scone.

Angland, the former champion jockey, has been left a quadriplegic since the Hong Kong fall. He has regained some movement of his arms and upper body, and remains a source of inspiration to many with his positive, upbeat attitude.

In a compelling and revealing Sunday Telegraph interview with Hamish McLachlan last month, Angland recalled how he was conscious throughout his ordeal in Hong Kong.

“I remember everything — I remember it all,’’ Angland said.

“The horse I was on, Go Beauty Go, just stumbled out of the gates, nothing malicious or abnormal, but I just landed wrongly. It was a fall you’d walk away from 99 times out of 100.

“As I was heading to the ground, there were no bad thoughts. As you know, when you fall it all happens very quickly. He stumbled in a way that jerked me forward and speared me into the ground rather than allowing me to sort of roll, if that makes sense.

“(Wife) Erin and I had an understanding that whenever I had a fall, I’d raise my hand to let her know I was OK. I’d usually roll out of falls quite well. If I raised my hand, everything was OK. That was the one time I couldn’t.’’

Tye Angland with Hamish McLachlan during one of his roles with Seven Racing.

Duggan’s body was left broken, battered and bruised from her Scone fall but she realises how lucky she was to walk out of hospital last week without suffering more permanent injuries.

“It could have been a case where I ended up being a quadriplegic, or even worse,’’ she said.

“I’m feeling very lucky, I must admit. I’ve got a few broken bones but they will mend.’’

After Duggan was discharged from hospital, she had some explaining to do when she returned home and was greeted by her youngest children, Max (5) and Sebastian (3).

“My kids said ‘oh Mummy, you have fallen off the ‘horsey’,’’ Duggan said. “They think it is the same as when they fall off their pony.”

When I called Duggan late last week, she was her usual ebullient self which was surprising considering the extent of her injuries.

“I’ve just had a painkiller half an hour before you rang,’’ Duggan said.

But Duggan wasn’t joking when declaring she has no plans to retire despite her fall.

Duggan salutes at Rosehill Gardens last year.

She wants to complete her apprenticeship which was due to finish in August but is likely to be extended when she does return to race riding.

Duggan spent five years out of the saddle after giving birth and raising her young sons, Max and Sebastian, before making a successful comeback in 2018.

She will use that same sense of purpose and determination to overcome her Scone race fall injuries to eventually continue her riding career.

“The fall didn’t scare me at all,’’ she said. “I feel like I definitely want to ride again.

“Of course you are pushing your luck a bit riding racehorses but it’s like when you drive your car you might do everything right but another driver might come crashing into you.

“It wasn’t long ago when I had a fall and had a bad whiplash in my neck so I know how long it can take for the neck to come good. I’m not going to rush it, I’m just going to do all the right things.

“I feel I’m so lucky to be working in a job I’m so passionate about and that is riding horses. I’ve always felt like that and this fall isn’t going to stop me.’’