Anthony Darmanin returns to the saddle after spine injury

Star Victorian-based jockey Anthony Darmanin is poised to make a return to riding in Tasmania following a track mishap that side-lined the multiple Tasmanian premiership-winning rider for almost five months.

Darmanin suffered a fracture to the T12 vertebrae as a result of a training track mishap in January.

Darmanin returns to the saddle in Hobart on Sunday after six weeks of riding trackwork for the Hayes stable in Melbourne.

“It’s been a long, hard road to get back, but I’m ready and raring to go in Hobart this week,” Darmanin said from Melbourne.

“When the injury was first diagnosed, we weren’t sure how long it (damaged disc) would take to heal.”

Darmanin said the incident was freakish and came out of the blue.

“There was a loose horse on the big track that had suffered a colic attack while my horse was working on the inside sand track.

“The loose horse was trying to get up and kicked the running rail, which spooked my horse, causing it to whip around really quickly, and I came off.

“I landed on my back, and that caused the T12 vertebrae to rupture in the middle of my back.”

Darmanin was in a back brace for the first six weeks, but he said there was surprisingly “not a lot of pain involved”.

“The brace was to limit mobility, and I didn’t experience too much discomfort while recuperating.

“There is usually quite a bit of pain in the limbs when you resume riding trackwork from an injury like mine, but surprisingly there was only a bit of pain for the first two days, and that was it.

“I’ve been back riding work for nearly six weeks, and I’ve been working on my fitness, so I’ll take up to five rides at my first meeting back, if I can get that many, and we’ll go from there.”

Darmanin was again battling it out for another jockeys’ premiership prior to the fall with 28 winners but with some key rides in feature races during the Tasmanian Summer Racing Festival.

“The fall could not have come at a worse time for me, given it was near the start of the Tassie carnival, and I had some plum rides in feature races.”

Erica Byrne Burke took full advantage of Darmanin’s absence, and she is now a shoo-in to take out the premiership with 76 winners to be 26 clear of star apprentice Jabez Johnstone, who has just embarked on a three-month stint on loan to leading Victorian trainer Ciaron Maher.

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