Renowned Hunter Chase trainer Joe O’Shea is set to continue training having initially stated he’s retiring, partly due to his heart issues. O’Shea landed a famous Cheltenham and Aintree double with Barton Snow. The nine-year-old is now unbeaten in nine hunter chases, but O’Shea believes he has one better in Boley Bob.
With a wealth of hunter chasing talent to look forward to this season, O’Shea is looking for one last push. He told the Racing Post: “How can I walk away? I can’t. The thought of Boley Bob and Barton Snow leaving me is killing me, even more than what my chest is.
“Once you leave me, it’s like leaving Old Trafford – you’re on your way down. I’m the best, in my opinion. I’ve got to believe in myself. The owners have been supportive and never questioned it – they knew I’d never walk away from it.”
O’Shea has already formulated plans for the 2026-27 season. “They’re all out in the field now and we’ll definitely be back on September 1. We’ve made a list and have 13 horses, and they’re all elite point-to-pointers. I could have had 33 horses as success breeds success. But we’ve got 13 stables and we’re keeping it as we are and I’m happy with that.”
Despite having two star horses that would get any trainer up with a smile in the morning,
O’Shea is adamant this will be his last season. “This coming season is 100 per cent going to be my last, and there will be no ifs or buts. I’ve been to the doctors and the consultant and, having worked 14 hours a day, seven days a week. I’ve got to stop.”
“There’s only one horse in the country who can make him take his coat off and that’s Boley Bob” – Joe O’Shea
Barton Snow’s RPR of 151 at Aintree was 5lbs higher than anything else in the race in the last ten years. Latenightpass posted 146 in 2022, and has produced strong efforts under rules. O’Shea has resisted the temptation to delve outside the hunter chase sphere.
“We’ll follow a similar route to last season, with the exception of running at Haydock. Which is a race I’ve won four times before. He’ll start in a point where there’s good ground in late November to December. Then probably go back to Ludlow again. Then it will be Haydock before Cheltenham and Aintree again.
“There’s only one horse in the country who can make him take his coat off and that’s Boley Bob. It’s the same owners and they’ve got the same plan, but maybe not Aintree as he’s still a bit young.
O’Shea was unable to add to his impressive hunter chase season later in the campaign. Drainage works at Cheltenham meant their hunter chase evening was cancelled. After that, the outbreak of equine flu meant the point-to-point season finale at Stratford was cancelled.