Nicholls talks about the devastation following Kirkby's death and reveals the jockey's last words

EMOTIONAL Paul Nicholls has revealed the devastation of Ditcheat following the tragic loss of stable boy Keagan Kirkby.

Keagan died on Sunday after falling while riding a point-to-point stage in Kent.

2

The hugely popular 25-year-old was a key part of Nicholls' all-conquering team at Ditcheat.

The 14-time champion trainer has revealed the tragedy was the hardest thing he has ever had to deal with.

Harry Cobden, also 25, looked skyward as he entered the winners' box after a rousing win over Fire Flyer at Taunton yesterday. He dug deep to grab Secret Squirrel by the neck.

Cobden said: “I would like to say a special word for Keagan Kirkby. He rode that horse every day, so that was for him. He deserved that.”

Nicholls said: “He rode Afadil every day and the last thing he said to me on Friday morning was boss, this will win tomorrow and he was right.

'He rode Fire Flyer every day and Blueking D'Oroux every day.

“He was passionate about his horses and his work. He was basically passionate about everything. He was a sweet boy.

'He was one of the genuine people in life and you wouldn't meet a nicer man. I know everyone always says things like that afterwards, but he was such a nice guy that he would do anything for you.

“He worked hard and had a very good heart.

“It's sad and accidents happen, but he was so enthusiastic about competing in point-to-point races. It's incredibly sad for his family and the whole team here.

“It was the hardest thing I've had to deal with in my career. It was half an hour before the last race in Musselburgh and I told my fate not to tell Harry who should drive.

'It wasn't about the news that Keagan had had an accident, it was about Keagan falling and he's dead.

“We had all the things happening with Hermes Allen the day before. People say they're just animals, but to us they're not, but that pales in comparison to what happened to Keagan.

'The only good thing that has happened to us in the last few days is that the boys are getting Caldwell Potter.

“I know if Keagan was still there he would have been excited to see him. He probably would have been the first to say I would boss him around.

“I've never had to deal with anything like this before and I've always been afraid of it. It was so hard to come to terms with it and the staff on Monday were all shocked.

“I had them all in the office and Clifford Baker and I had them all in the office and we had a chat with them.

“They were all absolutely devastated and crying their eyes out. Hopefully we can all support each other and get through this together.

“Fire Flyer was our first winner since this happened.

“It was poetic justice in many ways and we were able to dedicate that winner to him, and his owner, Mr Geoghegan, donated his prize money to the fund they are raising for his funeral.”

Fire Flyer owner Michael Geoghegan donated his winnings from the race to a JustGiving page set up in Kirkby's honour.

The fund was set up to support Kirkby's young family in paying for his funeral and had raised almost £30,000 last night.

Jockeys took part in a minute's silence before racing and wore black armbands all day.