John O'Shea is planning to reunite with banned jockey James McDonald
Former Godolphin trainer John O’Shea is planning to reunite with banned jockey James McDonald once the Kiwi serves an 18-month suspension.
McDonald will be eligible to return to the track in mid-May after being disqualified for placing a $1000 bet on a horse he was riding in 2015.
He has failed twice to have the length of the ban reduced, with a third appeal currently before the Supreme Court.
But O’Shea, who this week confirmed a return to public training at Randwick, said he would again make the 25-year-old his No. 1 jockey.
“My goal is to have a stable strong enough that warrants James and keeps him busy on his return,” O’Shea told Sky Sports Radio.
“One of the things that inspired me the most was to make sure I could look after him the best i could and provide him with a significant amount of horses to keep him busy.”
O’Shea resigned as Godolphin’s head trainer in April after three years to spend more time with family.
“I’ve got a young daughter. I’ve never seen her play sport,” he said.
“Since I’ve been out, I’ve been to all her soccer matches and for me you can’t get that back.
“(My) three other boys, to go to all of their games every Saturday since I’ve been out is something I cherish.”
O’Shea said he would ideally have had more time off but the opportunity of some 40 boxes at Randwick was too good to knock back.
The trainer also gave a tick of approval to James Cummings who replaces him at Godolphin but said he wouldn’t be passing on any advice.
“He needs to go in with an open mind and work it out himself,” he said.
