Pozman primed to extend purple patch after interstate adventure

Rising starlet Emily Pozman believes that her trip to Brisbane to represent Victoria in the National Apprentice Race Series (NARS) might have been the catalyst for the purple patch of form she has struck in recent weeks.

Pozman collected seven winners and 10 minor placings in the 20-day period after a confidence-boosting interstate adventure which saw her ride for multiple Group 1-winning trainer Rob Heathcote and Michael Freedman, who has no fewer than five Melbourne Cup (3200m) victories on his CV.

While Pozman, who is indentured to Peter Moody and Kath Coleman, was ultimately unable to score maximum points for her home state in the apprentice-only series, she came out of the Eagle Farm meeting with plenty of credit after finishing third on Busker for local trainer Heathcote and fourth on the Freedman-trained runner Rewrite.

It was only Pozman’s second taste of competitive action outside Victoria, and the 27-year-old believes the experience will hold her in good stead as she seeks to capitalise on her most successful season in the saddle to date.

“It was great fun and a great experience,” she said.

“I flew up the morning of the races and had one of the apprentice coaches, Matt Pumpa, travel up there with me. We got to walk the course with the other apprentices before the first, it was great to meet some new people and share the jockeys’ room with some really talented female jockeys riding in Brisbane. Cejay Graham is lovely so it was nice to catch up with her, and I also got to meet Ange Jones who is absolutely flying up there.

“I’d obviously never ridden for Rob [Heathcote] or Michael [Freedman] before and I’d never ridden in Brisbane before, so it was a completely new experience for me and one I really enjoyed. It was nice to make some new connections because you never know when they might come in handy, if Rob or Michael send their horses to Melbourne in future then I’ll obviously be putting my hand up for the ride!”

As well as furthering her riding education, the opportunity also arose to socialise with her fellow apprentices and share notes with the likes of Emily Lang, who finished second behind Ange Jones in the Queensland metropolitan jockeys’ premiership last season.

“We went out for dinner after the races, so it was really nice to catch up with some of the other apprentices away from the track,” said Pozman.

“The following week some of the apprentices taking part in the series came down to Sandown to ride in the NARS heats there, Emily Lang represented Queensland so it was good to catch up with her again. Racing is like one big family really, you’ve usually got friends or horses in common with your fellow riders so even though I hadn’t met most of the jockeys before, we had plenty in common.

“We all want to beat one another on the track, but once the races have finished it’s nice for everyone to get together and put the rivalries to one side. Jockeys live a fairly unique lifestyle, so it’s great to be around other people who understand what it takes and have shared experiences. We all want the best for one another so there’s good camaraderie in the jockeys’ room.”

As for what she will take from the experience moving forward, Pozman is acutely aware that the elite jockeys are prepared travel far and wide in search of success, and it is a blueprint she is now better equipped to follow.

“It was great to get out of my comfort zone and test myself in another racing jurisdiction,” she said.

“I had ridden in South Australia before but never in Queensland, so it was all new to me and I’ll definitely take a lot from the experience. It was all really well organised for us but you have to take the initiative yourself and try to make some new connections, which you might then be able to use in the future.

“The next time I travel interstate, I’ll feel much more comfortable having ridden well in the NARS races and proved that I’m more than capable of holding my own against some really talented young riders.”