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By Ray Hickson

Jessica Drury is determined that her career as a jockey isn’t defined by the injuries she’s had to overcome to still be riding 17 years after her debut.

It’s a staggering statistic that the 35-year-old’s last 50 rides stretch back to 2015 and her previous comeback lasted all of eight race rides.

But it hasn’t just been a battle with bad luck and injury, it’s been a battle of the mind.

Drury, who began her latest comeback at the end of January following an ankle injury that cost her another year, celebrated a breakthrough winner recently that was her first in six years and a timely boost to tell her it’s all been worth it.

Jessica Drury is starting to see results of the hard work she's put in to come back to race riding. (Pic: Steve Hart).

Let’s head into the dark with Jess before we let the light shine.

Back in 2017 she sustained multiple injuries, one of which required a reconstruction of her hand and an 18 month recovery due to surgeries needing to be staggered, and she started to think it was all too hard. Worse than too hard.

She wouldn’t return to race riding until 2023.

“In that 18 months, to be really honest, I went into deep depression,” Drury said.

“I was finding it hard to understand why I was having these setbacks.

“It was hard not to think - ‘was this a sign, should I give it away, am I doing something wrong’. I went down a bad path, life got quite dark for a long time and it dragged out into six years.

“It took a while to get back on track and find my self worth and motivation. I continued to renew my license every year because I always knew I was coming back.

“I wasn’t going to let injury end my career and I never really got to ride to my full potential outside my apprenticeship.

“It was a matter of getting myself in a good place.”

Drury is very happy to say things have changed and she says they may not have had it not been for a strong support network around her as she worked her way out of the dark.

Fortunately ‘friends and family’ can encapsulate a number of people.

She’s particularly grateful to her management team including Steve Hart and Scott Wheeler, trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott whom she’s worked for over the past four years, well known physical trainer Trent Langlands, plus Tim Martin and Terry Wicks.

“The support I’ve had around me, I wouldn’t be here at all if it wasn’t for those people,’’ she said.

“I don’t think any of them will really understand how much they’ve helped me.

“My career has basically been injury plagued, I haven’t ridden a full season since 2012.

“Every time I’ve come back I’ve said this is the last time – I’m not as young, I’ve got plates and screws in a lot of my limbs, my next injury will see me out but I didn’t come back for eight rides and I’ve got to go again.”

It’s been a busy week for Drury with travelling many hours to race meetings to take a couple of rides but she understands it’s part of the comeback.

She needs to get her name out there in an environment she says has changed greatly with a large number of riders, including plenty of female apprentices, she’s competing for rides with.

“Having been out for so long it’s going to be a slow, hard, process and I’m having to work very hard to try and find that support,’’ she said.

“I had my first race ride in January 2008, I was 18, and I was one of three girls in country NSW. Our jockey rooms were like the janitor’s closet.

“Now coming back I have no claim to offer, I’ve been out of the game for a while, and there are so many jockeys.”

April 19 will be a day Drury won’t forget, it was the day she’d been waiting for but the result nobody expected.

A $26 chance called Frenchburg – trained by Terry Wicks - gave her a dream ride, won like an even money shot at Port Macquarie, and lifted the doubt that had been quietly building.

Jess Drury wins on Frenchburg at Port Macquarie (Pic: Trackside).

“It was the last thing I was expecting and honestly I was starting to think ‘am I kidding myself, am I too old’,’’ she said.

“It’s hard when the results aren’t coming and I’m putting in so much hard work.

“The winner couldn’t have come soon enough but it’s not the be all and end all. I’m going to have to keep slogging it out. I’ve realised when I get in a bit of a ‘poor me’ mindset I’m not the only hard luck story.

“I lost a few people on the way and I just wish I had got my act together before and some of those people saw me come back.

“I need to back myself and get into a rhythm and that winner helped my confidence.”

With her fitness improving and confidence growing, Drury has a good feeling about this comeback and says if and when retirement happens she wants it to be her call.

“I’ve been riding racehorses for close to 20 years, I’ve had a lot of injuries and I definitely don’t bounce like I used to,’’ she said.

“It is a worry that if I get another significant injury will I have to submit but I’m a lot wiser, I eat better and look after myself a lot better.

“Touch wood, there’s going to be no injury significant enough to end before I’m ready.

“It might be a flop and I might still be struggling in 12 months time and if that’s the case I’ll happily hang my boots up and that’ll be on my own terms.”

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