National Hunt trainer Rose Dobbin, of South Hazlerigg, announces she is stepping away from the sport

The yard opened as a racing stable for the 2008/9 National Hunt season and has turned out almost 200 winners.

The best season was 2017/18 with 25 winners. Some of Rose’s biggest victories include: Jonniesofa taking the Albert Bartlett Hurdle at Haydock in 2016, Rocking Blues winning the Eider Chase at Newcastle the same year and Bigirononhiship lifting the Scottish Borders National for her parents, Mr and Mrs Duncan Davidson, at Kelso in 2019.

South Hazelrigg had been converted from farm buildings owned by Mr Davidson into state-of-the-art racing stables, including all-weather gallops, swimming pool, indoor ride areas and outside gallops. The yard could accommodate about 50 horses.

Rose explained her decision to step away and said: “I feel the time is right now to have something different in my life.

“It has been a tough season in 2023/24 for various reasons and I also need to spend more time with my young children.

“Also, on the financial side, it is just not adding up and we have not had as many horses as previous years.”

She continued: “I must pay tribute to my former husband Tony (Dobbin) – I could not have achieved what we have done without him. Even though we are separated, ‘Dobbs’ and I still work together at the yard and make decisions on our horses and races together. His knowledge is invaluable.

“Also, my staff here are great and I feel for them, too. They love the horses and it will be a huge void, and that goes for my head lads, previously Roy Barrett and now Neil Leach, who has been here 10 years. Racing is in their blood.”

“I am hoping the yard will be leased out to another trainer and, who knows, I might even ride out for whoever comes in plus helping my sister manage my father’s estate.”

This season has seen Rose lose a lot of her top horses, with two dying of heart attacks, one picking up a fatal injury in the gallops, plus retirements due to injury for three progressing horses, and previous winners retiring.