EIGHT lads walk into a bar and one of them says: “Do you fancy buying a racehorse?”
No, it’s not the start of a bad joke, but the extraordinary tale of a group of regular blokes from Darlington.
ITVFrom left, Kev, Baz, Jeff, Ste, Anth, Dog, Nick and Mike with Showtime Mahomes[/caption]
Grossick Racing PhotographyJockey Sam James rides Showtime, right, to victory at York, 2022[/caption]
ITVSyndicate member and taxi driver Jeff kisses winner Showtime[/caption]
And after a few pints, yes, they all decided to chip in for a bargain £8,000 beast — which has since won big and seriously changed their lives.
The group of friends, who called their venture The Muffed Punt Partnership, are now featuring in ITV1 documentary It’s Showtime! about their horse, Showtime Mahones.
But more than a story about horse racing, the programme is about how their bond as mates has helped them through some of the toughest times of their lives.
Talking in the doc, syndicate member Baz, a financial adviser, says: “We should have named ourselves the Band of Brothers, really.
“Our syndicate’s become a friendship group and a group of people who can get on and help each other.
“We’re a group of blokes who get on really well and we care for each other.
“So when there are some things we need to get off our chest, we can just be there for each other.
The lads bought their horse for £8,000 in 2020 after the get-together, led by civil servant Anth.
He says: “We’d all had a few drinks and I mentioned buying a horse. People like us, mates from a council estate, owning a horse, just doesn’t happen.
“It’s named after Patrick Mahomes, who plays quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs.
“We’re big NFL fans and that’s where the Muffed Punt Partnership comes from. A muffed punt in American football is when the ball’s punted and the receiver drops it.”
‘It makes the dark days more bearable’
Showtime Mahones started competitive racing in 2021, coming second in his first two races and winning his third. Then, in 2022, he won at York, widely considered to be “The Ascot of the North”.
Syndicate member and taxi driver Jeff said: “Some people buy a horse for half a million pounds and it won’t win, we’ve got a horse that cost us eight grand.
“We were just a set of lads from Darlo, working class and our horse won at York.”
The documentary follows Showtime Mahomes as the syndicate try to repeat the feat at York in 2023.
But the show is more about their personal struggles — and how their shared goal gave them a renewed sense of friendship, ambition and hope.
Accountant Mike needed all three in spades after his mother and wife both died of cancer within months of each other in 2020.
Fighting back tears, he said: “It’s three years since I lost the two most important women in my life. Just like that.
“My mum was diagnosed with breast cancer. They said basically you’d have her for months and then she was moved from hospital into a home. It was Covid, so we didn’t see her.
“My mum passed on April 7th. Before the funeral, Barbara, my wife, had been to the doctors about her throat. And basically he said, ‘I’m 99 per cent certain it’s cancer’.”
After being admitted to hospital, she was allowed back home, where she died after just 12 hours.
Some people buy a horse for half a million pounds and it won’t win, we’ve got a horse that cost us eight grand
Jeff
Mike continued: “My world ended. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think I’d be here, you know, because she was my world.
“Being part of the partnership and the success we’ve had with Showtime, it just makes the dark days more bearable.”
Grossick Racing PhotographyThe lads from Darlington celebrating their win at York in 2022[/caption]
Life can be a daily challenge for Anth, too. He and wife Kath have two sons, Jack and Charlie, who is severely autistic.
Anth says: “Last year was a hard year for me and our family and Showtime was something I always looked forward to.
“Charlie, my oldest son, is 14, he has autism. He’s got special needs, he is non-verbal.
“When Charlie’s on form, he’s beautiful, such a beautiful being. Different kind of human, I guess. He’s fantastic.
“But Charlie, last year, started getting ulcers in his mouth. His lips would swell up and he’d start to self-harm.
“So he used to do a lot of nipping and because of the pain he started to get aggressive towards us.
“We took Charlie to the hospital and I remember that night, got him back at home and he was just the same again. It’s like two o’clock in the morning, we had no one we could ask for help, you know?”
With tears rolling down his face, he says: “I just remember that’s probably the lowest point I’ve ever been in my whole life.
“I just sat there helpless, you know? As a man I thought, ‘I can’t help anyone here. I’m useless’.
“All blokes have got s**t going on in their lives, you know? And sometimes as a bloke you think, ‘Well, I don’t wanna put my s**t on them’.
‘The horse has been a bit of a godsend’
“But when you start talking as a bloke to other blokes about stuff, nine times out of ten they’ll say something back in terms of, ‘Oh yeah, I’ve got this going on’.
“And it makes you feel not alone. Everyone’s going through stuff. It’s just important to talk.”
The lads have also been a big support to fellow member Dog, who spent time in prison for dealing drugs in his youth.
He says: “It was possession with intent to supply. It was a long time ago. I was a lot younger and sort of naive and daft, but obviously got locked up when I got caught.
“You don’t realise the effect it has on other people, like my parents blaming themselves.
“And I thought, ‘It’s my fault. Don’t start questioning how you’ve brought me up. I’ve had a good upbringing’.
“But it’s the best thing that’s happened to us. And the horse has been a bit of a godsend.”
We were just a set of lads from Darlo, working class and our horse won at York
One scene in the documentary shows the lads combing the mane of a horse they are visiting as they sing it its favourite song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
Anth recalls: “Dog said to me afterwards, ‘I was in prison watching Elf on Christmas Day with a hitman, a drug dealer and a gangster’, and that was the most surreal moment of his life until that moment.”
Jeff, who is uncle to fellow syndicate member Ste, got involved as his family have a special bond with racing — and it has been a bittersweet experience.
He explains: “The first time I went to York, I went with my older brothers. They took us on the bus and then I got hooked.
“My brother Michael was like the pin of the family, basically. He kept us all together.
“Unfortunately, Michael died two years ago, before the horse won.
“How proud my brother would’ve been seeing our horse win at York. Unfortunately he wasn’t about, but I know for a fact he would’ve been happy for us because he was like my soulmate.
“Honestly, I was so proud to be his brother. And I know he would’ve been proud for me to sit here and talk about him because he loved racing.”
Ste adds: “Jeff’s my uncle and I know when he lost his brother, it hurt him. It hit him hard.
“And especially when you go to York, because that’s something that we always did together as a family. My dad, Jeff and his brother Mike.”
What owning their horse has done for the friends is summed up by Anth: “From being guys who just used to go, pay your fiver to get in and have a couple of pints, flutter a few quid on a few nags, to turning up as owners is a nice little special feel for us.
“But the impact this has had on me and the lads, the whole thing’s turned out to be so much more than just about the horse.”
It’s Showtime! is on ITV1 on Friday, April 16, at 9pm.
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