Australian rider Zac Purton's recent form - the icing on the cake being his Group Three feature race win on Able One last Sunday - has come as just reward for a season during which he must have wondered if doing the hard yards would ever pay off. The good news for anyone else is that, as tough as it is to get started, persistence will count for a jockey with the skill to belong in Hong Kong. Purton is finishing the season with a flurry, taking his opportunities and landing 12 winners from his past 100 rides since mid-March, despite losing momentum a couple of times due to suspensions. He has taken himself to 25 wins with another five meetings left. His season should probably be in a manual somewhere and highlighted as a guide to incoming jockeys. Yes, he did find the going tough early - which, sorry, is standard for just about anyone who arrives first time in Hong Kong racing. Purton arrived without the fanfare of a long list of big-race wins in Australia, but he is proving himself well up to the job and gaining in confidence and form - and in the quality of mounts he is attracting. It has been a good foundation season, finding acceptance now with a wide range of trainers and owners and setting him up with something to build on in 2008-09. Perhaps the difficulty of going back to the bottom of the pile and having to get started again in racing here is also one of the hidden blessings - when a rider like Purton eventually breaks through that invisible wall to become an accepted part of the roster, he knows it has all been well earned. Fast finisher Australian jockey is having a brilliant end to his first season The number of winners Zac Purton has landed this season: 25
