David Thiselton

KZN’s reigning champion trainer Gareth van Zyl has announced the rider for his Hollywoodbets Durban July contender King Pelles and it will add further international flavour to the big race.

Chad Schofield will join his cousin Zac Lloyd as a rider in the big race with Zac having been announced earlier this week as the rider for the Justin Snaith-trained Happy Verse.

One factor which will give him an advantage over Zac is he has ridden in the July before, partnering The Conglomerate in 2015 and finding himself stuck behind a wall of horses when trying to find a path down the outside.

He will have that in mind when planning his race this time.

Both jockeys are the sons of world class former Durbanite jockeys who married the daughters of former trainer Aubrey Roberts.

Chad is the son of Glyn Schofield, while Zac is the son of the legendary Jeff Lloyd.

Glyn was not considered a top echelon jockey until the early years of this millennium when returning from overseas, which included a stint riding in Hong Kong.

It soon became apparent he was outriding everybody in the country with his fine hands and quite incredible judgement of pace and he not became one of the most sort after jockeys in South Africa but went on to become, like Jeff, a highly sort after jockey in Australia, where he rode 18 Gr 1 winners.

Chad rose to prominence fter winning Australia’s greatest weight for age race, the Cox Plate, in 2013 on maiden Shamus Award.

He then followed in his father’s foootsteps by riding in Hong Kong where he had 208 wins in a seven year stint.

He continued to be a sort after jockey when returning to Australia and has had nine Gr 1 wins in his career.

Gareth was left without a jockey when Gavin Lerena jumped ship from King Pelles on to Minogue, but this paved the way for further international presence in the big race.