1954 Grand National: Results, Runners & Fallers

Two familiar names would return to the winner’s enclosure for the second time in two years when Vincent O’Brien and Bryan Marshall teamed up to win the Grand National in 1954.

Hot on the heels of their success in 1953, the pair this time teamed up to win the race with Royal Tan, a fancied 8/1 shot who had previously shown a liking for this challenge.

The horse was second as a youngster in the race in 1951 and then fell near the finish in 1952. It was third time lucky, but only just, with the winning distance officially a neck, over Tudor Line, who finished second.

Race favourite Irish Lizard was third, and the first three home were three of the top four in the betting, a race that firmly went the way of punters rather than being with the bookmakers.

Two in Two Years for O’Brien and Marshall

Vincent O’Brien was quickly making a name for himself as a leading national hunt trainer, and in years to come, he would go on to be one of the all time greats under both codes.

But this win was one that really helped propel him forward, 12 months after taking his first Grand National with Early Mist, he would be back for more. From three runners in 1954, he had the winner and fourth-placed horse, Royal Tan was definitely his most fancied, with Bryan Marshall on board.

As for jockey Marshall, five failed Grand National attempts came before winning the 1953 race on Early Mist, but he didn’t wait long to make it two wins 12 months later, this time on Royal Tan.

Smallest Field Since 1935

Just 29 horses went to post for the Grand National this year, and it was undoubtedly a much-talked-about point before the race. This would be the smallest field since 1935 when only 27 would run in the race.

There was much discussion at this time about the need for modifications, and these would grow even stronger after the 1954 race due to the fatalities, but the number of fatalities was enough to make people think twice about entering runners.

Not for winning trainer O’Brien, though, who, with three entries, had more than 10% of the field himself in his quest to win again.

Four Fatalities Lead to Race Modifications

As mentioned, we sadly saw fatalities in this running of the Grand National, and the number was four, which, to this day, is the most to have ever been fatally injured in any running of the Grand National.

Dominick’s Bar would suffer at the second fence and then Paris New York at the fourth. Legal Joy would go down at the 13^th, and lastly, Coneyburrow would be injured at the 28^th fence.

The last two, in particular, are worth noting, they are the only two fatalities to have ever happened at fences 13 and 28 in the race, not a place where we see too much happening.

Talks around the safety of the race had grown in recent years, and the four fatalities really accelerated those talks, with changes made to the race in time for the following year.

Ahead of the 1955 race, several fences were changed to reduce the severity of them, which included making some fences smaller and changes to both the landing areas and take off areas at some fences.

The race has undergone many changes over the years, but the 1954 race, in particular, will always be remembered as a race that forced the team that ran Aintree Racecourse and the Grand National to undergo many changes.

Results

Non Finishers