| Director | Basil Dearden |
|---|---|
| Genre | drama film, sport film |
| Runtime | 99 min |
| Country | United Kingdom |
A champion jockey, having forfeited his own career by taking a bribe, takes a young rider under his wing.
At a racetrack meeting banned former jockey Sam is checking the perimeter for illicit means of entry and a cheeky young boy, Georgie, shows him how to get in. Georgie show a penchant for horse riding and is befriended by Sam who encourages him to train as a jockey.
He is placed in the stables of Lord Logan at Newmarket. He shows much promise and Sam bets £100 on him to win. Georgie is impressive but a photo finish shows he comes second. On his second race his mother steals £50 from her employer's safe and bets it on him to win. He comes first but a stewards’ inquiry wrongly disqualifies him and his mother loses the money.
On the third race and for his mother’s sake, Sam persuades Georgie to take a fall to throw the race but when Sam visits in the first aid area their connection is exposed. Sam faces another ban but Georgie’s staunch defence of his character to the stewards eventually leads to Sam having his license renewed.
But in the final classic of the season, the St Leger, the two are neck and neck and Sam clearly whips Georgie’s horse to urge it on and to win. He does this because he has realized that Georgie was trying to throw the race to avoid implicating Sam in the throwing of the early third race. Georgie felt he had no choice as he was being threatened by Sam's bookmaker, but Sam doesn't want Georgie to ruin his career.
Sam’s actions of course mean he is finally banned from racing and after a final piece of illicit betting he retires to live with Georgie’s widowed mother, with the intention to buy his friend's sandwich van.