Rosehill trainer Allan Denham has announced his retirement from training after forty-one years in the industry.

Denham’s life has been racing with his father Jack being a household name in Sydney for most of the latter half of the 1900s.

Denham began his career as an outstanding apprentice before becoming foreman for his father and eventually taking out a trainer’s licence in 1990.

“I’ve been going 41 years straight and I need a spell,” Denham said.

“I’ve travelled a lot of mileage.”

“There’s no real time to do it but I just put a date on it, told all my owners, my staff. Naturally it’s sad but it has to happen.”

The 1980’s were a boon period for the Denhams, having success at all the major carnivals especially with the great Might And Power, Filante, Triscay, Yippyio, Iglesia and Shovhog.

Might And Power was the flagbearer of the Denham stable winning the 1997 Caulfield-Melbourne Cups double as well as the 1998 Cox Plate.

Other Group 1 winners to come out of the Denham stable were Eremein, Spark Of Life and Heavenly Glow.

Melbourne racing commentator and syndicator Shelly Hancox  was a great supporter of Denham, placing many of her horses in his stable to be trained.

“Allan’s a top class trainer, super well organised, a great judge of a horse and ultra-honest,” Hancox said.

Denham said that unbeaten two year old Ichihara will be his last city runner in the coming weeks and his old stager Eremein will make his last racetrack appearance when he parades on Golden Slipper day.

“Ichihara will probably be my last runner and Eremein is coming down to parade on Golden Slipper day,” he said.

“All the horses have found homes and all the owners are pretty happy so I’ve got no problems.”