Gavoo

The recent form reads like a story of diminishing returns: a pair of sevenths, another seventh, a fifth, a second place, and then nothing recorded — Gavoo only raced a day ago, so whatever happened then hasn't made things better. That second-place finish shows the horse is still competitive enough to get close, but close doesn't pay out. The numbers add up to a 15 percent win rate (2 wins from 13), which means Gavoo wins roughly once every seven races. That is respectable without being anything special, but the real story is Luke McAteer. The jockey has won on Gavoo twice from eight rides together — a 25 percent win rate — suggesting there is something about McAteer's handling that suits this particular horse. The trainer David Marnane, based at Bansha in County Tipperary, has been having a productive season with 21 winners from his yard, so the infrastructure is there. What Gavoo needs now is a run that clicks, a race where everything aligns the way it did at Listowel and Dundalk. It has been a long time coming.