In The Trenches

What makes the recent form slightly more interesting is that the horse has shown signs of life. Back in the fifth and sixth most recent runs, In The Trenches finished second twice — close enough to smell victory, but not close enough to taste it. Since then, though, it has slipped backwards, and the last three runs have produced nothing at all to write home about, with an eighth place the only figure worth mentioning. Raced just yesterday, this is a horse that is very much in the thick of things right now.

Jockey Keith Donoghue has partnered the horse more than anyone else, taking the ride in 11 of those 32 races together, and the pair have yet to win once as a combination. That is a long partnership to build without a shared success. Trainer Gavin Cromwell, based at Navan in County Meath, has had a strong season by any measure — 97 winners sent out from his yard this term, which tells you this is a well-run operation capable of winning races. The talent is clearly in the yard. In The Trenches just has not been able to tap into it.

Competing mainly at Class 4 level — the kind of races designed to give horses like this a realistic shot — the horse has gone 0 from 4 at that level, which underlines the frustration around it. These are not the grandest stages in British or Irish racing. And yet, those two recent second-place finishes are a reminder that there is something there. Whether In The Trenches can finally convert that into a win is the question that keeps the team coming back. Thirty-two races is a long time to wait. But someone has to be first — and given how active this horse is right now, the opportunity to find out is never far away.