Lilannbee

Look at the recent form figures — 6-6-1-2-5-6 — and the story they tell is one of a horse who found her moment and has been trying to find it again ever since. That "1" in the middle of the sequence was the Punchestown win, bookended either side by finishes at the back of the field. She did manage a runner-up finish shortly after, which suggested the win hadn't been a fluke, but the two most recent outings have both ended in sixth place. For a horse racing as recently as yesterday, the concern is that the good form feels like it belongs to a different chapter.

She is trained by S G Carey out of Kilcullen in County Kildare, a yard that has sent out 7 winners this season — a solid enough tally that suggests Carey knows how to have a horse ready to win. The question for Lilannbee is whether the yard can find the right opportunity to bring that Punchestown spark back to the surface. She has shown she can win, and she has shown she can place — the ingredients are there. Whether she can put them together again more consistently is what makes her next few races worth watching.