Lily Grace

Her recent form tells a story of a horse that has struggled to make any impression. In her last six races she has finished 12th, 13th, 5th, 5th, 5th, and 10th — with those three fifth-place finishes offering a faint suggestion that she can at least get into the mix on a good day, even if getting to the front has remained beyond her. She raced just yesterday, so she is clearly an active and well-enough horse to keep competing.

Charlie Deutsch, one of the more experienced jump jockeys around, has partnered her five times without managing to find the winning formula — 0 from 5 together is a run that raises questions about whether horse and rider have simply never clicked, or whether the results are a fair reflection of what Lily Grace is capable of. She typically runs in Class 4 races, which sit in the middle tier of British racing — not the glamour events, but competitive enough that you need to bring something to the table.

Her trainer, Venetia Williams, is no stranger to getting results. The yard at Kings Caple in Herefordshire has sent out 16 winners already this season, which shows there is plenty of talent on the books. With that kind of firepower available, keeping Lily Grace in training at eight years old says something — either the team believe a win is still in her somewhere, or she simply keeps doing enough in her day-to-day work to earn her place. Either way, the clock is ticking, and for a horse of her age, the opportunities to finally get off the mark are only going to get fewer.