Celtic Spirit

That said, the recent form shows signs of life. A second-place finish sitting in the sequence suggests Celtic Spirit can mix it with its rivals on the right day, and with a race as recently as yesterday, this is a horse very much in active work and being tested. The current form figures of 5-2-14-5-5-4 are a mixed picture — there's a 14 buried in there which represents a rough outing, but the surrounding efforts at fifth and fourth show a horse that is generally competitive without being exceptional.

Karen Jewell trains Celtic Spirit from her yard in Borden, Kent, a relatively small operation that has sent out three winners this season. That's a modest tally, but it shows the team is capable of getting horses to win, and Celtic Spirit will be hoping to be next on that list. At Class 5 level — the entry-level tier of British racing — the horse has had three attempts without success, which at some point raises the question of whether conditions or race selection need to change to unlock a first victory.

At 4 years old, Celtic Spirit is still relatively young and has time on its side. Some horses simply take a little longer to put it all together, and with racing experience now banked across six outings, the hope for the Jewell yard will be that familiarity eventually breeds confidence. The first win, when it comes, will have been well earned.