Cheeky Chesca

The most encouraging detail is buried in that run of six recent results. Read from oldest to newest, the sequence goes 5-2-2-3-7-7, which means she was running into the places consistently before two disappointing efforts at the end. That kind of dip is not unusual in a two-year-old — young horses can be unpredictable, and the gap between a solid second place and a mid-pack finish can come down to something as simple as the draw, the pace of the race, or just a bad day at the office. She raced just yesterday, so the yard will be watching closely to see how she comes out of it.

She is trained by Tim Easterby at Great Habton in North Yorkshire, and that is a genuinely reassuring place to have your name above the stable door. Easterby's yard has sent out 128 winners this season alone — a figure that puts them firmly among the most productive operations in the country. A trainer posting those kinds of numbers knows how to place a horse, which means when Cheeky Chesca does eventually get the conditions she suits, there is every reason to think the team will have her in the right race to take advantage of it.

She is still only two, and at this stage of a young horse's career, patience is everything. The places are there, the trainer is world-class, and the win column will catch up eventually.