Crokes Cross

Trained by Stuart Coltherd out of Selkirk in Roxburghshire, Crooks Cross is part of a small Scottish yard that has sent out 1 winner this season. Coltherd operates in that part of the world where resources are tight and every winner genuinely matters, which makes that Kelso result feel earned rather than routine. The horse raced just yesterday, so it is right in the thick of its current campaign, and the yard will be hoping that winning habit is still fresh in its legs.

The recent form reads a little unevenly — a win, then a sixth, then a seventh in the runs before that — but the most recent outing is what counts, and a winner just three months ago tells you this is a horse still capable of getting the job done. At 7 years old it is at a settled, experienced age, old enough to know what racing asks of it, without being over the hill.