Emerald Reine

That said, she only raced for the first time very recently and was back in action just yesterday, so the team are clearly giving her every chance to find her feet. At three years old, some horses take time to work out what is being asked of them, and the fact she is still running regularly suggests the yard have not given up on her development.

She is trained by Julia and Shelley Birkett, a mother-and-daughter partnership based in Newmarket — the heartland of British flat racing, where the best horses in the country are prepared. The Birketts have sent out 15 winners this season, which tells you this is a yard that knows how to get a horse ready to win. The question is simply whether Emerald Reine can give them the opportunity to do the same for her.