Ethereal Star

The recent form makes for tough reading. Looking at the last six outings, Ethereal Star has finished 11th, pulled up or unseated twice, ninth, and 12th, with a third place offering the one glimmer of encouragement in there. That third is worth noting — it shows the ability is somewhere in there — but the pattern overall is one of a horse that is finding life difficult at the moment.

Trained by Martin Hassett out of Burnchurch in County Tipperary, Ethereal Star is at least in a yard that knows how to get winners. Hassett's team has sent out 10 winners already this season, so the operation is clearly functioning well. That the horse hasn't converted reflects either that it needs a specific set of circumstances to show its best, or that it's simply working through a frustrating patch. Crucially, Ethereal Star raced just yesterday, so this is a horse very much in active campaign — whatever the plan is, Hassett is keeping it busy.

For a casual observer, the honest summary is this: Ethereal Star is a 4-year-old who has had every chance to win but hasn't taken one yet. Ten races is a reasonable sample — this isn't a horse who just needs more experience. What it needs is a race it can win. Whether Hassett finds that spot remains to be seen, but with a yard in good form and the horse running regularly, the answer, one way or another, shouldn't be too far away.