Following Orders

The recent form makes for interesting reading. A sixth and a fourth suggest a couple of quieter runs, but back-to-back second places followed by another second just one race ago shows a horse that has rediscovered its rhythm and is running as well as it ever has. It raced just yesterday, so this profile captures it right in the middle of a decent spell.

Tiernan Power Roche has been the regular partner throughout, riding Following Orders in six of its eight career races. They haven't clicked for a win yet — not once from six attempts together — but the trend in recent outings suggests they're getting closer rather than drifting further away. A jockey who keeps getting booked for the same horse is usually a jockey whose trainer believes the combination will eventually pay off.

That trainer is P J Rothwell, operating out of Tinahely in County Wicklow, and the yard is in fine form this season with 36 winners sent out. When a stable is firing like that, it tends to mean their horses are fit, well-managed, and pointed at the right races. Following Orders hasn't delivered a win yet, but it's sitting in the care of a yard that clearly knows how to get horses to the line first. Sooner or later, that second place habit has to turn into something more.