James Henry

The numbers tell a story of honest, consistent effort rather than headline-grabbing brilliance. From 35 races, James Henry has won twice and placed 14 times — that is a win rate of around 1 in every 17 races, but the 14 places show a horse that competes hard and finishes in the money far more often than it wins. Over a career like that, you earn your keep. On normal ground, which he clearly prefers, the record improves to 2 wins from 17 races, or roughly 1 in every 8, which suggests conditions matter more than the yard might sometimes like.

The partnership with jockey Scott McCullagh is worth noting. In seven races together, McCullagh has been aboard for both wins — a success rate of 29%, or nearly 1 in every 3 rides. That is a significant number for any jockey-horse combination, and it suggests the two have built something of an understanding. McCarthy's yard has been in decent form this season, sending out 15 winners, so the operation is ticking along.

The awkward part of the story is that James Henry has not won in his last six races, and those results — finishing 7th, 8th, 3rd, 3rd, 13th, and 10th most recently — suggest he is finding it harder to land the race he needs. His last win was 30 months ago, which is a long time for a seven-year-old. He raced just yesterday, so he is clearly still active and still being campaigned with purpose. Whether Dundalk can unlock another win for him remains to be seen, but if it happens anywhere, history says it will be there.