Larkins Lane

The recent form tells an interesting story. Reading the last six runs from most recent backwards — a win, a fall or unseated rider, then finishes of eighth, fifth, fourth, and thirteenth — you can see a horse that has been inconsistent but was clearly building towards something. That fourth and fifth place suggest Larkins Lane was getting competitive, and the win at Limerick this week was the reward for that improvement. The blank run in between (the dash in the form figures) adds a note of caution, as it suggests the horse did not complete the course on one occasion, but horses can bounce back from those days, and Larkins Lane clearly has.

Behind the horse is the yard of P J Rothwell, based in Tinahely, County Wicklow. With 35 winners sent out already this season, this is a stable in fine form — so when they take a horse to Limerick and it wins, it is worth paying attention. A trainer operating at that level knows when a horse is ready, and Larkins Lane's win this week suggests Rothwell has found the right conditions to get the best from a horse that has taken patience to place correctly. For a horse that has been around the track eleven times without winning, finally getting that breakthrough — and doing it for a yard firing on all cylinders — makes it one of the more satisfying results of the week.