Le Fanu

The raw numbers tell a patient story: one win and three places from 18 races, a win rate of just 6% — roughly 1 in every 17 outings. For most of that career the horse has been consistent enough to be placed but just not quite able to get to the front when it mattered. The recent run of form tells a more encouraging tale though, with a third place followed by two fifth-place finishes before that breakthrough victory arrived. At 10, many horses are winding down, which makes the timing of this win all the more striking.

Based at Doneraile in Co Cork, Le Fanu is trained by Brendan Maurice Walsh, whose yard has sent out three winners this season — and Le Fanu accounts for one of them. That is a meaningful contribution from a horse whose career had, until very recently, suggested the winning column might never come. Walsh will know better than most what it means to get a result like this from a horse that has kept trying for so long.

Le Fanu raced again just yesterday, which tells you this is a yard keeping momentum going while the horse is in form. Whether that Listowel win signals a late-career purple patch or simply a cherished one-off, the most interesting chapter of this horse's story has only just been written.