Lily Grace

What makes the situation a little more encouraging is the yard she calls home. Trainer Venetia Williams, based at Kings Caple in Herefordshire, has sent out 16 winners already this season, which shows this is a team that knows how to get horses ready to win. Williams has a strong reputation, particularly with jumping horses, so Lily Grace is at least in capable hands. Whether the training operation can unlock something in this horse remains to be seen.

At Class 4 level — the middle tier of the sport, where horses of a similar ability tend to meet — Lily Grace has managed zero wins from three attempts. That tells you she is not comfortably outclassing her rivals at that level, which is where you would hope a horse would be picking up results. She last raced just 20 days ago, so the yard are clearly still searching for the right opportunity. At eight years old, time is not entirely on her side, but horses have surprised their fans before.