Phantom Shadow

What gives that Ayr win real meaning is the trainer behind it. Ewan Whillans operates out of Hawick in the Scottish Borders, which is not one of the game's glamour addresses, and yet his yard has sent out 28 winners already this season — a remarkable output for a smaller, regional operation. Getting a horse to click at the right moment is very much what Whillans does, and Phantom Shadow's breakthrough looks like exactly that kind of patient, considered training job. Ayr is the premier track in Scotland, so winning there is no small thing for a yard based just up the road.

With only nine races on the clock and that win still less than 48 hours old, Phantom Shadow is very much a horse in motion. The recent run of form — a fifth and an eighth sandwiched around placings — suggests she is not entirely straightforward, but the win proves the ability is there when everything clicks. At three years old, there is still plenty of time to build on it.