Queen Of Astolat

Her recent form tells a story of inconsistency. In her last six races, she has finished in the frame twice — a third place and a seventh — but also picked up a couple of well-beaten runs, including an eleventh. That scatter of results is typical of a young horse still finding her way at this level, learning what works and what doesn't as she gains experience. The fact that she raced just a day ago shows she is being kept busy and active, which at least suggests her trainer believes there is improvement ahead.

Denis Gerard Hogan, who trains her at Cloughjordan in County Tipperary, has a yard firing on all cylinders this season with 54 winners already on the board. That kind of form speaks volumes about the quality of the operation — it is a place where horses are trained to win. The challenge for Queen Of Astolat now is to convert those placing finishes into victories. She may not have broken through yet, but she is running in a yard that knows how to get horses to the line, and at only three years old she still has time and plenty of races ahead of her.