Sadies Diamond

The recent form makes for interesting reading. In the last six races, Sadies Diamond has finished third twice, suggesting it is running well enough to be competitive without finding that extra gear when it matters. The pair of eighth-place finishes in there show the inconsistency that tends to define a horse at this level — capable of threatening on a good day, disappointing on others. It raced just yesterday, so this is very much a horse in active training and clearly being kept busy.

Most of those races have come at Class 5, which is the entry-level tier of British racing — the kind of races where the prize money is modest and the competition is generally made up of horses that have either never won or struggle to win consistently. Even at that level, Sadies Diamond has not been able to convert, going winless in all five Class 5 appearances.

The partnership with Mr Paddy Hanlon is the most-used combination in the horse's career, and eight races together without a win tells its own story. That is a significant chunk of the career record, and while placing runners is never a bad thing, the team at John Joseph Hanlon's yard in Bagenalstown will know a win is long overdue. To the yard's credit, they have sent out 11 winners this season, so the operation clearly knows how to get horses winning — Sadies Diamond just hasn't been one of them yet.