Saint Etienne

What works in Saint Etienne's favour is the company it keeps. The horse is trained by Brian Ellison at his yard in Norton, North Yorkshire, and Ellison's operation is in fine form — 43 winners sent out already this season, which is the kind of output that marks a yard firing on all cylinders. Good training does not guarantee results for every horse in a string, but it does mean Saint Etienne is being prepared by people who clearly know how to get horses winning. The talent and infrastructure are there around it.

The pair of fourth-place finishes in its recent form are perhaps the most intriguing detail here. Fourths count for nothing in terms of prize money, but they suggest the horse is not hopelessly out of its depth — it is getting into the race before fading or being outpaced at the crucial moment. Whether that gap can be closed is the question Ellison's team will be trying to answer. Saint Etienne raced just yesterday, so another opportunity may not be far away.