Sky And Sand

The recent form makes for mixed reading. A win and a second place from the last six races sounds reasonable until you see the full picture: 1-5-11-7-11-7. That means four finishes well back in the field, suggesting Sky And Sand can blow hot and cold. A horse who wins roughly 1 in every 6 races (just the one win from six career outings, at 17%) needs to be placed carefully to give itself the best chance, and Ross O'Sullivan will know that better than anyone.

O'Sullivan trains out of Kilcullen in County Kildare, and his yard has been in good nick this season — 33 winners is a healthy total and suggests a team that knows how to get horses fit and ready. With Sky And Sand last racing just 22 days ago, the horse is clearly in active campaign mode, and O'Sullivan will be looking to build on that Gowran Park breakthrough while the confidence is there.

The honest truth is that one win from six races leaves plenty still to prove. But every horse has to win its first race somewhere, and doing it at six is better than not doing it at all. The question now is whether that March afternoon at Gowran was the start of something or just a one-off on a good day. The next few races will tell us a great deal.