South Shore Island

That second place in recent form is the most intriguing detail here. It means South Shore Island has been close, close enough to make the trainer and jockey believe the winning moment could come. Regular partner Robert Havlin has been aboard for six of those races without a breakthrough, which means the pair have built a partnership but are still waiting for it to pay off. Six races together, no wins — at some point that record either turns, or you start asking questions.

South Shore Island typically runs in Class 5 races, which sit near the lower end of the British racing pyramid — these are races where horses of modest ability compete, and winning one is the realistic first target for a horse at this level. Ten races at that level and still no win is a sign that even in the races designed for horses like this, something is not quite clicking. Trainer Amanda Perrett, based in Pulborough in West Sussex, has sent out six winners this season, so the yard is clearly capable of getting horses to the track in winning form. South Shore Island just hasn't been one of them yet.

After an 88-day break — a short freshening-up rather than a long absence — the question is whether the horse returns with any new spark. Three-year-olds can still develop and surprise, and a small rest sometimes does more good than weeks of training. But the honest read of the record so far is that South Shore Island is a horse searching for its moment, with plenty of near-misses and not yet the result to show for it.