Swing Davis

That Navan win remains the defining moment of her career, though it came with context. Jockey Sam Ewing, who has ridden her in half of her ten races and partnered her to that victory, pointed out afterwards that she had been unlucky to fall on her previous run when she was also travelling well. The win, in other words, may have been a little overdue. Ewing was also enthusiastic about what comes next, noting that she jumps very well and that the step up to fences felt like a natural progression. She rode her to win and still believed she had more to give.

Her trainer, Gordon Elliott, is one of the most prolific in the game — his yard at Longwood in County Meath has sent out 210 winners already this season, a number that makes him a force in Irish racing by any measure. But even Elliott has been frank about Swing Davis, admitting on a recent stable tour that she has been "so disappointing" and that the yard had high hopes for her early on that she simply hasn't met. The encouraging note is that she thinks she has physically strengthened up and may now be ready to start living up to those early expectations.

She raced just yesterday, finishing sixth, which keeps her in the conversation and suggests the team are not giving up on her. With Ewing winning 1 in every 5 races aboard her — a noticeably better return than her overall record — there is clearly something there when conditions click. Whether Swing Davis is a horse who has been finding her feet over a longer-than-expected learning curve, or one who will always threaten more than she delivers, the next few runs should start to make that clearer.