Ian Patrick Donoghue

The relationship with jockey Conor Stone-Walsh looks like one of the defining partnerships of Donoghue's early career. Together they have won 9 races from 50 rides — that's 18%, or nearly 1 in every 5 — which is a notably better return than Donoghue's overall yard average. That gap matters. It suggests the two have developed a working shorthand, the kind where the jockey understands what each horse needs and the trainer trusts him to deliver it. At this stage of a training career, finding a jockey you click with is worth its weight in gold.

Then there's Thelittleballerina — two wins from three races together, which is an outstanding record for any horse-trainer combination. At a stage when Donoghue is still building his reputation, having a horse that reliable in the yard is genuinely useful. Consistent performers are how young trainers make their name.

One detail worth noting is his record on slightly soft ground: 2 wins from just 5 races in those conditions, which works out at 40%. That's a small sample, so it would be unwise to read too much into it, but it's worth watching. Some trainers have a natural feel for placing horses when the ground is a little testing, and that might be something that develops further as his string grows.

Fifty-three winners in three years is a solid foundation rather than a spectacular headline, but that's rather the point. Donoghue isn't a trainer who burst onto the scene with a single big horse and then went quiet — he's building steadily, improving his win rate, nurturing a key jockey partnership, and quietly putting winners on the board week after week. In a sport where longevity and consistency are what separate the good trainers from the great ones, that's exactly the right way to start.