'If he can improve again we might have a nice horse on our hands'

Jonjo O'Neill had his team primed for racing's return from lockdown at the start of June and, after an immediate flurry of winners, he has maintained the stable's good form into the autumn.

With 35 winners on the board, he is more than halfway to last season's final tally of 61 and operating at a healthy 17 per cent strike-rate.

Ever the realist, O'Neill is aware he is lacking the required firepower to make him a threat in top-class races, but he has a squad full of predominantly young recruits, many of whom have yet to reach anywhere close to their ceiling.