Signs were there for Poetic Flare's Guineas triumph - if you knew where to look

In the end it wasn’t about ratings or form books or explosive sectional times. It came down to a dank October day in Newmarket last year, when New Treasure kept his date with the auctioneer at the horses-in-training sales.

New Treasure was submitted by Jim Bolger's Glebe House Stables. He was a two-year-old colt with a Group 3 victory from five starts. In the powerhouse era of Ballydoyle and Godolphin, when juvenile talent is so hard to unearth, why was Bolger prepared to sell a young horse with an official rating in excess of 100? It made little sense.

The 2,000 Guineas provided us with the answer. With Mac Swiney kept in reserve, Poetic Flare’s triumph demonstrated that Bolger had a wealth of good two-year-olds in his stable. New Treasure was surplus to requirements. He was cast away for 90,000gns, a price which reflected his status as a rig. The fact that one of his testicles had yet to descend was causing him physical discomfort.