Where is our Roy Keane? Racing punditry needs that fire when things go wrong

For anyone who backed Field Of Gold to win the 2,000 Guineas, the colt’s latest sensational performance at Royal Ascot will have only increased the pain – and it increased my feelings that many in racing were guilty of a dereliction of duty in their reaction to what happened at Newmarket. 

There was radio silence on ITV at the time following Kieran Shoemark’s ride. The closest to criticism the panel edged was to say: “Field Of Gold was caught flat-footed.” Anybody who had taken short odds about the favourite or longer ones ante-post may have felt “flat-footed” did not quite capture their emotions.

We all know the value of a strong opinion. Scroll through Sky Sports’ social media feed and you will find it littered with thumbnails of Roy Keane about to enter a nuclear meltdown because a player has had the audacity to swap shirts with his opponent. Yet there has always been an atmosphere in racing that this sport is different from others. It is perfectly acceptable to question a footballer for missing an open goal, but in racing a jockey misjudging pace or making a tactical mess is often met with silence. Why?