How convenient was it that Tommy Marquand went much too quickly on the Highclere horse and substantially increased the chances of the hold up horses, including Buick in stall 17? Of course that was probably down to rubbish judgement of pace by Marquand, and of course it’s pure coincidence that Billy rides a fair few for Highclere. All in all though what a stroke of good fortune for the bridle boy so soon after making a complete mess of things for the same connections.
A few days later Billy pops up to Carlisle – on a weak second favourite – and bolts up, winning over 20,000 for yes, Highclere. What a very happy coincidence. The game appears full of them, especially where jocks are concerned.