An eye for form

The flags are up, the money's down, The frightened bookies quake. Come on, me boys, and give a cheer, Begod, ‘tis Cottage Rake!’

The racehorse trainer Vincent O'Brien retired just recently. To those of us who share a passion for the turf, he was the nonpareil, a man with an unrivalled gift for choosing and nurturing champions. Gold Cups, Grand Nationals, Derbys - all were plundered by his unique skills. Legend has it that the great Nijinsky was picked out of a field full of larger and more imposing individuals; only the eye of a genius could see through the veneer of size and beauty and perceive instead the …