“I see you stand like thoroughbreds in the stalls, Straining upon the start. The game’s afoot: Follow your spirit; and, upon this charge Cry ‘God for Muffin, England and The Guild”

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers and sisters; we came from the north and south, from Preston and Southampton, and from east and west, from Reading and Essex, to Kempton Park on a grey evening in May to witness ‘The Return of the Muffin’.

And what a super course – not much more than an hour up the M3 from the South Coast and barely 30 seconds after leaving the motorway we were pulling into the Kempton car park. The Owners & Trainers Bar was easily found, and inside the far corner had already been usurped by a ring of Guilders.

And what a pleasant bar it is too – far better than many we’ve been to in recent years. There is plenty of seating, a Tote window right on hand, complimentary coffee, food available, big screens on which to watch the races if you don’t feel like going out, the Parade Ring right outside the door, and only a very short walk to the finishing line or the viewing area in the main stand.

We were soon joined by Stuart and the gang and news was promising – that our boy was rearing to go, although there was also an understandable cautionary note as it was to be his first outing of the season and thus it was difficult to tell quite how ready he would be. Stuart’s professional opinion was that he needed a run and could be expected to improve as a result of having a run behind him.

In Race 3 at 7:20, Stuart’s other runner for the evening was the long-odds outsider rated at 33-1 in the morning papers. She was making her debut on polytrack and with Fergus aboard those looked like attractive E/W odds – if only we could have found them! In the end, Dave B took her at 14-1 and I had to settle for a measly 11-1, so it wasn’t worth backing her E/W was it???

Idiots – she ran a great race and led from start to almost finish. Coming down the straight she looked all the world a winner, only to have a chaser haul her in right on the line. A promising performance, though, and it is well worth keeping at eye out for Rydal Mount when she runs again this season as she is surely due to win before much longer.

Then it was time for our boy to make his appearance, and as usual he was on his toes and giving the lad a tough time as he paraded around the ring. He had been 16-1 in the morning papers and somewhere between 12s-14s on the exchanges during the day, but it was tough to get more than 11-1 on track. I think only Kirby spotted that the Tote was the place to back him and ended up with 16-1. But a winner at any price is worth having, so no complaints on that score.

And so, with the vocal congregation of Guilders packing the small ‘Owners & Trainers’ viewing area in the main stand, it was down to the post with plenty of hope but no one quite sure what to expect.

Fergus got him out of the gate well and settled in about fourth place as the front-runners did their thing. Coming off the bend with about 2˝ furlongs to go, Fergus made his move and Muffin really started to motor. He got his nose in front with about 1˝ left and we all knew then that nothing was going to catch him. In the end, he won only by a length, but he was always in control and even gave the impression that he still had something left if he needed it.

Having been searching for the correct collective noun for a group of Guild members, I think we found it in the stands at Kempton – a jubilation of Guilders.

Dave B reported soon afterwards that a friend of his was so impressed (whether just by Muffin or by the general camaraderie within the Guild, but perhaps both) that he immediately agreed to join us. So may I be the first to welcome Andrew Page as the newest member of the friendliest racing syndicate around.

The celebrations continued as Muffin pranced into the Winner’s Circle… let me say that again as it sounds so good – “Muffin proudly entered the Winner’s Circle“. Photographs were duly taken with all of the attending Guilders surrounding the two stars of the show, Muffin and Fergus. Then there was the presentation and more photographs, with Mrs K collecting the trophy. We were then shown into a private room for champagne as we watched the replay of the race – and yes, okay, we watched it a few times and, yes, we all cheered Muffin on as he led the field down the finishing straight time after time.

Then it was back to the bar where they were showing the race on the big screen again. And guess what? Yes, we all cheered as he won yet again. Anthony would have enjoyed the evening – yes, your absence was noted and we expect an explanation – particularly the Kirks’ demonstration of how it is possible to do a Mexican Wave when there are only a dozen or so of you. I guess that’s an important skill to master when you follow QPR!

And so ended yet another excellent day out with the Guild. Of course, it’s always better when you win, and if Stuart thinks that Muffin is going to improve as he gets into the season, there should be plenty of bright times ahead this Summer. All we have to do now is to find a way to get a few more people to join us on our journey.

For now, though, there is certainly Joy in the Guild! Oops, wrong horse – that’s our next winner. For now, all we can say is “Muffin’s Back”.