Charlie Johnston: 'Clerks interfere with watering more than they need to - our biggest unpredictability is what they'll do'

In March the Met Office reported England had recorded its wettest 18-month period since records began in the 1830s, and yet it has taken little more than a month for clerks to start watering – much to the annoyance of leading trainer Charlie Johnston.

On Saturday the particularly wet spring was partially blamed for City Of Troy's 2,000 Guineas flop and Wednesday's meeting at Newton Abbot was lost due to waterlogging, proving Britain is still plenty wet enough, but Chester applied 3mm to good ground on Tuesday in advance of its flagship May meeting, which prompted Johnston's ire on a topic he views as a wider issue in the sport.

"It's an annoyance," he said. "It's been heavy ground for the last six weeks and as soon as it starts drying out they water. Our main gripe is the BHA rules state tracks should water to maintain good to firm but clerks of the course seemingly don't always follow those rules and the BHA don't enforce them, so what's the point in them being there?