You can forget about trying new things if we can't even get the basics right

So then, the O'Brien brothers have been signed up to represent Ireland in the inaugural £1.8 million Racing League, a shiny new toy designed to attract new consumers, yet we do not have the technology to tell what horse has won a race.

We can seemingly stage a six-week competition in which 12 teams will contest 36 races worth £50,000 each, with jockeys wearing distinguishing team colours, yet a few days ago a winner was disqualified because his rider did not know the right way to weigh in.

We can throw baroque banquets at Royal Ascot and Cheltenham, lavishly showcasing our great sport to the world without a glitch, yet only last month two horses ran with the wrong jockeys in a Group 1 and nobody knew until somebody spotted it on Twitter.