Trawlerman lands Ebor Handicap to put Frankie Dettori back in trainer John Gosden’s good books

Trawlerman, meanwhile, was in the midst of a conflict of his own, his adversary an inanimate one as he had taken a distinct and enduring dislike to the starting stalls.

At Glorious Goodwood the gelding was victorious twice within the space of a few minutes, firstly in his run-in with the stalls and secondly in the Coral Summer Handicap, which he won by length under 5lb claimer Benoit De La Sayette.

The former episode earnt him a BHA-mandated stalls test before he could run again, and in the Sky Bet Ebor Handicap at York he was permitted to head to the start before the rest of the field in an attempt to keep the toys inside the pram.

Drawn in stall 20 and reunited with Dettori, himself reunited with Gosden, the bay started from a wide berth and stayed there for five furlongs, a lone figure until the first bend came and he eased across and settled into the lead.

Paddy Twomey’s Earl Of Tyrone, well-fancied at 5-1, waited in his slipstream and Global Storm was well-placed on the rail, but as the race unfolded it was Alfred Boucher, a winner on the same track just three days ago, who weaved his way through the field to challenge.

The grey looked poised to land an impressive Knavesmire double when leading at the furlong pole, but inch by inch Dettori ate into his lead until it was left to the judge to count the pixels in a photo finish.

Trawlerman’s fist was lifted, a short-head success that evoked memories of his sire Golden Horn’s bold, wide-running victory under the same jockey in the 2015 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

“We did in 2015 in the Arc, we did it with Muntahaa here in 2018 with Jim Crowley, winning the Ebor,” Gosden said.

“Once the draw came out, Frankie and I looked at each other. We didn’t have to say anything, we knew what we were going to do.

“He rode him beautifully, he did look rather solitary out there but it’s not a bad tactic – you’ll see about eight of them do it next year.”

It was well-deserved praise for the Italian, a more harmonious post-race review after tensions earlier in the season that have not quite become old news.

“The only reason it ever happened is because I couldn’t get his attention, I couldn’t get him to concentrate – that’s all,” Gosden said of the fall-out.

“In the end it required a bit of a public warning, that’s the way it is. He was left on the bench, if you were a football manager.

“Look how he’s just ridden two fantastic races today, he’s won the hugely valuable City of York Stakes and this.

“When our man’s in the zone, he’s absolutely top class. When he’s not in the zone he’s a menace!”

Less menacing on the Knavesmire was Trawlerman, who gave the starting stalls some respite and now has a global array of options with regards to his next run.

“They let us go to the start early because if he loses it and gets a temper on, he can destroy any starting gate, let alone anyone around it,” said Gosden.

“He’s quite a challenge, our boy, we’ve always liked him a lot and I thought he might make a Leger horse but it didn’t quite come to be. I’ll have to talk to the horse, see what he wants to do next.”

Soulcombe turned the Sky Bet Melrose Handicap into a procession under Hollie Doyle.

Slowly away, as he usually is, the William Haggas-trained three-year-old only made his handicap debut in June off a lowly mark of 68.

He went on to follow up off 6lb higher at Ascot but was beaten at Goodwood last time out when catching the eye behind Secret State.

Sent off the 3-1 favourite, Doyle began to make progress with two furlongs to run but the prolific winner Caius Chorister had the rest of the field on the stretch. Had it not been for the well handicapped winner, David Menuisier’s filly would have won for the sixth time in a row but Soulcombe could have scored by double the four and a quarter lengths that he did if Doyle had so wanted. Adjuvant was third.

The winner was a relatively rare ride for Doyle off Haggas, who employs her husband Tom Marquand as his stable jockey.

Summerghand proved a popular winner of the Sky Bet Constantine Handicap for Yorkshire trainer David O’Meara.

Having the 69th race of his career, the eight-year-old was given a peach of a ride by Danny Tudhope, sluicing through the field to nab top weight Commanche Falls, who had won the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood for a second time. Drawn on the wrong side in the Great St Wilfrid at Ripon last week, the 15-2 chance won by three-quarters of a length.