There are doubles and then there are doubles, writes Tony Stafford, with a couple on Saturday courtesy of trainers Richard Spencer and Richard Hannon bordering on the absurd.

How else could you describe the feat of Spencer in winning both the Ayr Gold and Silver Cups (in reverse time order) within just over an hour, in each case with a horse making all the running over the tough six furlongs in testing ground, denying 24 other smart sprint handicappers on either occasion?

Spencer might well take the plaudits for having the two horses in prime form, respectively Candy (Silver) smoothly as a well-backed 8/1 shot with plenty in hand; and Run Boy Run, in a rather more contested finish in the Gold Cup. But behind the trainer there lurks a master planner.

Both horses of course are owned by Phil Cunningham, Spencer’s employer at Sefton Lodge stables in Newmarket. He admitted to having never been to Ayr before but was at the entire three-day meeting and in time for Thursday’s stalls draw for the two features. You can say the research paid off. Phil’s policy of targeting the biggest meetings this year has been handsomely rewarded, and he has been in attendance at them far more often than in the past.

What I liked most about Ayr on Saturday was the fact that none of the 50 horses declared and securing their place in the two valuable sprints – there was £92k on the line for the Gold Cup – was withdrawn, which is a rarity these days. Nobody was left wishing their horse had been, in their connections’ view, unfairly denied a run in one or other of the races.

The times were almost identical, the lesser (in terms of prizemoney, £33k) Silver Cup run in 0.25 sec faster. Maybe the effect of pounding hooves earlier on the yielding turf equated to that time difference – there’s no question though that Candy, winner of the valuable Redcar Gold Trophy last October as well as a course and distance nursery at this meeting twelve months ago, could have a massive future. Graduates of so many of this year’s Group sprints have gone to erstwhile handicappers.

Candy was an auction buy for Spencer and Cunningham, but even more pleasure will have been gained by Run Boy Run, not just a home-bred but also a son of his own stallion Rajasinghe, the Coventry Stakes winner for the owner who stands at the National Stud.

At one time Phil was even offering free coverings by the stallion as a way to getting Rajasinghe’s name onto racecards. The success of Run Boy Run and the team’s Stewards’ Cup winner Two Tribes, a creditable tenth in Saturday’s big race, will prove another boost to the stallion’s appeal.

A small side bar. For years I’ve been wondering why Peter Charalambous would not send his brilliant Apollo One from the Portland, second again the week before last, to Ayr, but he’s waiting for Ascot and the Group race he won last year. Run Boy Run was two places behind him at Doncaster.

The National Stud must be at its most optimistic for many years. Rajasinghe is doing his stuff with limited opportunities, but recent Group 1 winner Diego Velazguez will be joining him after having won the biggest mile feature of the summer in France, the Prix Jacques Le Marois for the Aidan O’Brien stable at Deauville late last month.

I tried to squeeze numbers out of Sam Sangster who brokered the deal, but he remained coy. One opinion related a seven-figure (of course) sum with a sizeable contingency and that secondary requirement has already been met with the Deauville success which makes him a six-time winner on top of his massive yearling price.

One number Sam will not be disputing is the £82k he bid to secure Oceans Four, trained by long-standing associate Brian Meehan in the popular Family Amusements colours. I thought the decision to drop him back a place after being beaten an inch in the Solario Stakes was pedantic in the extreme by the Sandown stewards and I was delighted that he picked up his own Group 3 prize at Chantilly on Saturday – and 30-odd grand too.

But to return to the doubles. How on earth could a juvenile from the Richard Hannon stable, junior or senior before him, be allowed to start at 125/1? It happened though at junior’s local course on Saturday. Richard and the entire family were understandably thinking of his mother, who died last Monday, and saw this win at the family’s favourite track as highly meaningful.

The winner was Night Patrol, fast away in the middle of the pack and comfortably in front until challenged by two opponents in the final 100 yards. The way he stuck out his neck and outstayed his rivals, well on top at the finish, augurs well for his future.

Hannon added to that with a mere 18/1 shot in the next race on the Newbury card, a seven-furlong handicap. Here, former Hannon stable apprentice Tom Marquand had the ride on the four-year-old Christian David and employed opposite tactics, holding up the son of Profitable at the back of the field. He came with a late rattle and got the better of fellow 18/1 shot Tarkhan who had fulfilled the pacemaking role here.  Just the 2,393/1 double for Hannon stable Newbury adherents!

They also raced on Saturday at Newmarket. If you were looking out for a potential winner of the Cesarewitch, staged at the big Dewhurst meeting next month, you shouldn’t really be looking normally at the Trial for that race.

But if anyone would be capable of doing the double it would be one of those Irish enfants terribles, Tony Martin or Charles Byrnes, close to the wind sailors both, and highly capable of landing a punt when and where it’s wanted.

Martin was nowhere to be seen, so it was on Byrnes that the responsibility fell to maintain Ireland’s domination of our staying handicaps. Andrew Balding, prolific everywhere of late, bravely tried to swim against the green tide, but Belgravian, his 11/8 favourite could fare no better than third, with Byrnes, Henry de Bromhead and Peter Fahey, filling the one-two-four.

Well, a more accurate analysis was that “daylight” was second, third and fourth as Reverand Hubert, ridden by Harry Davies, easily romped eight lengths clear. He finished in the ruck last year in the big one and isn’t yet a certain starter next month but Byrnes hopes his penalty will get him in the final line-up. Could be another Irish benefit, and that’s without worrying about the Wilie Mullins hordes!

- TS