Haydock Sprint Cup runner-up Shouldvebeenaring could spring back into action for the Betfred Park Stakes at Doncaster on Saturday.

The Richard-Hannon trained colt was a 50-1 chance for the Group One at the Merseyside track – but took little notice of those odds when coming home just a neck behind the winner under Sean Levey.

The run was another gallant performance from the grey, who has a CV that includes two Listed wins and a good handful of Group-placed performances.

Notably he was second behind Coolmore’s Little Big Bear in the Sandy Lane earlier in the year and a return to the same track at Haydock backed up that run this weekend.

“We were absolutely thrilled with that performance, he was a 50-1 shot on the day but we didn’t have him down as a 50-1 chance in our minds,” said Tim Palin of owners Middleham Park Racing.

“We probably thought he might finish in the first five or six and pick up some prize-money, but when you look back he’d already been second to Little Big Bear and split him and Bradsell in the Sandy Lane when he went off at 11-1.

“The collateral form was there and is there, we’re absolutely trilled to provide his owners with a runner in a Group One and a horse that just got touched off in a Group One, which he did – he was trading odds-on to win the race during the final half-furlong.

“He’s a dual Listed winner and you’d like to think he’s a Group winner in the making, if we could make that a Group One or Group Two then who knows – you might have a stallion master or two picking up the phone.

“He’s a superstar of a horse, he tries his heart out.”

Connections have left the colt in the Park Stakes at Doncaster’s St Leger meeting on Saturday and a decision will be made later in the week as to whether or not he takes up the entry.

“We have actually left him in the in the Group Two at Doncaster, just in case he comes out of it bouncing,” Palin said.

“I’m sure Sean Levey will give him a spin on Wednesday or Thursday and we’ll make a decision about that race, we’ll see what the ground is going to be like as he does like good ground or quicker.

“There’s not a deluge and they’re not planning to water at the minute, if it did quicken up then it could just be tempting if we can get that Group win by his name.

“The horse’s well-being will be of paramount importance, whether he’s over his exertions from the weekend and ready to rock and roll again, but he’ll stay in training as a four-year-old anyway.”

Thinking ahead to the winter and to Shouldvebeenaring’s four-year-old campaign, Palin mapped out some targets in a season that could include a step down in trip to five furlongs.

He said: “We’ll campaign him in Group One and Group Two sprints with the aim of picking up an elusive Group One, he’s clearly a Group One performer and we want to make him a Group One winner.

“Meydan, possibly the Al Quoz, he could have a prep run and go out there for that fantastic prize-money and there’s always decent ground out there.

“He’s a candidate for that and all your normals, your Duke of Yorks, July Cups, Haydock Sprints, we might even give him a whizz at five.

“We need to explore five with him as well as he travels lovely over six and he’s strong through the line. A Nunthorpe might happen a bit quick for him, but an Ascot five or a Haydock five could suit him down to the ground.”

A first Classic winner for the King and the Queen this weekend remains a possibility, with Desert Hero one of nine confirmed for the Betfred St Leger at Doncaster on Saturday.

The William Haggas-trained Sea The Stars colt has already entered the record books once this season, when winning the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot.

On that occasion, it was the first time the King and Queen’s colours had been victorious at the Royal meeting since the death of the late Queen, and having enhanced his reputation in the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood he now has the chance to follow in the footsteps of Dunfermline, who carried the royal silks to glory in 1977.

Desert Hero’s rider Tom Marquand has already experienced victory in the Leger, with Galileo Chrome for Joseph O’Brien in 2020.

“He ticks all the boxes of what you want from a Leger horse,” he said of this year’s contender.

“It’s a mile and three-quarters but he has speed, he stays, he relaxes right and he’s with the right team, so fingers crossed we get a good draw and the right trip around.

“It would be amazing (to win a second Leger), and I think the magnitude of it possibly being Desert Hero for the King and Queen is not lost on me after I had that experience at Royal Ascot.

“I didn’t acknowledge the significance of it beforehand. As a jockey you just want to go out and win, you don’t think past what happens getting over the winning line. I think this time it is a little different, the Doncaster crowd are notoriously passionate about their racing and love a big day out. If it was to come off it would be pretty magical.”

Simon and Ed Crisford’s Chesspiece is the sole Godolphin representative and was second behind Desert Hero on the Sussex Downs, while John and Thady Gosden could saddle three in the race having confirmed both market leader Gregory and the Juddmonte-owned Arrest as well as supplementing Melrose winner Middle Earth.

Oisin Murphy rides the latter and is excited about his prospects. He told Sky Sports Racing: “He has to step up on his Melrose victory, but the form has been franked. He beat Naqeeb at Newmarket in the novice and he won really at Haydock (on Saturday) and Kempton the time before, so hopefully he’s improving and I’m looking forward to riding him.

“Sheikh Fahad has won the race before with Simple Verse, so hopefully he’ll be bang there.

“It doesn’t look like it’s going to be a very big field, but there’s some good horses in there.

“Time will tell, but I think he’s a horse with the right profile and I’d be very excited about his future in general anyway.”

Gregory has the chance to give Frankie Dettori one last Classic success and although losing his unbeaten record in the Great Voltigeur at York last month, he won the Queen’s Vase over this distance at Royal Ascot.

Great Voltigeur winner Continuous is one of four in the mix for Aidan O’Brien alongside Denmark, Alexandroupolis and Bahrain Trophy runner-up Tower Of London.

Providing an update on ground conditions, Doncaster’s clerk of the course Paul Barker said: “We are currently good on the straight course and good, good to soft in places on the round course. We had a few thundery showers over the weekend, but are sunny today, with the potential of some more showers tonight and tomorrow.

“Racing on Thursday and Friday are set fair, with some showers forecast Friday evening, into Saturday.”

Racing will be the winner, according to Willie Carson, if Desert Hero is able to replicate his historic achievement aboard Dunfermline and carry the royal silks to Classic glory in Saturday’s Betfred St Leger.

It was 1977 when Carson famously got the better of Lester Piggott and Alleged to give the late Queen Classic success in the Doncaster showpiece, during the same season the duo also tasted Oaks glory at Epsom in the height of the Silver Jubilee celebrations.

Dunfermline remains the last royal Classic winner, but now 46 years later the attention is once again on Town Moor as the William Haggas-trained Desert Hero attempts to add his name to the history books.

Having already provided the King and Queen with their first Royal Ascot triumph, the son of Sea The Stars, who will be ridden by Tom Marquand, now bids to add one of the sport’s crown jewels to his ever-growing CV.

“If the King wins then that will help racing, without a doubt,” Carson told the PA news agency.

“I rode two Classic winners for the Queen, but she wasn’t there either time. She was too busy with the Silver Jubilee celebrations for the Oaks and she was at Balmoral for the Leger, but I spoke to her on the telephone after.

“It’s a very good race, our oldest Classic, and it has the makings of a good horse race and the makings of a good story and we’re looking forward to a marvellous race.

“And if the King does arrive at Doncaster on the day and wins, then there is only one winner – racing.”

Carson won the St Leger three times, but 35 years after his final Doncaster triumph aboard Minster Son, another member of the family now has his chance to add his name to the annals of Britain’s oldest Classic.

That is because Desert Hero has been helped in his preparation for the big race by Carson’s grandson Luke, who rides the King George V Stakes and Gordon Stakes scorer in his work and is a key figure in the colt’s journey to the top.

“He’s looked after and ridden every day by my grandson, his name is Luke Carson,” continued the 80-year-old, who partnered 17 British Classic winners during his decorated career.

“He rides him in the morning, looks after him, he’s his baby.

“So I will be very happy if the King wins, for all sorts of reasons. He’s obviously got a chance, but I wouldn’t say he has as good a chance as Dunfermline did.

“Not only was that Leger famous because the Queen won it, but it was the only time in his career Alleged was beat. It was an incredible race and she was a very good filly, Dunfermline.”

Not only does Carson have the family connection with Desert Hero to look forward to, he also owns a half-sister of the dam of ante-post favourite Gregory, and it promises to be a huge afternoon for the Scotsman, who may struggle to juggle his loyalties in the closing stages.

He added: “It’s a race I won three times. The race was quite kind to me.

“The horse Gregory, I own the dam’s half-sister called Leah. For me it is a big day all round.

“We’ve got a few irons in the fire and I guess I’ll be shouting for them both. Maybe a dead-heat!

Gregory heads to Doncaster Moor as market leader despite losing for the first time in the Great Voltigeur at York.

It was Aidan O’Brien’s Continuous who lowered the Golden Horn colt’s colours on that occasion, but Carson believes Gregory could be seen to better effect this weekend.

He said: “I saw an interview that John Gosden gave and I agreed with everything he said about why Gregory got beat at York.

“Unfortunately Frankie (Dettori) rode a fantastic race in the following race that day (Mostahdaf in the Juddmonte International Stakes), but he fell into a bad trap on Gregory by going too fast.

“John Gosden pointed that out and he also pointed out that when the race was over and he was beat, and Frankie had decided that was it, the horse still ran on.

“So Continuous is not certain to beat him at Doncaster. I think Frankie thought he would be able to dictate at York, but I’m afraid the dictation got thrown out the window because he had two people annoying him all the way round.”

He has also narrowed the stamina-sapping one-mile-six-furlong contest down to the three at the head of the betting and is relishing the prospect of three of the weighing room’s best slugging it out to lift the trophy.

“It looks like those are the three (Gregory, Continuous and Desert Hero) that should be winning the St Leger and I would say it will be the horse that gets the best ride, basically  – the one who it clicks for and whoever gets it right,” said Carson.

“O’Brien will organise the pace and it will be up to Frankie, who is normally very astute when it comes to tactics, I imagine he will not get it wrong this time. Of course, Ryan Moore will just sit on the tail of Frankie, that’s how I see it, whether it happens is another matter.

“You’ve got three of the top jockeys at the top of the game and we’re in for a treat.”

Andy Murray believes Great Britain can win the Davis Cup again this season and is happy to play his part on or off the court.

The former world number one is among a five-man team for this week’s group stage in Manchester, along with Cameron Norrie, Dan Evans, Jack Draper and Neal Skupski.

Quite what Murray’s role will be remains to be seen and, speaking after his disappointing second-round loss to Grigor Dimitrov at the US Open, the Scot questioned whether he deserved his place.

But the 36-year-old cut a much more positive figure at a press conference at the AO Arena on Monday, saying: “At that moment, straight as I came off the court, I wasn’t in a great place after losing in a slam.

“I said (to captain Leon Smith), if I’m not needed, I completely get that. But, for whatever reason, he asked me to come and I said I would come.

“I’ve always loved playing Davis Cup and any event where you’re competing for your country. We have a great group of guys, I love being part of this team, we’ve got great staff as well. Everyone gets on extremely well.

“I do genuinely believe the team can win the event. That’s huge motivation to be a part of it. I want to help the team in any way I can, whether that’s on the court or off. We’ll see what happens.”

Britain have been drawn in an intriguing group with Australia, France and Switzerland and must finish in the top two to book their spot at the finals week in Malaga in November.

It is now eight years since Murray led Britain to the Davis Cup title virtually single-handed.

There is no doubt Britain have a stronger overall team now, but with that come selection difficulties for Smith and he faced criticism for choosing Murray and Joe Salisbury as his doubles pair as they crashed out at the same stage in Glasgow 12 months ago.

Salisbury won his third consecutive US Open title with American Rajeev Ram on Saturday but did not make the team, with Smith likely to rely on Skupski and Evans in doubles, while the most intriguing question mark is whether he will throw in 21-year-old Draper fresh from his run to the fourth round in New York.

He has had a hugely frustrating season with injuries but is a major talent who will surely lead the team in the not-too-distant future, while Norrie and Evans have both had patchy seasons.

“I think we’ve got our best five here,” said Smith. “Obviously we’ve got strength in depth, especially on the doubles side. In terms of selection for the matches, it’s good. You want a strong squad, different options, because it is a long week. I’m just delighted they’re all here.”

Draper was named in the team for the first time for February’s tricky assignment away in Colombia, where victory secured their progress to this point.

“I feel great,” said the Londoner, who was hitting with fit-again former British number one Kyle Edmund on Monday.

“Obviously New York gave me a real boost after quite a tough season. When Leon asked me to join the guys I was really excited and wanted to be here.

“I haven’t been part of a Davis Cup group playing at home. It’s amazing to be part of this team and I’m very grateful for the selection and happy to be around these boys for sure.”

Britain’s biggest challenge is likely to come on Wednesday when they take on last year’s runners-up Australia, led by in-form world number 12 Alex de Minaur.

Crowds of around 8,000 are expected for that tie and the one on Friday against Stan Wawrinka’s Switzerland, while a sell-out of more than 13,000 on Sunday for the final match against France will be the biggest for a Davis Cup contest in Britain.

There are other groups taking place in Bologna, Split and Valencia, where Serbia and Spain will do battle, although a Wimbledon final rematch between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will no longer happen following the Spaniard’s withdrawal.

Qipco British Champions Day at Ascot is viewed as the “end game” for Nashwa following another excellent run in defeat in Saturday’s Irish Champion Stakes.

Having claimed her third Group One win in the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket in July, John and Thady Gosden’s filly was beaten a length into third place in the Nassau at Goodwood and finished the same distance behind her stablemate Mostahdaf when runner-up in the Juddmonte International at York.

She was sent to Leopardstown for another top-level assignment and stormed home from the rear to again pick up minor honours in third, finishing on the heels of the Aidan O’Brien-trained pair of dual Derby winner Auguste Rodin and defending champion Luxembourg.

Nashwa has the option of return to Paris on Arc weekend for the Prix de l’Opera, in which she was touched off as a hot favourite last season, while she also holds an entry in the Sun Chariot at Newmarket the following week – but it is the big day at Ascot that connections are focussing on.

“She ran a super race on Saturday, she really did. She’s proven herself in top-class company against the colts and has come out of the race really well,” said Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager to owner Imad Al Sagar.

“We’ll look at the options, but I think possibly the end game would be Qipco Champions Day, whether that be for the QEII or the Champion Stakes.

“I don’t think it would be necessary to have another run between now and then, but she is in the Sun Chariot or there’s the Prix de l’Opera.

“The Opera does come up quite quick, so we’ll see.”

Last term Nashwa finished fourth at the Breeders’ Cup, but a trip to California appears less likely this time around, and a decision on whether she will race on next season has yet to be made.

Grimthorpe added: “It (Breeders’ Cup) certainly hasn’t been discounted because you never know what may or may not happen, but I think at the moment Ascot would be the main aim.

“Nothing has been decided (regarding next year), we’ll see how she is and see how she goes and Imad will decide nearer the time.”

Scotland manager Steve Clarke will take stock of his attempts to bring aboard Newcastle pair Elliot Anderson and Harvey Barnes after Tuesday’s Hampden friendly against England.

Whitley Bay-born Anderson, who has a Scottish grandmother, spent two days with Scotland last week before withdrawing from the squad before their trip to Cyprus due to injury.

England manager Gareth Southgate has since expressed admiration for the Newcastle midfielder and stated his backroom team would be taking the situation up.

The 20-year-old has been capped at several levels for Scotland but has also attended an England Under-19 training camp.

Clarke said: “We like the player as well so Elliot will still have that choice to make.

“When I come out of this camp I will look at what we have done, what we have had, what’s occurred over this camp, we will do a debrief on it and then we will shape what we do from there.”

Former Leicester winger Barnes is reported to be considering a switch of allegiance after playing once for England in a friendly win over Wales three years ago.

The 25-year-old was born in Burnley and brought up in Leicestershire but has Scottish grandparents.

When asked about Barnes, Clarke said: “Probably the same comment, to think about that after.

“We want the best players we can possibly get. If they are eligible for Scotland and they have a chance to play for us and they can improve the squad that I’ve got – which is not an easy thing to do…

“And I get all the story round it, because we are playing England you want to speak about Elliot, you want to speak about Harvey.

“I quite like speaking about the boys I have got because they have put us in a really good position and they deserve a lot of credit for that.”

Goran Ivanisevic believes Novak Djokovic transcends tennis and is one of the greatest in the history of sport.

Djokovic won his 24th grand slam title when he beat Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev over three gruelling sets at the US Open.

His Croatian coach, Ivanisevic, says Djokovic’s fighting spirit and will to win make him a sporting “genius”.

“I don’t think you can work on that,” said 2001 Wimbledon champion Ivanisevic.

“You are born. You know, some people who are born, he’s a genius. He’s one of kind. There are not too many people in this world like him sport-wise.

“This is one of the biggest achievements in sports history. We’re not talking about tennis. We are talking generally in sport.

“He’s a winner. He’s the guy who is motivating himself. He had luck to have guys like Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer, they came before him, so they pushed each other.

“But he’s a born winner. For him, when you tell him he cannot do something, it’s even worse. Then he’s going to show you that he can do it. It’s no excuses.

“He always tries to find a way to win, how to fight, even when he’s not feeling well, injured, not injured.

“It’s just something I cannot say that we’re all like that from the Balkans, because we are not. But he’s one of a kind, and that’s why he’s the best.

Banned from the US Open in 2022 due to Covid vaccination laws, Djokovic returned to become its oldest champion a year later.

The 36-year-old Serbian, back at world number one, avenged his defeat in the 2021 final against Medvedev.

He said: “I guess people love comeback stories. I love them too. They motivate me.

“I hadn’t played any tournament on American soil for two years, and the last time I was here I lost in the finals against the same player I beat.”

Djokovic has now won seven of the last 10 grand slams he has competed in despite the emergence of the likes of Medvedev, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

“You need to reinvent yourself, because everyone else does,” he added.

“As a 36-year-old competing with 20-year-olds I probably have to do it more than I have ever done it in order to keep my body in shape, in order to be able to recover so that I can perform on the highest level consistently.”

Rogue Millennium could be headed to Paris after her gallant second-placed run behind Tahiyra in the Matron Stakes at Leopardstown.

The Tom Clover-trained four-year-old was a 12-1 chance for the Group One on her sixth start of a successful season in which she has only once been out of the top three for owners The Rogues Gallery.

A Group Two winner in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot, the daughter of Dubawi was then fifth when stepping up a grade on soft ground in the Prix Rothschild at Deauville.

Conditions at Leopardstown were more to her liking, however, and she showed a brilliant turn of foot to accelerate away in pursuit of Tahiyra – the 5-6 favourite and a multiple Group One winner.

Rogue Millennium was a length and quarter behind when the line came, a valiant run in defeat and a performance that may inspire a step back up in trip.

“She’s taken us on a terrific journey, she’s given us some fantastic days,” said Clover.

“After the race we were a little bit disappointed but we shouldn’t be, the form was so strong, there were a few little things that didn’t go in her favour but I loved seeing her on that quick ground.

“She showed a terrific turn of foot and we were as happy as you could be after finishing second.

“You win a maiden and then you want to win a Listed race, you do that and you want to win a Group race, then you want Group One black type.

“You always want more, but we’re thrilled with her. It was a fantastic day and she ran a great race.

“I suppose what’s exciting is that she’s a filly that still looks like she’s improving and that’s great to see. She’s so game, she tries her heart out and she loves the game.”

Rogue Millennium has form over 10 furlongs having been placed at Pattern level over the trip earlier in the season and connections will now consider whether to return to that distance for the Prix de l’Opera on the same day as the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at ParisLongchamp.

Clover said: “We always felt that nine furlongs would be her optimum, she’s been finishing well over a mile and has now been second in a Group One over a mile but we felt like she was making up ground the whole time and had it been over nine, we would have been getting closer a lot further away.

“She’s in the Opera and we’ve got her in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, those are our two options.

“We’ll look at the Opera and see how she is, three weeks is a reasonably tight turnaround with the travel and so on, but if she’s OK we’ll be tempted to go to Longchamp, I think.”

Nick Montgomery aims to forge a “new identity” for Hibernian after being appointed the club’s head coach.

The former Sheffield United midfielder arrives in Edinburgh after 11 years with Central Coast Mariners, who he led to the A-League title last season following a 6-1 Grand Final victory over Melbourne City with the help of a hat-trick from former Hibs striker Jason Cummings.

The 41-year-old initially moved to Mariners as a player after making almost 400 appearances for Sheffield United. He was captain, assistant coach, youth coach and head of football at the Australian club before taking over as head coach in August 2021.

He has now taken charge at Easter Road on a three-year deal, describing Hibs as the “perfect” club for him.

He said: “I will try to bring a new identity to the club, and that’s not easy to do, but with hard work on the training ground and the buy-in from the staff, the players, the fans and the community, I really want to push this club forward and just bring a real work ethic and a good style of play that people will enjoy watching.

“An identity is something the fans can come and enjoy, a team with a lot of energy that likes to score goals.”

The former Scotland Under-21 and Scotland B international added: “The squad is really good, I have done a lot of research on the squad. I know some of the players, I actually played with Davie Marshall a long time ago.”

Montgomery was keen to return to the United Kingdom and when asked why he had chosen Hibs, he said: “Number one, my grandma was born in Scotland, I played for the Under-21s and Futures squad. I have a lot of history with Scotland.

“I felt it was the perfect club to come to, a club that is not where it should be in terms of the start of the season but that’s now my responsibility to put belief in the players and create an environment where everyone comes in every day and enjoys training and buy into the long-term vision to make Hibs successful.

“I had quite a bit of interest previously and as soon as I spoke to Hibs, it just felt in my gut instinct it was the right opportunity.

“We talked in depth about football, the club and where it wanted to go and that matched my ambition.”

Montgomery earned a reputation for developing young players in Australia. The players he worked with include recent Aberdeen signing James McGarry, Hibs full-back Lewis Miller, Kye Rowles of Hearts and former Tynecastle loan striker Garang Kuol.

“I think it’s central to most clubs around the world,” he said. “A lot of clubs develop players that will hopefully earn money in transfers because that’s how you help the club become sustainable. That’s the narrative we had in Australia, we became a club known for developing our own players, but not only our own players.”

Hibs director of football Brian McDermott led the hunt for the replacement to Lee Johnson, who was sacked after opening the cinch Premiership season with three defeats and has now taken over at Fleetwood.

Montgomery said: “In terms of recruitment, I have spoken to Brian at length. It’s about finding the right players that fit the club, not what the player is but what the player can be. That’s important because you have to try and bring players though.

“There are plenty of young players in the academy that supported the club who dream of walking out at Easter Road. I had that myself as a young player and that’s really powerful.”

McDermott was not at the media conference because of pre-planned hip replacement surgery but the former Reading manager explained in a statement why Montgomery had emerged as the number one choice.

“I’ve followed Nick’s career for a number of years,” McDermott said. “As a player he was a leader and he’s brought that quality into his managerial and coaching career.

“What he’s done as a coach is really impressive. He helped rebuild what is now a successful academy and did a magnificent job of bringing through and developing young players. Alongside this, he has incredibly strong coaching credentials.

“He has a real strong, distinctive style of play, is a front-foot manager, and what he achieved at Central Coast Mariners last season was phenomenal.

“He created a strong relationship and camaraderie between the supporters, players and staff, and he’s an excellent man manager which has seen him get the best out of the players he’s worked with.”

Ed Bethell is planning to give his Sprint Cup hero Regional a well-earned break before targeting further big-race honours on Dubai World Cup night in March.

The five-year-old provided his young trainer with a first taste of Group One success at Haydock on Saturday, his third win from as many visits to the Merseyside venue.

Connections have the option of supplementing for next month’s Qipco British Champions Sprint at Ascot, while he also has foreign options at the Breeders’ Cup and in Hong Kong.

Bethell, though, is unsure about the suitability of any of those three races and would prefer to keep his powder dry for the Al Quoz Sprint at Meydan in the new year.

Reflecting on Haydock, he said: “Things like that don’t happen very often and I probably was in a bit of shock. We celebrated on Saturday night, but I think I was so shattered from the whole occasion I went to bed quite early.

“The horse is absolutely fine – he came out of the race sounder than he went into it.

“I would imagine he’s probably going to go on holiday now. I don’t think the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Santa Anita would really suit him. He got rushed off his feet in the Nunthorpe at York last month and I think if he went there the same would apply.

“We’re not entered for the Champions Sprint at Ascot, so we’d have to supplement, but for however many years it’s been run it’s been run on soft ground and he doesn’t like soft ground, so we don’t run him on it.

“After that there’s only really Hong Kong left and again, I’m not sure Sha Tin would be his bag, whizzing round that bend. I have nominated him, but I would rather end the year on a high.”

Although not ruling out the possibility of a prep run, the Middleham Moor handler is currently in favour of heading straight to the Al Quoz before bringing Regional back to Europe.

He added: “I’ve said to the lads that own him I’d quite like to train him for the Al Quoz Sprint in Dubai on World Cup night. Of all these international tracks I think Meydan would be the place for him as it’s very similar to Haydock and York – a big, flat, open, galloping track, which is what he likes.

“I’ll see how he is. You’ve got that Super Saturday meeting you might fly out for. He’s travelled before, having been to Qatar and finished second for us out there, so we know he’s good off an aeroplane.

“He’ll be targeted at all the top sprints next year, starting off with the Duke of York maybe if he comes back from Dubai all right.

“He’ll get an entry in both sprints at Royal Ascot (King’s Stand and Jubilee) I would think and then hopefully all roads lead back to trying to defend his crown at Haydock.”

Louis Rees-Zammit admits undisciplined Wales survived a major scare and have significant room for improvement after edging an “absolutely brutal” Rugby World Cup classic against Fiji.

The 22-year-old tournament debutant claimed the third of his country’s four tries to help build an 18-point advantage with just 10 minutes to go on a breathless evening in Bordeaux.

But ferocious Fiji roared back and threatened to pull off a stunning Pool C comeback before falling agonisingly short as Semi Radradra’s costly late knock-on saw Wales scrape a thrilling 32-26 success.

Wing Rees-Zammit, who was limping following the full-time whistle, was the exposed man tasked with stopping the rampaging Radradra before gleefully booting the fumbled ball into touch.

“I was stressed,” he told the PA news agency. “They had a massive overlap and I was trying to call players round, but we were getting sucked in.

“When I saw the ball go over, I was like: ‘I’m going to have to try and go low on him here and hopefully get him out’.

“Unfortunately for him he knocked it on and we won the game.

“It was absolutely brutal. It lasted 82 minutes and we had to dig deep and in the majority of our game our discipline let us down, but I think ultimately to get a win is the most important thing.

“You could see it was a brutal game and I’m a bit sore, but a decent recovery now and hopefully I will be ready for next week.”

Wales conceded 17 penalties across the course of a gripping curtain-raiser against opposition who recently upset England at Twickenham.

Rees-Zammit, who was floored by a thunderous tackle from Vinaya Habosi minutes before his score, will look to shrug off his knock in time for next weekend’s match against Portugal in Nice ahead of meetings with Australia and Georgia.

“I don’t think we played at our best at all,” continued the Gloucester player.

“We’ve got a lot to improve and that’s the best thing because we can get a lot better.

“To beat Fiji at not a hundred per cent is great. We know they are a devastating team.”

The Prince of Wales was among a capacity crowd treated to undoubtedly the most entertaining match of the competition so far.

Josh Adams, George North and Elliot Dee were also on the scoresheet for Warren Gatland’s men, while fly-half Dan Biggar added two penalties and three conversions in an engrossing bonus-point victory.

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North, who was on the receiving end of an outburst from team-mate Biggar for not kicking the ball into touch just before the break, echoed the relief expressed by Rees-Zammit at the end of a “must-win” encounter.

“That was a proper Test match,” said the centre. “We’re chuffed to get the result, we needed that to start us off well in this World Cup.

“But we’ve got to look at ourselves very quickly. We know what the issues are: discipline and playing in the right areas.

“It was a must-win for us, we needed that to get us on the right path. It was huge for us and we’ve got to tidy up and turnaround to the next one.

“The way Fiji have developed, they were probably the favourites. They’ve got the physicality and flair that they’re known for but they’re also a well-drilled side.

“They’ve got the set piece now to fight and compete with the best of them and their form coming into the World Cup really showed.”

Speaking of Radradra’s late error, the 31-year-old Ospreys man added: “That’s Test-match rugby, you play on the edge of sword, it’s the one per cent (difference).

“You’ve got to take your opportunities and luckily enough they didn’t take that one.”

A first Classic winner for the King and the Queen this weekend remains a possibility, with Desert Hero one of nine confirmed for the Betfred St Leger at Doncaster on Saturday.

The William Haggas-trained Sea The Stars colt has already entered the record books once this season, when winning the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot.

On that occasion, it was the first time the King and Queen’s colours had been victorious at the Royal meeting since the death of the late Queen, and having enhanced his reputation in the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood he now has the chance to follow in the footsteps of Dunfermline, who carried the royal silks to glory in 1977.

Simon and Ed Crisford’s Chesspiece is the sole Godolphin representative and was second behind Desert Hero on the Sussex Downs, while John and Thady Gosden could saddle three in the race having confirmed both market leader Gregory and the Juddmonte-owned Arrest as well as supplementing Melrose winner Middle Earth.

Gregory has the chance to give Frankie Dettori one last Classic success and although losing his unbeaten record in the Great Voltigeur at York last month, he won the Queen’s Vase over this distance at Royal Ascot.

Great Voltigeur winner Continuous is one of four in the mix for Aidan O’Brien alongside Denmark, Alexandroupolis and Bahrain Trophy runner-up Tower Of London.

Highfield Princess could bid to get back on track in the Prix de l’Abbaye providing she is fine following her below-par performance at the Curragh.

John Quinn’s star mare was tasked with defending her Flying Five Stakes crown on day two of the Irish Champions Festival, but nothing went to plan for the evens favourite who finished midway down the field in fifth as Ken Condon’s Moss Tucker landed a surprise victory.

Slipping on exiting the stalls, Jason Hart’s mount was immediately on the back foot, and although she quickly made up ground and was still giving her all at the finish, was never able to land a telling blow in a race she won with supreme style 12 months prior.

It was a rare disappointment from the ultra-consistent six-year-old who has been a real force on the sprinting scene over the past two seasons and, although reported to be coughing and showing signs of being in season by the vet post-race, Quinn believes Highfield Princess’ troubles at the start played a key role in her bad day at the office.

“She was scoped afterwards and was absolutely fine so the coughing was just mud that was kicked back because she got behind early on so she was fine on that front,” explained Quinn.

“Missing the break did not help her. Jason said she lost her hind legs when she came out and with the first stride she took her hind legs went. She was on the back foot straight away and did well to finish where she did in the end. It’s just one of those things and these things can happen.”

She will now be given a thorough check by the team at Quinn’s Highfield Stables, with a run at ParisLongchamp on October 1 pencilled in for her next start.

Quinn added: “She’s fine this morning. We’ll have a good look at her and if she is OK we will run her in the Abbaye.”