Barry Hills was adamant at the start of the season that Red Clubs was a horse to keep on the right side and the colt lived up to all his expectations with a decisive success in a controversial running of the Group One Sprint Cup at Haydock Park yesterday. The hot favourite Sakhee’s Secret was bidding to extend his unbeaten 2007 sequence to five, but fifth place was all he could manage and the outcome left his trainer Hughie Morrison fuming.

After telling clerk of the course Kirkland Tellwright, “not to expect him back”, Morrison added: “He promised me he would not water the ground after Wednesday and he has. It is a disgrace to the industry, it is dead, soft ground [officially good to firm, good in places].”

Tellwright countered: “What I said was that I would like to think that we would not need to water, but we decided to selectively water on Thursday but only to produce appropriate ground for Saturday. The consensus was that the ground was good.”

Red Clubs had finished less than two lengths adrift of Sakhee’s Secret when they were first and third in the Group One July Cup, and Hills was certainly not afraid of having another cut at the favourite. Sierra Vista set a good pace in the 6f contest until approaching the final furlong where Marchand D’Or went on, but Red Clubs came with an irresistible challenge to collar him about 150 yards out and score by three-quarters of a length from the French raider, with Balt-hazaar’s Gift half a length away in third.

Hills senior said: “He is a very game, top-class horse who has run some good races this season and I think I had him as good as ever today. He has been so consistent over the last three seasons. He’s always had a good turn of foot and he picked up today. He had a good draw here, whereas he has suffered in the past. I don’t know where we will run him now. His owner, Mr Arculli, lives in Hong Kong, but the horse has been sold to TallyHo Stud for a very good price to suit everyone, and I should think there will be a bonus!

“Maybe he will go for the Prix de l’Abbaye at Longchamp or go to Hong Kong [for December’s Hong Kong Sprint]. He went across for the race last year but got sick and was unable to run.” Hills junior added: “I’m so pleased for the horse that he has won a Group One. He has given me everything from two to three to four. He’s had a fantastic year and only been a couple of lengths off the best. I thought he might handle this ground better than the others, it’s just a bit loose. He produces it on the track – he’s never failed to.”

Marchand D’Or’s trainer Fred-die Head said the gelding might have been in front too long. “We decided to track the favourite, but he did not lead as long as we wanted. I am a bit disappointed as I thought he was going to win but he has run a good race and he may run in the Prix de la Foret at Longchamp now.”

Frankie Dettori was out of luck in the feature event but to the delight of his legions of followers he completed a double on Indian Trail in the Be Friendly Handicap and Regal Flush in the Old Borough Cup, and performed flying dismounts each time in the winner’s enclosure.

Indian Trail scored a last-gasp success over 5f and trainer David Nicholls will now send him to Scotland with a favourite’s chance of adding to his terrific record in the Ayr Gold Cup. Nicholls, who was at Thirsk, has saddled four winners of the Ayr race. “Dandy has done a fantastic job, he is a top man and hopefully we will go to Ayr with a chance,” said Martin Love, who owns Indian Trail. “That was fantastic. I always thought he was going to get there but it was a great ride from Frankie.”

Dettori brought Regal Flush with a sustained run from last to first to score in impressive style and the Sir Michael Stoute-trained three-year-old may be ready for a step up in class. “They went very fast, but he had shown a good turn of foot at Goodwood so I was not worried,” Dettori said. “I was always going to win from three out. Take nothing away from him, it was a good performance.”