THE big race may not have gone to plan for Charlie Appleby but the Godolphin handler still landed a Deauville Group 3 double not to mention a Group 1 success in Berlin courtesy of Rebel’s Romance (see page 40).

In Normandy, his winners were the two-year-old Mysterious Night, in the seven-furlong Circus Maximus Prix Francois Boutin, and the year older Eternal Pearl, who landed the Prix Minerve over an extended mile and a half.

Mysterious Night is a Dark Angel full-brother to last season’s dual US Grade 1 winner for the boys in blue, Althiqa, and won a shade cosily by half-a-length from Bolshnikov with Joseph O’Brien’s front-running Montesilvano back in third.

Eternal Pearl was quite impressive in beating Queen Trezy by two lengths and the Frankel filly will be a force to be reckoned with in better company, possibly in the Group 1 Prix Vermeille (on September 11th).

Sunday’s other two feature races were both run over a mile and a quarter and went the way of Jean-Claude Rouget.

The more prestigious of the two was the Group 3 Prix Gontaut-Biron Hong Kong Jockey Club, won by a comfortable neck by the grey Siyouni gelding, Wally, who is a high-class performer on his favoured fast ground and was landing a fifth pattern success.

But the performance to get the pulses racing was produced by his stablemate, Lassaut, who exhibited a brilliant turn of foot to register a two and a half-length victory in the Listed Prix Nureyev.

An out-and-out come-from-behind horse who his trainer feels may not be suited by big fields, he clearly has the talent to thrive in stronger company.

JEAN-Claude Rouget put three more winners on the board at Deauville on Monday, a Catholic bank holiday in France, causing him to joke “it seems like it’s been me taking on the English all on my own over the last few weeks.”

The pick of the trio was Al Hakeem, who had not been seen since finishing fourth (two lengths and three places in front of Lassaut) in the Prix du Jockey Club 10 weeks previously.

He overcame rustiness to get the better of a good battle with Junko and land the €400,000 Group 2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano by half a length.

That was also over a mile and two furlongs but this son of Siyouni races as if a step up to a mile and a half could suit him and may now head straight to the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Monday’s obligatory British success came in the Group 3 Prix de Lieurey when George Boughey’s Oscula furthered her claim to be regarded as the toughest horse in training with a neck defeat of By All Means on her eighth run in the last 73 days. She is proving to be the best member of Tally Ho Stud stallion Galileo Gold’s first crop and, having cost just 4,000gns as a yearling, has now won 285 times that amount during a 19-race career that has seen her finish out of the top four just twice.