For followers of every sport there are trigger words, often in pairs, which immediately bring great moments to life. ‘The Thriller in Manila’, Muhammad Ali’s third fight against Joe Frazier, probably does it for boxing. Any bracketing of ‘Coe and Ovett’ brings back famous finishes for athletics fans. No true cricket supporter can hear mention of ‘Lock and Laker’ without recalling the Old Trafford Test when the last-named spinner took 19 wickets — and went home to his Australian-born wife to meet the puzzled inquiry: ‘Jim, did you do something good today?’
The yellow and russet leaves still on the trees beside the A11 to Newmarket last Saturday reminded me that two words in racing hold a special magic for me. The ‘Autumn Double’, the joint title given to two big Newmarket handicaps contested in early October, starts with the Cambridgeshire, run over one mile one furlong.
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