'What did I tell you, any mug could do this' - how ignoring Sir Mark Prescott brought vindication for Brian Haggas

It should have come as no surprise to anybody who knew him that Brian Haggas's greatest racing moments came when he stopped allowing other people to do things for him and started doing them himself.

Haggas, who died last month aged 93, had spent many years enjoying only moderate success with horses from the sales, but it was only when he began breeding on a small scale from the prolific racemare Frog that the floodgates finally opened, as Sir Mark Prescott, who trained her to win five times in 21 days in 1996, will testify.

Even the name, Frog, was an example of the blunt and slightly impatient demeanour of a man whose considerable success in business was built on simplicity and directness.