William Haggas and Tom Marquand doubled up at Wetherby on Sunday to kickstart the season for the Newmarket handler.
It's been a relatively slow start to the season for Somerville Lodge by the stable's own high standards and Haggas will no doubt have been relieved to see Princling (1/4 favourite) and Sea The Storm (4/9 favourite) oblige for all that their odds suggested they should.
Princling finished second on both juvenile starts which came in the space of a little over a fortnight in October and had little difficulty in opening his account by a length and a quarter.
"Princling had pretty good form from last year so was entitled to win today." Maureen Haggas told Racing TV.
"Lovely looking horse, beautifully bred, still a bit green today and just took a little time to engage and get on with it but I think he'll have learned a lot and hopefully will be on the improve."
Marquand had earlier indicated that the London Gold Cup at Newbury - often one of the most informative early season handicaps- could be on the agenda and Haggas concurred, adding: "Something like that, absolutely.
"Nice progressive horse but still nowhere near the finished article."
Sea The Storm put her experience to good use in the 10 furlong novice on debut for the stable, beating stablemate and newcomer Pierian by a neck with the pair pulling clear.
Sea The Storm had made a winning racecourse debut on soft ground last September for David Menuisier before finishing second in a German Group 3 the following month.
"I thought she did really well," Haggas continued. "She, again, was pretty green.
"Sea The Storm has got ability and today was about getting her to do it the right way, be relaxed, everything beforehand and in the race, and she was really good, so relaxed in fact that she hardly switched on at all.
"She won but I don't think she quite realised she had a race.
"I think you'll see her to best effect over a longer trip. We've had one or two Sea The Stars out of Monsun mares and they've been fabulous and they've stayed really well.
"I thought the second horse ran really well because she hasn't really shown us a whole lot at home so I was really pleased with her."
Haggas and Marquand were not the only pair to double up as Ed Walker and Kieren Shoemark continued their fine start to the 2026 turf season.
Passing Thought (17/2) got the ball rolling, coming home strongly to win the seven furlong handicap, before Secret History (7/4) justified favouritism in the next.
Joanna Mason was another jockey to double up although she did have to share the spoils with Sean Kirrane in the opener after a dead-heat was called between. It was another close call in the finale with Mason and Glory Hyde (9/2) coming out on top by a neck.
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