Aidan O'Brien is nervous - he knows this horse could fill a Galileo-shaped hole

If you were in the grandstands or betting ring on a humid afternoon at Sandown, you will have heard the occasional burst of Football's Coming Home or God Save The Queen. If you were Tom Marquand or David Egan entering the closing stages of the Coral-Eclipse, you will have heard a rapid and ominous whoosh.

It was the sound made by St Mark's Basilica as he swept past two mighty athletes, both giving their all in vain. The sight made by a dazzling new star of the Flat was equally thrilling.

So many things meant this Eclipse was a bit different. There was that strange soundtrack produced without request by several musically ambitious racegoers. There was the fact only 4,000 people were allowed through the gates. It also felt rather odd to have just four runners contesting one of the year's middle-distance highlights.