Jamie Poulton gave a wry smile at Goodwood on Wednesday as he watched his stable star Crocodile Dundee caught on the line by Manyana in the Predominate Stakes.

Not only had the colt missed out on the £13,500 first prize but Jamie is preparing to say au revoir to a horse he "nicked" at the sales in Paris just 13 months ago.

He said: "We have had a good offer for Crocodile Dundee to go to Hong Kong and, although the owner will be sorry to lose the horse, we have to be commercial about these things. Mind you, I think the price may have to go up after that performance."

Crocodile Dundee was the 33-1 outsider of seven in this so-called Derby Trial. Given a peach of a ride by the under-rated Johnny Egan, Crocodile Dundee led inside the last furlong, only to have Manyana swoop on him at the death.

The form, with Chester Vase winner Red Lancer in third place, looks useful if not up to classic-winning standard.

It was just 14 months ago that Ron Huggins, boss of Maidstone paper company Kimberley Clark, sent a fax message to Poulton at his stable near Lewes.

Poulton said: "Mr Huggins owned Double Trigger, who won three Goodwood Cups but his trainer, Mark Johnston, is 240 miles away in Yorkshire and Mr Huggins lives in Kent. He wanted to be near his horses so he could drop in and see them when he had an hour or so to spare."

Huggins and Poulton attended the Saint Cloud sales on Grand National Day last year and bought both Crocodile Dundee and Tiger Tiger for comparatively modest sums.

Both horses have won in the red and green Huggins' colours but Jamie ruefully admits that Crocodile Dundee's best effort was in defeat at Goodwood.

He said: "He has run the race of his life and John Egan gave him a fantastic ride. It would have been nice if he had won, but he will leave us with some very happy memories."

Luckily, there is an unraced four-year-old in the yard by Double Trigger which Huggins bred himself, plus an unnamed Double Trigger two-year-old, so the hope is that one of those will be good enough to take Crocodile Dundee's place.

Huggins is a hands-on owner who likes to be kept in touch and visits regularly.

Poulton said: "He never puts me under pressure to run his horses, he is patient and gives me time, which pays off in the end."

The small yard of 22 boxes is full up at present and Jamie is planning to build more stables.

Jamie is now in his eighth year as a licensed trainer. "I came up through the point-to-point world with a livery yard. My wife Camilla is the backbone of the operation.

"She has three children to look after as well but still manages to find time to ride out and do all sorts of other jobs around the place. She's dedicated and I'm lucky to have her around."

Most of the horses in training are for flat racing but two jumpers likely to run soon are the four-year-old Private Benjamin, who may go to Fontwell on Wednesday, and Tommy Carson, now recovered from a serious infection.

Tiger Tiger also ran at Goodwood on Tuesday. "I was pleased with his run but he will need a couple of weeks off now," said Jamie. He prefers the ground good to soft and could be a horse for the Britannia Stakes at Royal Ascot if the conditions are right."

So it's goodbye to Crocodile Dundee but at least one of Jamie's hardworking staff went home a winner. Torie Joyce got the sponsor's prize for best turned out horse in the parade ring. She deserved it, Crocodile Dundee looked outstanding.