pounced late to land the William Hill
in a blanket finish and give William Haggas a fifth success in the
race.
The 15-2 chance was ridden by Cieren Fallon in a field of 22 but looked to have a great deal of work to do throughout the mile contest.
Tony Martin’s Orandi hit the front inside the final furlong, attempting to create history as the first horse to win the Lincoln and the Irish Lincolnshire in the same season.
He was reeled in by George Boughey’s Oliver Show close home and just when that one looked to have done enough, Godwinson showed up.
Fallon produced his mount right on the line to win by a nose with a neck back to the third.
“Every jockey wants to win that race and it’s a great start to the season,” said Fallon, whose father Kieren was victorious in 1993 on High Premium.
“I was quietly confident this morning that if things went our way we had a chance, his work at home had been very good.
“The race panned out perfectly, we were drawn on the wrong side but I was able to tuck in, I got a lot of cover, they went hard and with the strong headwind I was able to pick up when I wanted and he was tough.
“You have to ride him like that and with the ground drying out, it helped us.”
Haggas added: “That was a nice surprise.
“He got a great run through but he gave him a very confident ride. Fair play, that’s what he wanted to do and I thought that was a good idea.
“We thought the ground had dried up a bit too much for him but clearly not.”
Haggas is now the most successful trainer in the history of the Doncaster contest and said: “That’s our fifth time, so that’s great.
“It’s nice to win a race like that and we always try to find one. We don’t always succeed but this year we got lucky.
“I hope that bodes well for the new season, it’s a nice way to start.”
Boughey understandably thought Oliver Show had done enough.
“It looked like he’d got it, he’s run a massive race. He came back from Bahrain in great form,” said Boughey.
“He’s a progressive horse, I thought he was probably maxed out but it looks like there might be a bit left.
“I think we’ll work backwards from the Hunt Cup (at Royal Ascot).”