Lost property

I went down to Bentley in Hampshire today to visit SeaZone. Managed to leave my coat on the train, cursed thinking "well I was due for a new one" but walked into the tiny station office where the sole employee just picked up the phone and called his colleague at the next station (end of line) and sure enough someone cleaning the train handed my coat in and I was able to pick it up later on. Why do I think that would not have happened if the train had been going in the other direction towards Waterloo?