Tasmania: Honest Stella defies pattern
By Adam Williams, March 23, 2017 - 6:25 AM

On pace was the place to be at Launceston on Wednesday night, with the Bill Ryan-trained Stella Etoile the only winner to come from worse than midfield.
The daughter of Azevedo was aided by an excellent ride by Brendon McCoull, who weaved a passage through the field after being momentarily held up on a couple of occasions, taking the benchmark 72 handicap over 1400 metres in the last couple of hops.
The super-honest six-year-old mare has now won seven of her 39 outings and has placed on another 14 occasions.
Siggy Carr took riding honours at the meeting with a pair of victories.
She opened her account aboard the Peter Luttrell-trained Westerly Haze, who led throughout at his first run back from a break in the open-age maiden plate over 1200 metres.
The Team Wells-trained Gee Gees Free Hero completed Carr’s double, scoring an overdue win in the 1400-metre maiden plate.
The Wordsmith gelding had placed at seven of his previous 12 outings and had been a beaten favourite on several occasions.
It has been a lean season by Adam Trinder’s lofty standards, with just 10 wins prior to Wednesday night after finishing runner-up in the trainers’ premiership with 58 wins last season, but he was able to prepare a double at Launceston.
The former top jumps jockey kicked off with Mystic Spirit, who came from just off the pace to take the night’s opener, a maiden/Class 1 plate over 1600 metres, under Bulent Muhcu.
Trinder went on to take the fourth heat of the national apprentice series, a Class 1 handicap over 1400 metres with Ariconte, who led throughout under local two-kilo claimer Shiralee Maher.

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