SPREYTON trainer Leon Wells celebrated a double in Launceston on Wednesday night courtesy of two last-to-first efforts.
Barely A Secret rattled home from last to take out the Balmoral on York 3YO and Upward Maiden Plate over 1400 metres and in the following race his stablemate Aslanyon mirrored that effort in a benchmark 78 handicap over the same journey.
Barely A Secret was coming off a very ordinary effort when fourth in a 2100-metre race in Hobart on October 6 but Wells admitted he may have erred by backing the mare up too quickly.
“I probably should not have backer her up only a week after the previous run so there were excuses in Hobart at her previous start,” Wells said.
Ï still believe she will be good at 2100 metres but I will just make sure we don’t back her up so quickly next time,” he said.
Aslanyon had finished fourth in a field of eight in Hobart over 1600m behind Neil’s Gold but going into this latest assignment Wells was super confident of success.
“I thought Aslanyon was clearly my best winning chance tonight,” he said after the win.
“I believed the race would be run to suit with a hot pace on and when she gets that sort of tempo she is always going to hard to beat in this grade,” he said.
Barely A Secret was ridden by apprentice Rasit Yetimova while Aslanyon was ridden by Anthony Darmanin sho picked up the ride when booked jockey Stephen Maskiell was forced to relinquish all of his rides because of illness.
Darmanin had ridden Aslanyon at two of her the previous assignments and he was keen to make amends for an error in judgement on one of those rides.
Ï am just so glad I could repay Leon and the owners for messing it up two starts back,” Darmanin said.