Grahame Begg had the Group 1 Tatts Tiara (1400m) circled a long way out for talented mare Splash Back and the long-range plan came to fruition at Eagle Farm on Saturday.
Since finishing down the track in the Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) at Flemington in the Spring, Begg had set his sights on Queensland and after the likes of Fangirl and Spicy Martini elected not to run, Splash Back went in with the number one saddlecloth.
Jordan Childs was happy to save ground nearer the inside in similar fashion to Splash Back’s first-up win in the Group 2 Victory Stakes (1200m) and speared through aboard the $8.50 chance according to leading Aussie betting sites to win by 1-1/4 lengths over Savagery Vibe ($21) with Gerringong ($5) a further length away in third.
Begg, who won the Tatts Tiara with Bonanova in 1999 and 2000 when the race was a Group 3, said it was a deserved win for Splash Back after two good runs in the Kingsford Smith Cup and the Stradbroke Handicap.
“It’s always been a race that I really love,” Begg said.
“She’s been a beauty, this horse. Since we got her to train, she’s been outstanding. She’s all heart, she just goes out and goes to war for you.”
The victory marked Group One win number 16 for Begg but was just the second time Childs has been aboard, despite Childs having more than twice the number of rides for Begg than any other jockey.
“I gave him (Childs) licence and said, ‘If you’ve got to go back to the inside because there’s nothing wrong with it today,” Begg said.
“The track’s played beautifully… they’ve done an amazing job and they’ve absolutely looked after us a treat. We’ve had a good number of horses here and it’s just great.”
Childs was thrilled to win another Group One having ridden his first aboard Written By for Begg in the 2018 Blue Diamond Stakes before recently winning the Robert Sangster Stakes aboard Geegees Mistruth last month.
“I was able to sneak runs up the inside and coming to the corner, I knew I just needed to unfold the way I needed it to and a few runs to appear,” Childs said.
“Once she did, she really burst through. Great to get another Group One winner for Grahame and especially this horse, she’s been fantastic.”
