Trainer Vincent Malady celebrated his first winner for Hirsch Racing when My Yankee Girl coasted to an easy win in the Ritchie’s IGA Mares BM78 Hcp (1200m) at Ballarat on Saturday.
Vincent has been the trainer for Eddie Hirsch since August and My Yankee Girl is among the first horses he has saddled at the races for the prominent owner.
She finished second in the Dual Choice Plate on at Geelong on October 25 and the stable has been patient waiting for a soft track which she got on Saturday.
“Obviously she is suited to soft tracks as she has had a few niggles, and Eddie has been very patient waiting for the right ground for her,” Vincent said,
Ridden by John Allen and heavily backed into $3.40 favourite, My Yankee Girl drifted back to third last but was never more than five lengths off the lead in the eight-horse field.
“I was travelling really well behind the Henry Dwyer horse (Prairie Flower) hoping it would make the gap for us and we just followed it through,” John Allen said.
“My horse loved the soft ground and picked up well.”
My Yankee Girl hit the front at the 200 metres and surged clear under hands and heels riding to score untouched by 1.75 lengths from Prairie Flower ($5) with Holly Lolly ($4.40) another 3/4 lengths back in third.
A recent Kyneton trial win buoyed stable confidence that My Yankee Girl would be hard to beat, especially when steady rain fell at Ballarat.
My Yankee Girl is among 30 horses Vincent trains at Eddie Hirsch’s Woodside Park at Tylden while his Geelong stable has had recent winners Magic Bertie, Always Hapi and Chelsea Toff.