BENDIGO trainer Shane Fliedner made it back-to-back wins on Mondays with the victory of Clever Spark at Echuca this week.
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The four-year-old mare survived a late surge by the Patrick Payne-trained favourite Hedley's Lady to salute over the 1200m distance.
Her maiden win arrived in start number three for the mare, who was wearing blinkers for the first time.
"She had just the winkers on at Swan Hill (on October 1) when Damien Thornton rode her, and she drew badly at the gate and he looked after her," Fliedner told broadcaster Racing.com
"She finished off (the race) not too bad and he said 'put a set of blinkers on and ride her a bit more forward' and she wouldn't be too far away. He was spot on.
"She dug in deep."
Clever Spark, the daughter of Group 2 and Group 3-winner Kuroshio and Dual Spark, was nicely ridden by Fliedner's nephew Harry Coffey, who finds himself in career-best form with a 30 per cent win strike-rate in his last 50 rides.
"I'm having a really good run - I haven't had a run like this since I was claiming in town, so you forget what it feels like," he said.
"The claim was a beautiful thing, but it's nice to be back rolling and getting some nice winners, and winning horses that are extremely well-placed in their right races.
"Shane just said I'd like you to be a little more positive than in her previous starts - I don't think he meant lead, but I took the race by the scruff of the neck.
"I didn't have a lot left at the end, but she showed a great will to win and got her head down at the right time."
Clever Spark's win came exactly seven days after that of Queen Guinevere in a stayer's race at Benalla to give Fliedner his back-to-back Monday victories.
Racing today is at Kyneton.
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