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By John Curtis

Karen Outtrim kept the faith!

The Hawkesbury trainer was rewarded when her $1200 purchase Australian Citizen at his 26th appearance gave his rivals a start and beating to post his first win at Kembla Grange on Saturday, as a $41 outsider.

Ridden by Winona Costin, Australian Citizen was slow to begin, but sustained a determined run in the straight to nab Per Capita ($3) on the post in the Maiden Plate (1600m).

Winona Costin returns aboard Australian Citizen at Kembla Grange. Image by Bradley Photographers

“It’s been a long time coming, but he has always shown some ability,” Outtrim said.

“I bought Australian Citizen (who was originally named Irish Gypsy) online through bloodstockauction.com nearly two years ago when he was in Queensland and had not raced.

“He is well-bred by More Than Ready from a stakes-winning mare Averau (the 2015 Listed Bagot Handicap winner at Flemington, who died in January this year).

“Australian Citizen was sound when we got him, but had some issues. His main problem was that he was climbing in his races and didn’t know how to gallop properly.

“He did nothing at his first preparation, and we just had to educate him.”

Australian Citizen did not begin racing until an early four-year-old in October, 2021 when last of eight in a 4YO & Upwards Maiden Handicap (1300m) at Hawkesbury.

He was placed at his sixth, seventh and eighth starts at Wyong, Goulburn and Hawkesbury in April and May last year, and his only other placing was at Wyong in late March when third of six runners over 2100m.

“I had been racing Australian Citizen over distances around 2000m, and one of his jockeys said we needed to do something different as he just wasn’t running those trips strongly.

“So I put visors on him for his previous run, and dropped him back to 1600m.

“Winona gave him a great ride, saving ground on the inside after he was slowly away, and then everything went our way when she got a good gap after straightening.

“Now that Australian Citizen has broken through, hopefully he can go on with the job.”

Outtrim never has more than a few horses in work, and this was her second win of the season.

Her first was with Dragon’s Shadow in a Benchmark 58 Handicap (2000m) at Bathurst on August 22 last year on a heavy track.

Outtrim’s victory at Kembla Grange was the first of a weekend roughie double for Hawkesbury trainers.

Phil and Tara Vigouroux followed their recent success with Zouologist in the Diggers Cup (1300m) at Narromine by winning the Class 1/Maiden Plate (1600m) at Mudgee on Sunday with $31 chance Bandolero.

With 2kg claiming apprentice William Stanley aboard, Bandolero beat another outsider, Encyclopedia ($41), and $1.95 favourite Thorpe, to clinch his second win at his 21st start.

A four-year-old by Cox Plate winner Shamus Award from the King of Kings mare Queen of Queens, Bandolero’s breakthrough victory was in a 1600m Maiden Plate at Queanbeyan in February.

Team Vigouroux had hoped to claim a Mudgee double with Zouologist in consecutive races, and though he ran well as a $12 chance, he wasn’t able to match the finish of Constructionmaster ($9.50), who beat him easily.