The eight-year-old daughter of the sire Ponder, Wandanas Advice was having only her eighth start in a race - all since March this year - and was driven to victory by Shepparton horsewoman Laura Crossland for Kyabram trainer Paul Fidge.
It was Fidge’s first win in Victoria after moving from his training base at Two Wells in South Australia last year.
Fridge trained one of South Australia’s top trotters of the past decade, Pocketfullofcash, whose 19 career wins included the South Australian Trotters Cup in 2017.
Although she had not raced since May 5, four minor placings in her first seven career runs was good enough to encourage punters to send Wandanas Advice out a $3.20 chance and second favourite.
Although getting a little tired in the concluding stages, she comfortably held off the fast finishing Col Godden-trained Clever Cowboy with the Sharon Hahn-prepared roughie The Butcher finishing a cheeky third.
Wandanas Advice is owned and was bred by veteran Echuca trots stalwart Brian De Bernardi and is out of the Perfect Art mare Wandanas Lombo, a winner of four races.
De Bernardi said the mare was the last foal he will breed and there was a list of reasons as long as your arm as to why she had taken so long to get to the races.
‘‘She’s had a few trainers and something always went wrong. Then she broke down and had to have (a) pin inserted in her hock so had to be put out in the paddock for a couple of years.
‘‘On vet’s advice I had to get her somewhere where she could get a lot of swimming and that’s how she ended up with Paul because he’s at Kyabram and there is a facility there to swim them.’’
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