Starzz align after 10 years for hobby trainer

Echuca harness racing hobby trainer Matt Beecroft recently landed his first winner in nearly 10 years, but it’s almost certain that he won’t have to wait too long for his next!

Beecroft, who has on-course stables at his home track, was one of many to cheer on six-year-old mare Four Starzzz Ruby (Four Starzzz Shark) in what was a popular result.

“Ruby”, as the horse is known, was an all-the-way winner in the Rich River Golf Club Pace at Echuca on June 21. Competent freelance reinsman Leigh Sutton handled the pacer.

“I usually only have one horse in work at a time. I have a great job as a welder and start pretty early so doing just the one suits me,” Beecroft said.

Beecroft paid only $1500 for the only foal to come from three times winner Atalanta Jewel (Life Sign).

“I’d heard word-of-mouth that she may have been for sale,” Beecroft said.

“She was bred by the Kiel family from Swan Hill and had been racing up at Mildura. I race horses with my older brother Clint, who is a project manager in Perth and we bought her together.

“The win was her 11th start for us and I’d been happy with her because she’d finished second on three occasions as well as one third.”

The Beecroft brothers bred and raced Grand Assassin (Town Champion), a 25/1 winner at Shepparton on October 15, 2013—their previous victory prior to “Ruby” getting the job done.

But Beecroft said he hadn’t raced a great number since then.

“There was a two or three year period when I didn’t even take a horse to the races. But I love doing them and I reckon we are going to have some fun with ‘Ruby’ because she is really still learning,” he said.

“I gave her a bit of a break after her win. We thought she deserved it and hopefully we’ll be back at the races next Tuesday night at Echuca.”

Matt has been involved with standardbreds since childhood.

“I’ve always been around horses here because I was born and bred in Echuca. I worked at Alabar Farms for five years and also spent a lot of time, including after school, with the Lindberg family, who are my uncle and aunty,” Matt said.

“Our late dad Alan loved horses and while he never trained or drove, he helped out around the stables for Leigh Kent.

“Leigh was stabled at the Echuca track and raced horses with the prefix ‘Grand’. I would have been 10 years old when he let me do some jog work with a quiet old horse named Grand Safari. I remember the sulky had a big bus seat. I now race in Leigh Kent’s old colors which is special.”

by Terry Gange, for Harnesslink