Symon Wilde, Laura Lafferty and Ciaron Maher showcase Warrnambool on national racing stage

Tolemac, with Will Gordon in the saddle, defeated Riding High by 12 lengths with Bee Tee Junior back in third place to take out the $150,000 jumps feature.

Wilde said Tolemac appreciated the heavy track while stablemate Britannicus was not at home in the heavy going.

"Tolemac loves heavy ground," Wilde said.

"The steeplechase track was heavier than we thought it would be. It suited Tolemac but Britannicus is a bit of a duffer on that sort of ground.

"The slow racing tempo really suited Tolemac and he was in well at the weights. Tolemac appears to have plenty of upside. He's now had two steeplechase starts for two wins.

"I thought the ride by Will Gordon was very good. He never panicked at any stage."

Tolemac's next start could be the $125,000 Thackeray Steeplechase at Warrnambool on July 2.

"The Thackeray is usually run on a heavy track which is right up Tolemac's alley," Wilde said.

"I'm not sure what we'll do going forward with Britannicus. We'll see how he pulls up before making future plans."

Wilde's previous winners in the Australian Steeplechase are Britannicus (2022), Gold Medals (2017) and Megapixel (2012).

Young jumps jockey Campbell Rawiller won his first big jumps feature riding the Eric Musgrove-trained Circle The Sun to victory in the $150,000 Australian Hurdle.

Circle The Sun beat San Remo and Blanford Lad to win the 3900-metre contest.

Meanwhile, apprentice jockey Laura Lafferty took her metropolitan winning tally to 14 when she booted home two winners at Flemington on Saturday.

The Patrick Payne-trained Jenny Jerome gave Lafferty her first Flemington victory and she added another win in the next race with the Peter Moody-trained Sigh who was too strong for her rivals.

The city double follows on from her other Melbourne metropolitan double at Sandown last month.

The former Warrnambool Emmanuel College student said she was thrilled to have ridden a double at the historic racecourse.

"I thought I had been riding well but was not getting the opportunities. It's all about getting the chances," she said.

"I'm grateful for the support I've received from trainers in particular Patrick Payne and Peter Moody.

"Sigh jumped away slowly after being in the gates for a while. I thought she was the best horse in the race and she showed that. It was a good win.

"Jenny Jerome was part of my Sandown double a couple of weeks ago so she's been pretty special to me."

Lafferty, who has ridden 126 winners in her career, is due to finish her apprenticeship in September but may seek an extension.

Meanwhile, Ciaron Maher kept up his dominance in feature Adelaide races winning the $500,000 Group 1 Goodwood Handicap with Royal Merchant at Morphettville on Saturday.

Royal Merchant gave Maher, who trains in partnership with David Eustace, a third Adelaide Group 1 victory in four weeks.

The Adelaide winning strike rate started for Maher with Affaire A Suivre winning the Australasian Oaks before Ruthless Dame took out the Sangster Stakes. Promises Kept ran second in the South Australian Derby last week which broke the feature race winning sequence for Maher.

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