![Ash Morgan on Shemran gets the inside run to win the 1890m maiden plate at Newcastle Racecourse on Tuesday. Picture by Simone De Peak Ash Morgan on Shemran gets the inside run to win the 1890m maiden plate at Newcastle Racecourse on Tuesday. Picture by Simone De Peak](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/ChN2GeGbsrYvYqhWaZEXS7/b1f2921f-ce7e-47a9-a1a2-84542c00faaf.jpg/r0_203_4412_3219_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Newcastle-based Welsh jockey Ash Morgan went to second in the state premiership with a double at his home track on Tuesday.
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Morgan rose to 44.5 winners, just ahead of Jason Collett (44) and behind only Tyler Schiller (48), to continue a strong start to the season.
He took Kim Waugh-trained Shemran ($19) along the rail to claim the 1890-metre maiden plate by 0.37 of a length before pushing Rebel's Edge ($8) to victory for Muswellbrook trainer Cassandra Stummer in the benchmark 64 handicap (1500m) for colts, geldings and entires.
It was a fifth win in 30 starts for five-year-old Rebel's Edge, which Morgan raced midfield before coming with a run down the outside.
They hit the front at the 200m mark and held off a late challenge from Olivia's Spirit to prevail by 0.15 of a length.
The success followed a second in the Guyra Cup at Armidale when second-up.
"He's just a really tough horse, he just toughed it out," Stummer told Sky Racing.
"I thought he got there a bit early but I'm really happy.
"Ash knows him and he knows when he gets out, he can half-bolt, so he did the right thing by taking him back."
Morgan was impressed with Rebel's Edge fight late.
"He was very good," he said.
"I've ridden him a fair few times and that's the best he's been by a long way.
"He jumped well and I actually ended up further back than I needed to, but he travelled really well and I just got there quick. Quicker than I ever expected.
"But he felt the other horses coming and he was tough."
Shemran, a four-year-old So You Think gelding, broke through at his sixth start. Morgan raced him midfield on the fence before a clear run opened up on the inside.
"I got a lovely run," he said. "My only concern was it took me until about the 1000 to get him to actually spit the bit. He just overraced a bit.
"I saved the ground and it probably helped him being inside horses because he can just wander a touch.
"He's still immature and I was going to go get there and I just regathered him and put my stick away and when I did that he lost concentration, so it was a good win. He's going to improve because he's not there mentally, so it was a good effort."
Veteran local trainer Charlie Porter was another winner on the day when seven-year-old Mr Polar was strong first-up to hold out a wall of challengers in the last, a benchmark 68 (900m).
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