Munce stable chases Tattersall’s Tiara with in-form mares

Chris and Corey Munce will take Gerringong and Poster Girl into Saturday's Tattersall’s Tiara at Eagle Farm, chasing a Group 1 payoff after a weekend that produced four wins and two minor placings from eight runners. The 1400-metre weight-for-age feature for fillies and mares is worth $700,000 and closes Queensland's season with the final Group 1 on the Australian calendar.

The Munce pair is built on two different profiles, and that is what makes this more than a stable story. Gerringong arrives after finishing second to She’s Got Pizzazz in the Group 2 Dane Ripper Stakes at Eagle Farm, a result that came on heavy ground just 10 days ago after she joined the yard in late autumn from Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott. Nash Rawiller keeps the ride from barrier 13, and the mare’s recent form gives the stable a live top-level chance if the track firms up as expected.

Poster Girl brings a steadier résumé and just as much interest. She has six wins and five placings from 20 starts, takes barrier 15 and will be ridden by Martin Harley. Chris Munce has pointed to the pair’s turn of foot as a key asset and has made it clear that a dry surface would help both mares, while the outside draws mean race position could matter as much as raw ability in a big field.

That field is deep enough to turn the race into a genuine test of proof. Racenet’s 2026 list counted 18 runners after emergencies and six Queensland-trained horses, with Splash Back, Abounding, Manaal, Tuileries, Midnight in Tokyo, Firestorm, Ahha Ahha, Savagery Vibe, Blindedbythelight, Paradise City, Soft Love and Within the Law among the names in the mix, plus emergency Bengal Diamond. The numbers on the draw add another layer: barrier 7 has produced four recent Tiara winners, while barrier 3 has delivered three since 1983.

History gives the Munce mares a useful road map and a high bar. The race was first run in 1989 as the Winter Stakes, became the Tattersall’s Tiara in 2011 and has carried Group 1 status since 2007, usually at Eagle Farm but with exceptions at Gold Coast in 2015 and Doomben in 2017. Dane Ripper, Srikandi and Tofane have all completed the Stradbroke-Tiara double, and Tashi won last year after running second in the Dane Ripper, which is exactly the kind of form line that keeps Gerringong in the conversation.

Racing Queensland has returned the Queensland Racing Carnival to Eagle Farm for the card, which also features the $200,000 Battle of the Bush Final. For the Munce stable, the Tiara is the chance to turn a strong run of form into something more durable: a first-rate finish to the season on the biggest local stage.