Luke Cartwright made his mark at Bendigo’s Golden Mile Raceday, securing his first metropolitan win with a fortunate double.

The Mornington apprentice claimed a milestone victory when he guided Heavenly Eagle to an upset win in race three, followed by another victory aboard Manolo Bling two races later.

The Golden Mile Raceday is Victoria’s feature meeting of the weekend, and Cartwright, who has experienced some near-misses in Melbourne recently, was thrilled to pick up two wins aboard horses he was not originally booked to ride.

Heavenly Eagle, a fourth emergency, was his ride after Otago was scratched, while he replaced Tom Prebble aboard Manolo Bling after losing the ride on Reserve Bank on race morning.

“I knew this one (Manolo Bling) was definitely my best ride, and with 51 kilos, I knew she’d be hard to beat,” Cartwright said.

The Anthony and Sam Freedman-trained Manolo Bling won her third race from eight starts, while Heavenly Eagle, trained by Stephen Brown, triumphed after firming from $51 to $26 in official markets with betting sites.