He may not have won the Country Championships final at Randwick on Saturday, but Dubbo trainer Dar Lunn had every right to celebrate like he had.
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The former jockey turned trainer had $251 roughie Not For Export in the race, and while all eyes were on the Coffs Harbour-based winner Free Standing as it shot along the fence to record a dominant win, Lunn’s gelding hit the line strongly to finish third.
The result earned owner and long-time Lunn stable client John Frater a $43,000 pay cheque and took Not For Export’s career earnings past the $110,000 mark.
It also rewarded the faithful punters that had a couple of dollars each way on the local runners, paying in excess of $30 for the place on the NSW tote.
The Eavesdropper x Russian Babe gelding finished third in the Dubbo heat of the series, but qualified for the $400,000 final when Peter Nestor withdrew La La Loopsy due to injury.
Lunn gave Not For Export two runs between the heat and the final and that tactic played out well as the horse’s fitness ensured it was one of the strongest through the line at the end of the 1400m event.
“It was a very good run,” jockey Christian Reith said after the race.
“He probably wants a mile. This was just a fraction too short for him today.”
Not For Export was the first of the four central west runners home, with Gayna Williams’s gallant gelding Galaxy Warrior and James Hatch’s fairytale runner from the back of Bourke, Stoneyrise, sixth and seventh respectively.
“It was a massive run,” Kerrin McEvoy said of Galaxy Warrior, which was trapped four wide for most of the race.
“He was stuck wide the trip. He moved into the race lovely but the wide run just took its toll. Game effort.”
Jake Pracey-Holmes achieved a career highlight when he sat aboard Stoneyrise in the final, and the gelding gave a sight by leading into the home straight before compounding late.
“The plan wasn’t to lead but we were going to get stuck five or six deep so we went forward,” Pracey-Holmes said.
“I think he is better with a sit and chasing another horse.”
Meanwhile, jockey Koby Jennings blamed himself for the unusually poor performance put in by Wellington heat winner Distinctive Look, which was beaten 23 lengths when finishing second last.
“Bad ride. We got put on our head early and he wasn’t the same horse today.”
Free Standing finished second behind Perfect Dare in the opening heat of the series at Grafton back in February, and added his name to the honour roll of the series with also includes inaugural winner Artlee (2015) and last year’s victor Clearly Innocent.
