The $150,000 Western Districts Country Championships Qualifier is set to go ahead on Tuesday after rain forced Sunday's meeting to be abandoned after just two events.
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Heavy rain fell all morning at the track and surface water on the track became the issue for jockeys.
Chief Steward of the Central and Western Districts, Todd Smith, confirmed there were roughly four 30m stretches of the track which were of real concern and the surface water was up to two inches deep in those areas.
He also confirmed the plan was to complete the remaining seven races - including the Country Championships Qualifier - at the Coonamble track on Tuesday.
The only meeting in NSW currently planned for Tuesday is at Hawkesbury.
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There was the chance no races would be run on Sunday as the jockeys held a vote prior to the first whether to continue or not.
The race went ahead and was taken out by the Damien Lane-trained Tidal Impact, but winning jockey Darryl McLellan admitted afterwards the surface water was a worry, especially with later races to be run over more ground.
"I didn't get behind a horse so I was pretty lucky but we had real concerns about it up the back (straight) but we only had to run 200m on that and then it was good," he told Sky Thoroughbred Central at the time.
"It's waterlogged up the back ... we might find some bother if it keeps raining."
McLellan also confirmed a number of jockeys didn't want to contest the first race.
"The way the insurances are these days we haven't got that much protection so it wasn't us being weak, just looking after our lives," he said.
Tuesday's Western Districts Qualifier is the final heat of the Country Championships series, with the Wild Card to be run at Muswellbrook next Sunday before the $500,000 final at Randwick on April 3.
The first two past the post on Tuesday go through to that final while other contenders could potentially face a short back-up and race at Muswellbrook should trainers remain keen on qualifying.
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Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
