With no Highway race on the card at Randwick last Saturday, country stables had to wait until the last of 10 races to get the chocolates.
Lightly raced Scone five-year-old Wanaruah had taken on red-hot company over 1000 metres on the same track when resuming a month earlier, running last of 12 behind Everest fancies Tempted and Headwall in the Group 2 Concorde Stakes.
Back to benchmark 94 company and up to 1200 metres last Saturday off a winning trial at Newcastle, Wanaruah still attracted little support, easing from $12 to $18 before a minor late rally to start at $17.
Apprentice William Stanley made full use of barrier one, leading on the fence before easing out on the turn and fending off his immediate challengers.
Kiwi gelding Platinum Pantheon flew down the outside at the finish to give caller Darren Flindell an impossible task in the gathering gloom, but the photo showed Wanaruah had held on to improve his second-up record to three starts for three wins.
Wanaruah has now had five starts for co-trainers Brett and Georgie Cavanough, having begun his career with Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott.
He’s won three of those five for the Cavanoughs including the listed Bob Charley Stakes.
As a stakes-winning son of Snitzel from a Group 2-winning mare, Wanaruah — who is raced by his breeder, Fernrigg Farm — may yet have a future at stud.
Around the traps
Speaking of tight finishes, there was an absolute thriller at Moruya last Friday when local mare Hurry Miss ($5) nosed out $2.20 favourite Let’s Go Again in the $42,000 Legend of the South (1300m).
Trained on track by Matthew Dale, Hurry Miss was ridden by Jean Van Overmeire, who went on to take the following race, a $50,000 Super Maiden (1200m), aboard $1.90 favourite Coco Dior for Kembla Grange-based training partners Mitchell Beer and George Carpenter. 
Brodie Loy and apprentice Deon Le Roux also rode doubles to share riding honours with Overmeire. 
At Dubbo the same day, Clayton Gallagher booted home four winners on the eight-race program.
At the Lockhart picnics, former leading Southern Districts jockey turned Wagga trainer Mick Travers led in three winners including Roullottie ($3.50) in the feature Verandah Town Cup (1400m). 
All three of Travers’s winners were ridden by Bessie Dimery. Emily Waters rode the other three winners, two of them for Tumbarumba-based Mont Waters. 
The following day at Newcastle, Rory Hutchings combined with Sydney trainer Michael Freedman to take the first two races on the program. 
Aaron Bullock also rode a double and his second winner, Beneath The Rock, a four-year-old mare trained locally by Kris Lees, was impressive winning the 1200-metre, benchmark 64 by three lengths as a $2.90 favourite. 
The Unite And Conquer mare now has two wins and a third from three starts and should pay to follow in the weeks ahead. 
Country feature winners last Saturday included Sorry Sunshine ($4.40) in the Wagga Picnic Cup (1800m) for local trainer Doug Gorrel, and $1.50 favourite Shamedy in the Bundarra Cup for Inverell trainer Todd Payne.
Josh Richards and apprentice Paige Fergusson-Smith were the respective winning riders. 
Sunday’s feature Cootamundra Cup (1600m) went to the Canberra-based family stable of Barb Joseph, Paul Jones and Matt Jones, with Belleistic Kids ($10) leading all the way under apprentice Jordan Quince.
The win brought up a double for the Joseph/Jones team as they’d earlier won the 1200-metre Class 1 with Navajo Code ($26), ridden by another two-kilo claimer in Claire Ramsbotham. 
At Ballina the same day, Dylan Turner and apprentice Jett Newman both rode doubles.
Port power
This Friday the focus turns to Port Macquarie for its Showcase meeting, highlighted by the $200,000 Port Macquarie Cup (2000m), a Big Dance eligibility race. Support races include the $80,000 Port Macquarie Sprint (1200m), the $50,000 Hastings Cup (1500m) and a $50,000 Super Maiden (1200m). 
Sunday is cup day at Coonamble, with the feature over 1600 metres and worth $75,000. Supporting races include the $37,000 Crystal Sprint (1200m) and a $50,000 Super Maiden (1300m).  
There’s also a $50,000 Super Maiden at Queanbeyan, that one over 1460 metres.

Congrats to Col and co
Congratulations to winners of this year’s Racing NSW country awards, in particular caller Col Hodges OAM, honoured with the Simon Nivison Special Achievement Award.
Country trainer of the year was Matt Dunn, country jockey of the year Pierre Boudvillain, country apprentice of the year Jacob Stiff and picnic jockey of the year Leandro Ribeiro.
The country club of the year (category A) was the Murrumbidgee Turf Club. The Gundagai-Adelong Race Club won for categories B and C, while Deepwater Jockey Club won the Outstanding Achievement Award (community and picnics).