Melanie O'Gorman's So Country set for Tamworth Country Championships qualifier

Suncraze won the Hunter and North West Racing Association Country Championships Qualifier at Scone in 2018 and So Country will contest this year's version of the race at Tamworth on Sunday. Suncraze was competitive in the final at Randwick, finishing seventh, and went on to finish second in The Kosciuszko that same year.

"It was a huge thrill to win the heat with Suncraze," O'Gorman said. "I remember it so clearly, there were some very good horses in the heat.

Read more: Melanie O'Gorman and Suncraze: duo formed a formidable combination

"Even though the Country Championships concept was still in its early days I could sense - and I felt a lot of trainers could sense - that this was going to build into something really special for country horses, owners and trainers and we've seen that now.

"The realist in me knew how hard it would be to find another horse like Suncraze, which also won two TAB Highways and a Benchmark 85 race in Sydney. I had him since he was a yearling and he won almost $600,000 in prizemoney."

O'Gorman has been patient with five-year-old gelding So Country, which has only had the 10 starts for four wins and four seconds.

His only race this campaign resulted in a last-stride win in the Town Plate over 1100m at Gilgandra on January 2 and the trainer has supplemented that with one barrier trial leading into the race and two since.

"I purchased So Country as a yearling and I know the horse really well," she said.

"His trackwork was outstanding from very early on and he has developed into a very consistent and honest horse and when your horse shows good potential you hope he'll eventually measure up to this level.

"I pinpointed the Town Plate at Gilgandra from a long way out for him. As an open 1100-metre race on cup day I knew it would attract some good, fast horses and that there would be speed on, which suits him because he can sit off it and try to get cover.

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"I also thought he needed one more win just to boost his rating, so that we would definitely get a run in the heat at Tamworth. It's such a competitive area you really need a horse with a high rating just to get into the field. So it was really important to me that he won that race."

The first two placegetters in the $150,000 qualifier will advance to the $500,000 Newhaven Park Country Championships Final at Randwick on April 1.

So Country has twice won over 1200 metres, but Sunday's race will be his first attempt at 1400.

"If we can be conservative and get cover in the first 300 metres of the race, I think that gives him every chance to run out the 1400," O'Gorman said.

"I'm very happy with him. His last trial at Scone I just needed him to tick along like he did. I don't trial him in the blinkers, I don't ask too much of him ever in his trials. Mikayla (Weir) did a great job just restraining him early and letting him work to the line under his own steam. He's ready to go."

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