Horse Racing: Two Cody Morgan-trained horses selected for The Kosciuszko

It's not that he has found the secret elixir to success. No, the Tamworth-based trainer has simply begun to understand how to get the best out of himself and his horses on the biggest stage of his career.

"In my fourth year, it's still as exciting [to have horses selected]," Morgan said.

"But I'm getting a lot better with the pressure. Where before you'd have a lot of sleepless nights, now you do the very best you can, and that's all you can do.

"The first couple of years, I was really riding the highs and the lows of it."

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Unsurprisingly, when the ticket draws for the $2 million race were announced on Friday, Morgan soon got calls about two horses that punters wanted to see run.

The first selected was Talbragar, by Scott Williams of the Tatts Hotel Inverell syndicate, which came as no surprise to the trainer.

The next was Broken Hill, by Revesby ticket winner Craig Lynne, which did take Morgan aback.

"I thought Ezekiel may have been picked before Broken Hill, just on his credentials," he said.

"I was pretty confident that [Talbragar would be selected]. We spelled him for this in mind."

Broken Hill, a five-year-old gelding trained by Morgan since mid-2022, has strung an impressive run of three wins from three starts over the last 12 months.

Talbragar, meanwhile, has become infamous among Morgan's staff for his unpredictability around the stables. But on race day, he has proven remarkably consistent with five wins from seven starts.

These two, Morgan said, both stand a strong chance.

"I've learnt a lot about the race over the years," he said.

"We've had lightly-raced horses in the race before, and they've gone down there with a distance query. And this year, I said 'Whatever horse is lucky enough to be picked for this race, unless they've been very competitive at 1,200 in the past, you're wasting your time'.

"You get beaten up enough times down there, you realise that you need to go there with a horse that can really run 1,200 metres, so I was very mindful of that. And the two that have been selected can both run 1,200 metres strongly."

Only horses that are trained in the ACT or NSW country are eligible for the Kosciuszko, which will this year be run on October 14.

It is, Morgan said, a fantastic initiative to bring high stakes to country racing.

"It's the richest country race in the world. To be a part of it again is a huge thrill," he said.

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