Hugh Bowman referred to it as the "Melbourne Cup for country horses" and there's doubt the emotion on show after Saturday's Country Championships Final matched anything which would be seen on the first Tuesday in November.
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There was no dream victory for Dubbo horses Westlink and Sons Of Bourke, or Mudgee pair Ori On Fire and Noel's Gift for that matter, as Noble Boy lived up to the billing and scored a commanding win.
Champion jockey Bowman, a proud Dunedoo product, rode Noble Boy to victory, storming down the straight from midfield to announce himself as a genuine horse to watch in the future.
Based at Queanbeyan and brought to town by rookie trainer Todd Blowes, Noble Boy ($3.10 favourite) won by almost two lengths from Lucciola Belle ($26) and Bennelong Dancer ($9).
It was a sweet win for Blowes, Bowman and connections, after the talented gelding was forced to qualify via the Wild Card at Muswellbrook having disappointed as favourite in the Goulburn heat.
"It's great to do it for Queanbeyan, and for Dunedoo," Bowman said immediately after the win.
Westlink ($10), trained by Darren Hyde and going into the race after winning the $150,000 heat at Dubbo on February 10, got away perfectly under leading jockey Adam Hyeronimus and sat second early while Cameron Crockett's Ori On Fire ($26) was just behind.
Westlink loomed large behind leader Safe Landing ($26) at the top of straight, but the cream of the field soon rose to the top.
Bowman got the hulking Noble Boy to lift and from there it was never in doubt.
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Noble Boy, who was worked on by the farrier just prior to the race, moved through the middle of the field at the 350m mark and went on to score a convincing win.
Westlink hung on to won a creditable fifth while Ori On Fire was ninth, Gayna Williams' Noel's Gift was 11th and Sons Of Bourke, trained by Clint Lundholm, finished at the back of the field in 15th place and was always up against after rain in Sydney leading up to the race.
Prior to the running of the final, Hyde had said he would have been pleased with a top five finish with Westlink.
Hyeronimus was pleased with Westlink's run but said post-race the track, rated a soft 7, made it that bit tougher for the four-year-old gelding.
"I thought he went great, coming to the turn I thought he was going to be right into it, but once he came off the bridle, he just wasn't able to find on that track," Hyeronimus said.
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While it was positive for Hyeronimus and Hyde, Blowes and his connections were on cloud nine.
"For once I wasn't worried," Blowes said.
Throwing the shoe there before the race wasn't ideal but I was pretty happy with the horse, the way he stood there, and Hughie just pushed all the right buttons and it opened up.
"It's unbelievable. It's a real wow factor. Hopefully it's on to bigger and better things."
Bowman, who had Group 1 races to look forward to later in the meeting, was as equally delighted.
"I know it's a grand final for the country horses, it's not the Doncaster, not the Queen Elizabeth or Cox Plate but it holds a special place in my heart being from country NSW," he said.