Country Champs set to star at Royal Randwick on April 1

While the Scott Singleton second-placed, trained Russley Crown raced out in front down the straight, Talbragar, ridden by Aaron Bullock, pegged him back near the line, with another local, The Dramatist, trained by Rod Northam, third.

Trained by Cody Morgan at Tamworth, Talbragar is a home-bred and raced gelding for George Altomonte's Corumbene Stud, the galloper being by Snitzel, from their Golden Slipper winner Overreach (by Exceed And Excel).

Interestingly, Russley Crown was ridden by likeable hoop Rachael Murray who has decided to hang up her race-riding gear for good to concentrate on her local spelling property.

By Victorian-based Shamus Award, Russley Crown was bred and raced by locals Wally and Anne Lanham in partnership, who also scored with Dollar Magic earlier on the program.

Read more: Scone's Pepper stars at Rosehill with Rubick filly Opal Ridge

Sawyer's Gully resident Denis McEnearney, and brother Joe, Spear's Point, Lake Macquarie, were a happy pair after Apache Jewel won his second race in his last three starts.

By Nom Du Jeu, Apache Jewel is a home-bred galloper for Mr McEnearney and is trained at Muswellbrook by Ben Lees.

Real Impact gelding, Akasawa is among the Newhaven Park Country Championship Final's favourites after winning the Hunter and North-West Racing Association's qualifier.

The final field is gathered from winners of the regional racing association's qualifying events conducted around the state in recent times and is among the races during the first day of Sydney's The Championships.

A major feature on Canberra's recent flagship race day underlined the strength of horses that have contended the highly successful Racing NSW Country Championships and The Kosciuszko.

The hotly contested National Sprint - LR, was won by Another One - winner of the 2022 Newhaven Park Country Championship Final at Randwick.

The Garry Colvin, Wagga Wagga, trained Super One gelding defeated last year's National Sprint winner, and 2019 The Kosciuszko winner Handle The Truth, trained by veteran Canberra conditioner Keith Dryden.

Third in the race was Cavalier Charles - a Denman gelding trained by Matt Dale from his "new digs" at Goulburn, which won the Country Championship Wild Card at Scone, as well as finishing fourth in The Kosciuszko last year.

Bondi became the latest son of Snitzel to continue the family tradition of winners when the bay stallion sired his first winner, Krysanova, a first-crop juvenile winning on debut at Ascot earlier this month.

Standing at Lynward Park Stud at Bullsbrook near Perth, Bondi was a winner as well as four times stakes placed, including second in the ATC Champagne Stakes-G1.

A $400,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale graduate, Bondi is one of at least 19 stud sons of Snitzel to have sired a winner.

Coolmore Stud's US-bred former shuttle sire Justify was represented with a US $1.2 million colt at the Ocala Breeders' Sale's March Two-Year-Olds In Training auction in Florida last week, which breezed an eighth of a mile (about 200 metres) in 10 seconds flat.

Interestingly, among other lots sold was a colt which breezed that distance in 9 and 4/5 seconds - the first crop juvenile by US-bred and $4.8 million track earner Vino Rosso selling for $550,000.

By champion Mr Prospector's grandson Curlin, the Spendthrift Farm, Kentucky, based Vino Rosso was represented with three of the top seven priced horses sold by a first crop sire.

Another US-bred first crop juvenile, high-profile sire Omaha Beach (by War Front) and Vino Rosso both shuttled for two seasons to the now defunct Spendthrift Farm in Victoria.

Each horse has one yearling in Inglis' celebrated Australian Easter Yearling Sale at Riverside Stables next week.

Sire of Learning To Fly, Justify has a dozen catalogued youngsters across the two-day sale beginning next Monday, which consists of 457 lots.