The Barnes and Smith families look to have a stranglehold on Saturday night's Bill & Peg Miller Memorial final at Dubbo - a race they are especially anxious to win.
Ann Barnes, the daughter of the late Bill and Peg Miller, owns and trains fastest heat winner Nangar Larry, while she owns two of the other three heat winners, Nangar Nellie and Nangar Lucy, which are trained by her husband Dennis.
The other heat winner, Miss McGraw, is trained by Jack Smith for owner Sandra Spratt, the grand-daughter of the Millers.
Dennis Barnes said: "Jack Smith has won this race previously but he is still very keen to do it again.
"But Ann and I have not managed to win the race named in her parents' honour and we seem to have our best chance this year.''
Jack Smith agreed, commenting: "My bitch Miss McGraw has drawn nicely in box three in the final but that dog Nangar Larry, raced by the Barneses, looks to be something extra special.''
In last week's heats Nangar Larry, who has box five in the final, exploded to the lead at box rise and covered the 516m in a flying 29.35, just .42sec outside the course record set by Jack Smith's champion Jungle Deuce on December 23, 2021.
"Nangar Larry's early sections in his heat were 4.37 and 13.88 and in all the years I've been training and racing at Dubbo I have not had a dog run splits as fast as that,'' Dennis Barnes said.
"He has so much early zip boxes don't matter so much to him, and while Nangar Nellie is perfectly placed in box two, our other heat winner, Nangar Lucy, has drawn eight and because she is desperate for an inside alley, probably has no hope from out there.''
Bevan Bale, who has qualified for Saturday's $10,000 to the winner Canterbury Bankstown City Cup final at Potts Park, was a $1000 bargain buy for owner-trainer Tiffany O'Regan and her partner Mark Newham.
"He has won twice for us and only been unplaced in three out of 14 starts,'' Newham said.
"Bevan Bale's heat win in 30.53 was a lot slower than Wicked Crystal's 29.87 in the other heat but in our dog's favour is his vast experience at Potts Park.
"He has had several runs there which has got to be an advantage.''
NSW will be powerfully represented in Thursday night's heats of the group 1 Sandown Cup headed by John Finn's Ladbrokes 715 winner Zipping Orlando who is beautifully drawn in box two in heat four.
In heat one Zipping Neutron, now with Anthony Azzopardi and set to do his future racing in SA, has box two while Andy Lord's Tiger Jack has drawn seven.
Lord's Punter's Bandit, who lowered Tiger Jack's colours at Wentworth Park last Saturday, has box eight in heat two while her kennelmate Cawbourne Magic will exit box three in heat three.
In the same heat Jack Smith's Palawa King, fastest qualifier for The Ladbrokes 715 final and minor placegetter in Zipping Orlando's run-off, has box seven, with Mick Hardman's Zipping Whiskey in eight.
"I trialled Zipping Whiskey over 715m at Sandown last week and he clocked 42.02,'' Hardman said.
"That is not a bad run but I thought he would go quicker because Zipping Whiskey is capable of fast times trialling on his own.''
In Zipping Orlando's fourth heat Andy Lord's front-running stayer Silver Luck, who led to the home turn when fourth to Punter's Bandit at Wentworth Park last Saturday, is ideally placed in box one.
