Fred and Tom Smith’s horses qualify for Country Cups Challenge Final

Trainers Fred and Tom Smith clocked up plenty of kilometres to qualify their runners for the rich Country Cups Challenge Final this weekend.

Brisbane-bound trainer Fred Smith (Mocambo) and training son Tom Smith with Bayerische after trackwork at Callaghan Park on Wednesday morning. Photo: Contributed

Family ties will count for little at Brisbane’s Doomben racecourse on Saturday when Rockhampton trainers, the father and son entities Fred and Tom Smith, clash on track in the main bout.

Fear not, it won’t be physical from their perspective but by all means deadly serious as their stable representatives Mocambo and Bayerische match-up in the Country Cups Challenge Final (1600m).

Afterall, there is a lot up for grabs — $200K in stakes to be precise — with the pair of horses contesting numerous country track races over the past 12 months to qualify for the “big smoke” rich finale.

Part of the eligibility criteria requires finalists having at least five starts on non-TAB Queensland country tracks between November 20 last year and November 19 this year.

The wily Fred, 67, who has trained from Callaghan Park, Rockhampton, for “donkey’s years” has pulled off a master stroke in this regard in qualifying Mocambo.

Fred acquired Mocambo (b g 8 Deep Field-Lady Bligh) from part-owner, the Brisbane trainer Mick Lakey in July after the old timer had not won a race in 31 months.

That timespan included two enforced breaks from racing for 12 months and then another for 10 months.

After winning in late August in Rockhampton over 1600m under Saturday’s jockey Justin Stanley, Smith Snr. set his sights on the Country Cups Final with just three months to spare.

As Mocambo had not “roughed it” (with due respect) at country racing, Fred was faced with a rushed schedule.

Justin Stanley will ride Mocambo. Photo: Tony McMahon

After winning over 1800m at Yeppoon on September 24, he admitted to me he and Mocambo had a busy time ahead.

“I’ll have to win with him at Emerald (1850m) on October 12 and then go down to Gladstone over 1194m a fortnight later,” Fred said.

“The next Saturday we’ll have to run at Yeppoon over 1400m and then all the way out to Moranbah over 1170m the following Saturday.

“I think he is up to it and then I can cuddle him for three weeks to the Final in Brisbane.”

Fred was spot-on, with Mocambo not only coping with the busy agenda but winning the Emerald 100 (1850m) and proving his versatility by backing-up and winning the next start sprint at Gladstone.

It takes a tough horse and a gifted trainer to pull that off and Fred and his horse rightly earn those plaudits.

Fred’s daughter and part-owner of Mocambo, Sam Conway, said horse and trainer were ready for Saturday.

“This journey is something we will never forget and I am so proud of Dad for what he has already achieved with the horse,” she said.

Mocambo, a city slicker most of his life trained from Sydney and Brisbane, covered 1753km in his country excursions to earn his Brisbane trip.

Meanwhile, Tom, 23, has made a flying start to training since starting at the age of 19.

With only a very small team, he has already won 51 races including a city win with Acre’s Away at Eagle Farm last year.

Melbourne Cup winning jockey Robbie Dolan will saddle up on Bayerische. Picture: Liam Kidston

By the way, Fred trained his one and only city winner at Doomben when Motorised saluted on January 19, 2014.

Tom and Bayerische have travelled extensively to seven country non-TAB centres including Thangool (2), Emerald, Bowen, Alpha, Dingo and Yeppoon to forge the way for the 1260km trip to Brisbane and back.

Ironically, of the 2366km travelled on the country tracks circuit, it was the 41km float trip just down the road to Yeppoon races on November 2 that qualified Bayerische his place at Doomben.

“That was his last start and first run for seven weeks so he did well to win so convincingly over the 1400m at Yeppoon,” Tom said.

“He (Bayerische) does best when his races are spaced. I’m confident he will do his best again in Brisbane.”

Tom has gone right to the top, engaging Melbourne Cup winning jockey Robbie Dolan for Bayerische.

While father and son have employed totally opposite training techniques to achieve their goals of reaching the “big one” in Brisbane, they share an obvious commonality.

Tom is a “chip off the old block” and what is that they say? Like father, like son.

HOOFNOTE: Other Central Queensland representatives in the Final are Mark Cochrane’s Starsonic (James Orman) and Raymond Williams’ Echo point (Paul Hamblin).