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By Ray Hickson

Trainer Brett Bellamy will have no hesitation in ‘having a throw at the stumps’ with a Country Championships campaign for emerging galloper Baby Ryan if he completes a home track hat-trick at Coffs Harbour on Sunday.

Trainer Brett Bellamy

An orphan foal, Baby Ryan has exploded into the Championships picture with a pair of dominant wins and with Coffs Harbour hosting the Northern Rivers qualifying race Bellamy says it’s irresistible.

The four-year-old has his trial run in the Key Community Handicap (1305m).

“He’s been an immature horse, he’s taken his time, I still think he’s about 12 months away from where we want him to be,’’ Bellamy said.

“He’s always shown glimpses of ability then he came out and won a super maiden at home impressively then the other day he was impressive again.

“It’s worth a throw at the stumps, the Championships is at home in February. We’re up and running and everything else, he needs to be very competitive in this race and if he wins it’ll give him a high enough benchmark.

“You don’t know what’s going to happen in the next 12 months. While he’s healthy, well, and happy he might as well have a crack.”

Baby Ryan’s dam Taut passed away when he was a very young foal.

He recorded one placing in three starts in his first preparation but since he ran second at Grafton in November he’s been a different horse.

The margin of his Super Maiden win on December 4 by 2-1/2 lengths, on a good track, was more than doubled 23 days later in heavy ground when he won a Class 2 by almost six lengths.

Apprentice Grady Spokes takes 2kg off the gelding’s back and Bellamy said there’s no excuses.

“There were a couple of nice races elsewhere but we want to keep the powder dry so we don’t need to be travelling up and down the highway,’’ he said.

“Raymond (Spokes) does all the work on him basically Grady has ridden him a few times and we walk over the road, he is in well at the weights, he’s got a lot of things go his way so the rest is up to him.

“Let’s face it, if he’s not going to be competitive in this race you’re grasping at straws letting loose in a Championships qualifier.”

Bellamy has a stablemate in Raised By Wolves engaged in the same race and he said that gelding does need to improve on his recent form.

Baby Ryan isn’t the only runner from the Bellamy yard who can sure up a Country Championships start on Sunday as Lordster looks to bounce back in the O’Brien Plumbing Relining Wayne Glenn Pink Silks Cup (1205m).

Lordster is already the winner of four races, including a TAB Highway back in the winter, though he does need to turn around a failure as a $1.50 chance at his second run back.

Baby Ryan wins at Coffs Harbour on December 27

“He was disappointing, we vetted him after that and we found an abscess,’’ Bellamy said.

“It’s had a poultice on it. He’s been reshod and hopefully we’ve got that under control.

“He gets in well at the weights and he’s got a good barrier as well so here’s hoping.”

All the fields, form and replays for Sunday's Coffs Harbour meeting