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By Greg Prichard

If you can’t beat 'em, join 'em. Or at least try to join 'em.

But the punters’ club syndicate at the Heritage Hotel Motel in Dorrigo that has a history of incredibly good luck in the slot draw for The Kosciuszko no longer has any vacancies.

Syndicate head Garry Penfold says they’ve been knocking back requests to join the syndicate and have capped the group at 16 members who are pooling their money again to buy $5 tickets in the slot draw for this year’s $1.3 million The Kosciuszko at Randwick on October 16.

Part of the 2020 Dorrigo slot winning group Garry Penfold, Michelle Harvey and Trevor Goodwin.

Tickets are available until 11.59pm on September 7 and the slot draw is conducted on September 9 and then each of the 14 winners will get the chance to pick a horse to run for them and share in the rich prizemoney with the connections.

The Heritage Hotel Motel syndicate has won a slot in each of the three years The Kosciuszko has been run.

They picked Suncraze when he ran second in 2018 and then backed up with that horse the following year when unplaced.

Last year they paired up with Ice In Vancouver, which was also unplaced, after narrowly missing out on the eventual winner – the Brett Cavanough-trained It’s Me.

“A friend of ours who trains our horses at Tamworth and knows Brett Cavanough very well rang him for us,” Penfold said.

“He was going to get back to us in five or 10 minutes, but then one of the people in the owners’ syndicate of that horse actually won a ticket so he had first dibs on it.

“He was the lucky one there and congratulations to them, yeah, it was a good win. We’ve already got some horses picked out this year if we’re lucky enough to win a slot again, but whoever gets a slot good luck to 'em.”

Asked for the secret to the syndicate’s fabulous run of success at the slot draw, Penfold replied: “Oh mate, can’t answer it, just good luck. It’s been going three years and we’ve had a horse each year, so hopefully we can get another one this year.

“It’s just a punter’s club and it all depends how we’re going as to how much we put in. We’ve been lucky – hopefully we’ll be lucky again.

“Others have asked to join the syndicate - from far and wide as well. From around the Coast - Coffs Harbour, Urunga, Bellingen. They all want to have a crack at it. But we decided not to take any more in. We’re happy with it the way it is.

“We live in hope now that one day we’ll get our own horse good enough to run and win a ticket. That’s what you’re after. It’s just done big things for country racing that you can’t believe. Yeah, Racing NSW, take your hat off to 'em.”

The $5 Kosciuszko tickets are on sale via TAB, for full details visit www.thekosciuszko.com.au. The $1.3m feature is run at Royal Randwick on Saturday 16 October with the 14 slot winners drawn on September 9.

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