Incredibly small margins between winners and runners-up were the order of the day, in Monday’s race meet at the Gunnedah-based Riverside Racecourse.

Prolific country jockey Aaron Bullock was the only jockey or trainer to have more than one win among the seven races, six of which featured a gap of less than one length between the top two placegetters.

The minuscule difference between first and second place no doubt caused plenty of heart flutters for numerous jockeys, trainers and anyone who placed a bet.

The track was rated a Good 3, while conditions were sunny and windy for the Gunnedah Jockey Club’s first race meet of 2026.

In a field of 10 in the opening 1000m race, third favourite Kawatiri was in eighth place with only 200 metres remaining before hitting the accelerator and winning the race by just 0.56 of a length.

The runner-up was the favourite, Highland Dancer, which was also closer to the back than the front at the 800m stage.

The winning trainer was Geoff O’brien while the jockey was Shannen Llewellyn.

Race two was 1300m, with the favourite winning by a mere 0.26 of a length among a field of eight.

The Mark Mason-trained and Bullock-ridden Wolfcraig was consistently in the top three, before edging out fifth favourite Kasumi which had held first place for a while.

With Kasumi trained by Gunnedah’s Gavin Groth, race two was the best result for a Gunnedah trainer on the day.

With a distance of 1600m, the third race had the biggest gulf between first and second place when the favourite, Mr Chips, triumphed by 1.88 lengths.

Troy O’neile was the successful trainer while the jockey was Jenny Duggan.

Race four had the longest distance, 2150m, while the gap between the top two placegetters was as tiny as possible in the field of 13.

Trained by Tracy Bell and ridden by Deon Le Roux, fifth favourite Charlie Bali was adjudged the victor by a nose while the favourite was declared the runner-up.

The third placegetter meanwhile was only 0.46 of a length behind the victor.

The longest race was followed by the shortest, as race five was 900m.

The second favourite, Our Emily, beat the favourite by just 0.82 of a length in the field of 12 while the third placegetter was less than a length behind the winner.

John Bannister was the winning trainer while Grace Palmer was the jockey.

The sixth race had the second smallest margin, as the Melissa Dennett-trained and Liberty Smyth-ridden Haiku Star won this 1000m race by 0.13 of a length among a field of eight.

Haiku Star was the third favourite while runner-up Nevermista was the favourite, with these two geldings alternating between first and second place throughout the race.

The final race was 1300m, with second favourite Crown Legend coming from ninth place to beat the favourite and runner-up by 0.89 of a length in the field of 12.

This was Bullock’s second win of the day, while the victorious trainer was Mack Griffith.

The Hulkbuster, which was one of the two horses with the biggest starting price on the day ($151), finished a creditable third after being in the top two for much of the final race.

Grace Palmer rides Our Emily to a narrow victory in race five.

The Shannen Llewellyn-ridden Nevermista (left) and the Liberty Smyth-ridden Haiku Star were almost neck-and-neck in race six, before Haiku Star won by 0.13 of a length.