Ballina trainer Danny Bowen is leading this season’s Northern Rivers Racing Association’s premiership. He has nominated an unprecedented thirteen gallopers for Saturday’s five-race Bowraville meeting in an effort to maintain his position at the top of the ladder.

In a Benchmark 55 event over the 1,370m trip, Bowen has topweight Lachlan Valley and veteran sprinter Blue Oyster nominated and both will be hard to beat over an ideal distance.

Blue Oyster has amassed over $126,000 in prizemoney, but is appearing first-up from a spell at Bowraville while his stablemate has been racing consistently since his last win at Armidale in November.

Bowen also has top rated mare Waterbury lining up in a Benchmark 45 dash over 1,000m, but last start winners in Goondiwindi gelding Bigger Than and Coffs filly Go Winner have strong claims as well.

Locals will be cheering for Ken Wilson’s mare Sea I’m Innocent, which has finished second at her last two Bowraville starts.

Former Bowraville and now Coffs-based jockey Raymond Spokes also leads the NRRA riders’ table with four months left in the season and he too will have plenty of local support as he chases that maiden premiership victory he so deserves.

Interest in racing is building in the lead up to this year’s Golden Slipper in a few weeks and Saturday’s racing will help punters pick out their selection for the great race.

The Group One Randwick Guineas will also be run on Saturday giving patrons at Bowraville something to enjoy between the local racing action.