New Zealand jockey Samantha Spratt is making every post a winner since turning down an offer to ride in Japan.Spratt has raced to a clear lead on the national jockeys' premiership and racked up a treble at Saturday's Pukekohe meeting including the feature, the $150,000 Counties Cup, aboard Gallions Reach.At the end of the day, Spratt had 41 wins for the new season and was 11 wins ahead of her nearest rival, James McDonald."I'm on a roll," Spratt told NZPA."The only thing I'm worried about is dow

New Zealand jockey Samantha Spratt is making every post a winner since turning down an offer to ride in Japan.

Spratt has raced to a clear lead on the national jockeys' premiership and racked up a treble at Saturday's Pukekohe meeting including the feature, the $150,000 Counties Cup, aboard Gallions Reach.

At the end of the day, Spratt had 41 wins for the new season and was 11 wins ahead of her nearest rival, James McDonald.

"I'm on a roll," Spratt told NZPA.

"The only thing I'm worried about is down is probably the only way from here."

Spratt, 23, revealed she was offered the chance to ride on the rich Japanese circuit about four months ago.

But it came at short notice and Spratt said it was difficult to accept, being a mother of a three-year-old son, Cody.

"It was basically a matter of leaving within less than a month. I just can't drop everything and leave," she said.

Spratt would like to ride overseas but said arrangements would have to fit in with her son.

"I don't want to be dragging him all round the world."

She was not getting carried away with her chances to top the jockeys' premiership with less than a third of the season gone.

"Of course it's a goal but I'm not setting my heart on it," she said.

"I'm not going to be riding all over the countryside. I've got a young son and you do enough travelling as it is.

"But if it came to the last month or so and I was still in contention then I would travel a bit. But it's still early days."

Gallions Reach is trained at Pukekohe by Richard Yuill to whom Spratt was apprenticed up to the beginning of this season.

Gallions Reach had topweight of 58kg and went into the 2100m Group Two race with a last-start win in a Group Three weight-for-age race over 2000m at Ellerslie on November 4.

Spratt on Saturday took Gallions Reach to the lead in the early stages but ended up racing outside the leader when the favourite Gaze went around the field soon after.

They were the first two into the home straight and Gallions Reach battled it out to win while Gaze was swamped in the final stages to finish a close seventh.

Spratt said she had confidence of victory despite the finish developing into a jam-packed affair. Only 1-3/4 lengths covered the first nine home.

"When it came down to a grinding finish I knew he (Gallions Reach) would have it over them," Spratt said.

"He's a tough horse, a real stayer, a real grinder."

Gallions Reach was second in the Group One Auckland Cup (3200m) in March and that will again be his major goal this season.

NZPA WGT