It won’t be for lack of numbers if Kris Lees can’t clinch a Newcastle Gold Cup breakthrough on Friday. Lees this afternoon announced he would have his biggest ever representation of four in the $175,000 Group 3 feature to be run over 2200m on the Beaumont Newcastle track. 

His runners are Premier’s Cup winner Sense Of Occasion and runner-up Singing, Wyong Cup winner Slow Pace and Taree Cup winner Olympic Academy. And he has completed his riding bookings for Newcastle’s highlight race.

Tim Clark partners his Premier’s Cup winner Sense Of Occasion, Kerrin McEvoy and Robert Thompson stay with Singing and Slow Pace respectively, and Tommy Berry has the mount on Olympic Academy.

“All four horses are fit and well and ready to go,” Lees said. “Importantly, they are all going into the Cup with good recent form behind them. Olympic Academy didn’t handle the heavy track behind Slow Pace in the Wyong Cup, but has bounced back well.”

Seventeen horses have been nominated for the Cup, with Junoob the 59kg topweight. Singing has 56.5kg, Sense Of Occasion 55.5kg, Slow Pace 54.5kg and Olympic Academy is one of 10 horses weighted on the limit (54kg).

Lees had two starters in last year’s Cup, finishing third and fourth with Rio Perdido ($101) and Oriental Lady ($17) respectively. Rio Perdido was his fifth Newcastle Cup placegetter; the earlier ones being My Tally (2003), County Tyrone (2004 and 2008) and Exinite (2006).

Randwick Guineas winner Le Romain is an entry for Friday’s $150,000 Group 3 Australian Bloodstock Cameron Handicap (1350m), along with both the $500,000 Group 1 wfa George Main Stakes (1600m) and $125,000 Group 3 Bill Ritchie Handicap (1400m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday.

But Lees is waiting to study the weights for all three races before making a decision; not that it’s a given he will contest any of those events.

“Le Romain galloped this morning, and may still go to Melbourne for the Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on Saturday week,” he said.

Le Romain has 59kg topweight for the Cameron, the same weight in the Bill Ritchie (he shares topweight with Doncaster and Queen Elizabeth Stakes placegetter Happy Clapper) and 58.5kg under the weight-for-age conditions of the George Main.

There are currently only seven nominations – they have been extended for the latter, with champion mare Winx (57kg) a dominant favourite.