The final heats in the 2019 Inter Dominion will be conducted on Friday evening at Alexandra Park in Auckland, with the Australian contingent seeing no luck in the previous two heats.
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Three Aussie pacers are safely into the top 12, with My Kiwi Mate (seventh), San Carlo (eight) and Sicario (12th).
Bling It On, from the Craig Cross and Luke McCarthy team, will need to produce a top run and gain at least two points to make it into the final.
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The Victoria Cup winner currently sits outside the 12-horse cut-off for a berth in Saturday week's final and has a tricky draw to overcome in the last of the qualifying heats at Alexandra Park.
With a luckless two heats so far, Bling It On is sitting in 13th place.
"Obviously nothing went right for us, but I was really happy with his run and how strongly he hit the line (Tuesday night)," said reinsman Luke McCarthy. "He'll get his chance Friday, even from that draw, if he's good enough - and the longer trip (2700m) will suit."
NSW trotter Tough Monarch, from the Rickie Alchin stables, remains Australia's best hope in the trotting series.
The All Stars stables are once again shining through, with Australian-born Natalie Rasmussen having had plenty of exposure to the Inter Dom: she partnered Blacks A Fake to win four of them, then joined her partner Mark Purdon in New Zealand to set up their super stables.
The remaining four heats will be conducted on Friday before the big $500,000 final on Saturday week.
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SYDNEY-based reinsman Luke McCarthy made a return trip to Australia, after competing in the heats of the Inter Dom in Auckland, to contest the Dubbo meeting on Sunday.
He drove Bettor Enforce to victory in the $50,000 Lochend Stud Red Ochre Mares Classic (Group 2).
The win was the third on the trot for the mare, with the two previous wins coming at Menangle.
On Sunday, Bettor Enforce recorded a mile rate of 1min 57.6sec for 2120 metres. The win was worth $26,250.
Bettor Enforce has only had four race starts for the McCarthy stables - winning over $52,000 in prizemoney in that time.
Another driver who made the return trip across the ditch for the Dubbo meeting was Bathurst reinswoman Amanda Turnbull, who drove three winners on the program via So Am I, from the Ben Settree stables, and Woodland Wonder and Hez Bromac, who are trained by her father, Steven.
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LAST week's Tamworth harness meeting was a beauty, with local trainers taking out all eight races!
The winners include Danny Mackney, who produced a long-overdue victory when Pure Laughter won in a mile rate of 1.58.1 for 1609m. Pure Laughter's previous start was at Newcastle in November 2018.
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HARNESS racing will be at Tamworth for the next two Thursday's, before the club prepares for its big January racing carnival.
