Third place was held down by Team Chatham Park, which also had clear rounds by Tom McDermott (his seventh in the AJTL) and Kate Hinschen, with Amelia Douglass having a refusal and incurring two-time penalties to see them on a total of six. Fittingly, the top three teams in the overall Series leaderboard going into the final leg, were the top three teams, in order, at the half-way mark of that leg.

Team Yandoo Park and Team Horsepower, who were having their best leg of the entire Series were back in fourth and fifth place having taken two rails each, incurring eight penalties.

The following table lists the number of penalties incurred by each combination in Round One.

By combining the above scores for each team, the full team standings after Round One were as follows:

Unfortunately for Team Martin Collins Australia and Team Kiernan Haulage, under the AJTL competition rules, only the top eight teams are eligible to continue to Round Two. With just a single rail separating the top five teams, it looked like the final leg was going to be an absolute nail-biter!

Round Two

Coming out in seeded order, the situation grew even more intriguing after each team’s first rider had completed Round Two. Jess Brown again went clear to keep Team Horsepower in the hunt on a total of eight, however Jamie Winning-Kermond (YAN) took a rail to move her team up to 12. Kate Hinchen (CHA) incured a single time penalty, while Katie Laurie kept Team Willinga Park in the lead with a clear round. Amanda Madigan then got her chance to go clear and keep Team Emcee Apparel tied with Team Willinga Park, however a rail took them to a total of eight.

After four rides, the top five placed teams were Team Willinga Park on 4, Team Chatham Park on 7, Team Emcee Apparel and Team Horsepower on 8 and Team Yandoo Park dropping off the pace on 12.

The next stage of Round Two saw the under 25 riders from each team ride and once again, the landscaped changed almost after every ride. Erin Buswell (HOR) took a rail to move them to 12, however Madeline Sinderberry (YAN) took two rails, to drop her team back into the pack. Amelia Douglass (CHA) recovered from her Round One ride to record a clear, putting the pressure squarely in the face of Brooke Langbecker (WIL). Langbecker rode a magnificent clear round to keep Team Willinga Park in the lead. Next to go was Jess Tripp from Team Emcee Apparel, who, unfortunately for them, took a few rails and a couple of time penalties to incur a total of 14, meaning that their chance of victory in this leg was on very shaky ground.

With just one rider to go for each team, there were only three teams left in the competition with a realistic chance of winning the leg. Team Willinga Park were leading, still on just the four penalties. Team Chatham Park were three points back on seven, however, notably within a rail of the lead. Team Horsepower were in third on 12, ready to pounce should either of the first two get the wobbles.

Last rider out for Team Horsepower was Clem Smith who needed a clear round to keep his team in with a chance of winning, however it was not to be. A rail at the last and a single time penalty saw Team Horsepower move to total of 17. Unless the two leaders made major mistakes, they could not win, however, 17 was enough to earn them third place when the scores were sorted out at the end of the event.

Last to go for team Chatham Park was Tom McDermott and his lovely mare Elegance de la Charmille. He rode a brilliant round to again go clear, his eighth of the Series, and in doing so kept the pressure right on Team Willinga Park, which were the next team to go.

As Billy Raymont and Anton entered the arena, the excitement and tension were palpable. It is unlikely that there has ever been a higher pressure ride in the history of the sport in Australia, and certainly not one worth as much prize money. Raymont had two options available to him. He could complete the course incurring less than two penalties to secure not only the leg win for Team Willinga, but ensure that his team won the whole series and therefore take home $44,000 of the $80,000 Series prizemoney. Alternatively, he could take a rail (or more). This would mean that Team Chatham Park would win the leg, which would give them enough points to secure the overall series, relegating Team Willinga to second place in each. With a total prizemoney differential of $40,000, Raymont had quite a decision to make.

He and Anton rode a measured careful round. If the spectators were riding with him every step of the way, then it was nothing compared to the animated contortions of his teammates as they physically willed them over every jump. Raymont, himself looked as if they were out for a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park. The pressure didn’t show and in the end, he made the right decision by his teammates – a clear round with just a single time penalty to secure the win in both the leg and the Series.

After Round Two, the penalty count for each rider was as follows:

Based on these individual scores, team positions and totals after Round Two were:

The final results for Leg 4 are as follows:

Below is the series point score at the conclusion of the Series:

The $80,000 series prize money was split 55%, 30% and 15%, so Team Willinga Park won $44,000, Team Chatham Park $24,000 and Team Emcee Apparel $12,000.