Seventeen years after hanging over the fence to watch his father Glyn win the QE II Cup aboard outsider River Dancer, Chad Schofield is looking to create history of his own at Sha Tin on Sunday.

It was a 10-year-old Chad who watched on in 2004 as his father piloted the John Size-trained galloper to glory over the likes of Elegant Fashion, Lucky Owners and Bullish Luck with little idea he would have the opportunity to follow in his dad’s footsteps.

The Schofields lived at Sha Tin between 2002 and 2006 while Glyn notched up 142 winners as a contracted rider. While Chad admits he often did not understand the gravity of some of Glyn’s victories, he remembers them well.

“I can remember the day actually, I would have been about 10 and because kids aren’t allowed on the racecourse, I can remember watching the race over the fence,” he said.

“Dad had orange colours on, but with the angle from where I was watching, it was quite hard to watch the race.

“When he came past me, which was about 200m after the line, he was in front – that is my memory of the day. I ran upstairs straight away and mum was jumping up and down.”

The 27-year-old will ride in the QE II Cup for just the second time, jumping aboard Japanese raider Kiseki.

“Obviously I didn’t quite understand the gravity of it at the time, but I do now because it is a massive race so I am hoping I can do the same thing on Sunday,” he said.

Schofield tasted Group One success four times in Australia before making the move to Hong Kong, including the Cox Plate as an apprentice in 2013, but hasn’t been back in the winner’s circle at the elite level since taking out the Queensland Derby with Sonntag in 2014.

With the lack of depth in Hong Kong currently, local hopes in the big races are often taken by the likes of Joao Moreira and Zac Purton, but Schofield believes getting on a Japanese horse this year could be a game changer.

“My last Group One was in Australia,” said Schofield, who won the Classic Cup in 2018 with Singapore Sling. “The racing in Hong Kong makes it incredibly hard to win Group Ones, especially when there are only one or two Group One horses that stand out and they’re normally taken by the top jockeys.

“It is very hard to win the big races in Hong Kong at the moment, I think that is why I haven’t been able to do it since leaving Australia so hopefully we can put that to bed on the weekend. I think for sure this is my best chance in a Group One.”

Riding for the Japanese for the first time in his career, Schofield said he was taken aback by the quality of their horses and their willingness to travel.

“They are all class, the people and the horse. The horse is such a beautiful animal, he is just a pleasure to ride, he oozes class and quality so I think he will make his presence felt,” he said.

Despite having a reputation for being temperamental, Schofield gave Kiseki the tick of approval after jumping him out of the gates at Sha Tin on Friday morning, saying it all went to plan.

“He only had a light canter, a lap and a half and then we took him to the gates to see what he was comfortable with and the gate structure in Hong Kong, the horse was perfectly fine,” he said.

“I was very happy with how it all went. The horse is that relaxed, I don’t see the barriers being an issue.”

Schofield will also ride Rattan in the Chairman’s Sprint Prize along with Beauty Fit for John Size in the Class Three FWD Insurance Boom Handicap (1,600m).