HAPPY KNIGHT FORTUNATE

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24884, 25 May 1946, Page 4

HAPPY KNIGHT FORTUNATE

REMAINS IN DERBY FIELD BY ERROR Happy Knight, the winner of the English Two Thousand Guineas this year, is one of the favourites for the Derby to be run at Epsom on June 5. but it is only by chance that he remains in the race. His owner. Sir William Cooke, sent a letter scratching the colt from the Derby, but as he omitted to put his signature to the letter, the scratching was void. Favours Heavy Going Douglas Haig, an acceptor in the Southburn Hack Handicap at Washdyke to-day, will be making his first appearance since January. Last spring he won a seven furlong novice race at Wingatui and a nine furlong high-weight at Winton, both in heavy going. In some of his subsequent starts he was troubled by the hard going, but on the third day of the last summer meeting at Wingatui he found the soft track to his liking and finished second to Montezuma in the Hazlett Gold Cup, after being slow away. Irish Note, which could not handle the going, was third. Douglas Haig is trained by his owner, Mr G. H. Paul, at Washdyke, and is a three-year-old colt by Paper Slipper from Lady Onslow, a mare that is not in the Stud Book. He has more size than most of Paper Slipper’s stock and may be a useful performer under winter conditions. Reported Option on Findon It is reported that a well-known Wellington owner has secured an option oyer the grey horse Findon, and if that option is not exercised the offer of a Hawke's Bay owner will be accepted. There have been several previous attempts to buy Findon, but none ever reported went so far as to secure an option on the horse. Brother To Tiger Tan Finalist, an acceptor in the Southbum Mack Handicap, is a three-year-old brother to the northern sprinter Tiger Tan, which has won three open sprints in the Auckland district this season, all of them on tracks affected by rain. Finalist will be having his first race since the Reefton meeting in January, having had a good spell in the interim, i He is rounding into shape fairly quickly, ’ and if he possesses anything like the i ability of his older brother to handle heavy tracks, he should have good pros- j