Two-year-old, Dhofar, To Be Trained At Riccarton

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27875, 25 January 1956, Page 4

Two-year-old, Dhofar, To Be Trained At Riccarton

RACING

The ranks of South Island two-year-olds will be strengthened by Dhofar, which is to do her future racing from the Riccarton stable of F. A. Roberts. Dhofar won twice during the holiday period, once at Awapuni, and also at Marton. At Awapuni, on December 24, she won by a neck from Mediterranean, whi~h showed ability to beat all but the brilliant Coleridge in the Wellington Stakes at Trentham last Saturday week. A week later, Dhofar was not tested to win over five furlongs at Marton. She was prepared for those two successes by B. Meyer, of Cambridge. In the second start of her career, she was a good third behind Barobar and Melanion, both smart youngsters, in a division of the Electric Handicap at Te Aroha in November.

Calcutta Sweep, also trained by Roberts, will have an easy time before he next races. He was an unlucky third in the Wellington Racing Club Handicap on Saturday, but" his gallop on the hard ground lacked dash in the Summer Handicap on Monday, when he was favourite. In the Wellington Racing Club Handicap, Calcutta Sweep left no room for doubt about his ability to measure up to the standard of the leading handicap horses. He is now four, and he has his best days ahead of him. He is by Royal Chief, sire of a number of hard-wearing horses of good class. Avenge Amiss Avenge and Shahwan did not have much luck in their Trentham campaign at the Wellington Cup meeting. Avenge was showing signs of trouble in a leg last wee' and bad to miss his engagement in the Gloaming Stakes. A weakness in a suspensory ligament is possible, and it will put further racing out of the question for some time. At his only appearance at Trentham, Avenge was runner-up to Watch and Wait in the Anniversary Handicap.

Shahwan was sore after his race in the Wellington Stakes so there was an excuse for his weak finish after being one of the leaders for a good way. Avenge and Shahwan were both high-priced purchases made by Mr H. D. Greenwood. Pack Drill, which was bred by Mr Greenwood, made the campaign a successful one by winning the January Handicap last Saturday. Park Drill went within an inch or so of victory in the Thorndon Handicap on Monday. His conqueror was Desperado, which was bred by Mr Greenwood and raced for several seasons in his colours, but which was purchased last year by Mr J. F. Lockington. Desperado was making steady. progress towards building •an outstanding record as a sprinter for Mr H. D. Greenwood in his second and third seasons. He won the Thompson Handicap at Trentham as a three-year-old, and the James Hazlett Gold Cup half-way through his four-year-old season. But there his winning record remained at a standstill until Saturday. The big Defaulter gelding recorded some meritorious placings—one of them a second to the brilliant King's Fair in the C.J.C. Winter Cup—but when put back into weaker fields, there was no improvement on minor placings.

Quite often Desperado would gallop easily into the lead but would go under again. On Monday, he finished resolutely, making up a lot of ground -in the last furlong or so. It was only in the last stride that he nosed Pack Drill out of the major honours. Stable's Good Record

Desperado was one of two horses taken north by the Riccarton trainer, J. L. Barr. The other was Jimmy Flash, which decisively won the Ruapehu Handicap on Saturday, went under very narrowly to Bexhill in the Kelburn Handicap on. Monday, and was a rather unlucky fifth in the Camp Handicap on Wellington Cup day. Barr is a comparative newcomer to the ranks of trainers at Riccarton. His two representatives each had three races at Trentham, and it says much for his work in conditioning them that they held their form so well racing under exacting conditions when many others at the meeting were feeling the strain.

Gabador-Pastel Filly The Gabador-Pastel filly offered at the national sales on account of Mr E. Goulter, of the Sevenoaks Stud, Blenheim, will be raced by the Christchurch owner. Mr D. McFarlane, and trained by M. Ryan, at Riccarton. This filly was passed in at 900gns. and within minutes of her departure from the sale ring it was announced that she had been sold for lOOOgns She is a neat youngster, and there is good reason for hope that she will be a precocious type. Her dam was one of the fastest two-year-olds of her year. She recorded 57 4-ssec. an Australasian record time for five furlongs, when she won the C.J.C. Welcome Stakes. She beat all

but the champion, Mainbrace. in the Great Northern Foal Stakes. Well-Bred Youngster Another of Mr McFarlane’s yearling purchases was a neat colt by Panair from- the Iliad mare, Southern Sail, a Dunedin and Wyndham Cup winner. This colt’s Otahuhu vendor, Mr F. W. Breed, received 375gns. Set Sail, the grandam, won 21 races, including the Wellington Racing Club Handicap, \md the Invercargill Cup twice. Altogether she left seven winners, most of which did their racing in Southland and Otago. The grey colt from Penny, bought for 900gns by the Riccarton trainer, J. A. Cox, as agent on the second day of the national sales at Trentham last week was by Gold Nib, not Pherozshah, as reported in the Press Association’s list of prices. He is a three-quarter brother to Surrey Gold, the best two-year-old of his year, and winner of 14 races. Lammas and Thaarup, which have done their recent racing from Cox’s stable, have had changes of owners, and have gone into new quarters. Lammas is now being trained by J. R. Shaw, who prepared him for his earlier racing. Thaarup is in R. E. Johnstone’s stable.