TROTTING Late Withdrawal In Wyndham First Leg

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 29067, 2 December 1959, Page 4

TROTTING Late Withdrawal In Wyndham First Leg

“Th* Press’ Special Service

INVERCARGILL, December 1.

There was some sharp criticism at the Wyndham Trotting Club’s meeting on Saturday of the late scratching of Gay Diamond from the Mimihau Handicap, the first leg of the T.A.B. double. A total of £1314 10s was invested off-course—£lls9 10s being on the double—on Gay Diamond and the whole of this amount had to be refunded by the T.A.B.

Gay Diamond, which was taken through to Christchurch on Friday to race at the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club’s meeting was not withdrawn until 9.35 a.m. on Saturday, the day of the Wyndham meeting. Provision in the programme was made for any scratchings for the fist leg to be made no later than 10 a.m. The withdrawal of Gay Diamond at a late hour was no doubt responsible for the T.A.B. double return showing a considerable drop on the previous year’s meeting.

Gay Diamond, which is owned and trained by C. C. Scott at Edendale, was the early favourite for the Mimihau Handicap and it seemed unfair to the club that he was not withdrawn earlier when his connexions knew that he would not be at Wyndham. Gay Diamond contested the Shirley Handicap at Addington for which he ■was 3-4 favourite. He finished at the rear. Official’s Opinion

An official of the Wyndham club said today that his club felt strongly about the matter as the late scratching of Gay Diamond

from the Mimihau Handicap had cost his club about £lOO. At the same time it tied up money which would no doubt have been invested at the meeting. The club in attempting to keep up stakes was not getting much co-opera-tion from owners when cases like this one cropped up. “We thought that we were helping owners by having the first leg scratchings as late as 10 a.m., but we felt that owners who knew their plans more than 24 hours before the scratching time deadline would help us by withdrawing their horses,” he said.

“However, we will not be caught again and we will make a provision that a dual acceptor, or a horse which is an acceptor at another meeting the same day. will have to be withdrawn at least on the Thursday before the meeting. "We feel strongly about this incident,” he said.