NORTHERN HURDLES

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29221, 3 June 1960, Page 6

NORTHERN HURDLES

11 From Waikato

"The Press" Special Service r _. MAT AM AT A, June 2. Since the war Waikato stables have enjoyed a great run in tne Great Northern Hurdles. In 1946 one of the very beet hurdlers oi modern times. Bramble Song, won the event when ridden by J. W Winder, now a trainer at Cambridge. Bramble Song was trained at Te Rapa.

Since then Waikato horses have won eight times and Awapuni jumpers three times, with one winner from Taranaki.

Auckland stables have only been successful with Hunting Mac. Of the 18 acceptors this year, 11 are from the Waikato. Nupla. Lochgair. Lord Pilate. u nd Golden Defaulter are from Te Rapa, Beau Teal. Region. Bennie and Tepeta from Matamata, County nd Fend from Cambridge and Blonde Boy from Te Awamutu.

Nupla and Lochgalr are previous winners of the race. Nupla is trained by H. Long and Lochgair is now trained by R. J. Tumwald, who rode him when he won from J. L. McDonald's Te Awamutu stable: R. T. Cotter has already won the race with Cornishman, Royalcille and Mertsvn and has Golden Defaulter in this time. Long not only won last year with Nupla, but also in 1950 with Paul, one of the few successful four-year-olds in recent times. There are none of that age this year. J. W. Winder has Fend and County. With the likelihood of a wet track many hunting and jumping enthusiasts in the Waikato consider Winder may have the winner. Fend won brilliantly at Te Rapa recently and County was unplaced, but he has been very unlucky in recent starts.

The veteran Matamata trainer, R. H. Martin, does not have a runner this year, in spite of successes in the past with horses like South Riding and Kauri Pine, but his influence will be felt. His former apprentices, M. A. Martinovich and J. R. Gillies will have runners. Region and Bennie. Both of them have done singularly well in their latest training at Matamata. With Count d’Azure they give the deceased Count Rendered three runners in the race. Unlike many of the stock of his sire Bennie lacks size, but he makes up for it with a dogged fighting run. He produced it when second in the Waikato Hurdles. Soft ground has so far beaten him, but he handles most other sorts of going. If he won the would probably be the smallest-framed horse to succeed since Wee Pat in 1934.