Wingatui Winner To Race At Riccarton

Press, Volume C, Issue 29621, 18 September 1961, Page 5

Wingatui Winner To Race At Riccarton

The brilliant two-year-old filly, Cobble, will be prepared for the Canterbury Jockey Club’s Welcome Stakes in November after‘she runs at Wingatui next Saturday.

This was announced after she outclassed the others in the McLean Stakes on the first day of the Dunedin Jockey Club's spring meeting on Saturday. Cobble was the most expensive single purchase ’for the South Island at the national yearling sales last January. She is from the first crop sired in New Zealand by The Cobbler, which was unbeaten in five starts as a two-year-old. The Cobbler’s brilliant Mosgiel-owned and trained daughter is good enough to take high-ranking in her first season. She is owned by Messrs J. E. Reeves and G. B Thomson, for whom Minglow won the McLean Stakes four years ago. Cobble's dam is the imported Purple Planet, a halfsister to Vestogan, the champion Irish two-year-old m 1957.

Roister, the top-weight colt on the 1955 Irish Two-Year-old Free Handicap, and Lucero, an Irish Two Thousand Guineas winner, are also closely related to the Mosgiel filly. Cobble started brilliantly nine wide and was in front in a few strides.

She opened a lead of two lengths coming to the home turn, and her strong effortless gallop in the lead had all the others struggling outside the furlong. Highland Fair was a clear second from the home turn. He finished generously enough, responding when tapped with the whip ph the shoulder, but could not reduce the lead of Cobble, which won coasting by three lengths. Highland Fair beat Bronze Knight by three and a half lengths for second, so it was a tame finish. Reece pegged back Lubaean for a distant fourth.

The Waikouaiti - trained colt was in a gap of four lengths and a half behind Bronze Knight. Lubaean could not quicken after being handy to the home turn. He was a nose back fifth and just beat Idol Prince, Prince Callan, and Cumberland. Bronze Knight was one of the slowest away so there was merit in his distant third.

Spur On lost ground and finished ninth, ahead of Indian Brier and Tara Hill.