FROM STUD AND STABLE N.Z. Film Impressed Australians

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31830, 7 November 1968, Page 5

FROM STUD AND STABLE N.Z. Film Impressed Australians

One of the talking points of Melbourne Cup week this year has been the quality of a film on the New Zealand thoroughbred industry being screened at a Melbourne theatre.

The film, which is in colour and was produced by the National Film Unit, received favourable comment after it was screened for racing writers from all the Australian States last Friday. The Australians were captivated by the beauty of the New Zealand countryside, as seen in film scenes taken at the Trelawney, Pirongia and Te Parae Studs. The famous producer Kataban was filmed while she was foaling a filly at Te Parae, and the camera captured the

first shaky attempts of the youngster to get to his feet One of the highlights of the film was the detailed coverage of the running of the 1968 Wellington Cup. The camera was at the barrier some time before the field was brought into line and there were good shots of the Riccarton jockeys, A- J. Stokes and A. H. Eastwood with their mounts Bardowie and Next Please.

Also in the film is the running of last year’s Melbourne Cup, which was wpn by. the Waikatobred Red Handed from the Waikato-trained Red Crest, and the activities at the 1967 sales where the Alcimedes—Miss Florabunda colt now racing in Australia as Gooree King was sold.

Much footage was given to early-morning activities of members of E. Ropiha’s team at Woodville. The camera captured excellent shots of three members of the team, two of them ridden by girls, the other by H. N. Rauhih.l, galloping in an early-morning trial. One Adelaide racing writer was so impressed by what he saw of New Zealand in the film that he is now making plans to come over for the yearling sales next January.

Rich Compensation

The successful Adelaide trainer, J. B. Cummings, has already won five races on the two opening days of the Melbourne Cup meeting, but all against earlier trends, he is not winning with New Zealandbreds.

Cummings, who has produced stayers to win two Melbourne Cup quinellas—they were Light Fingers and Ziema in 1965 and Galilee and Light Fingers a year later —saddled three winners on Melbourne Cup day. That was rich compensation for Mb failure to get any one of his four representatives into a dividend-bearing place in the Melbourne Cup.

To show he does not do things by halves he put three runners into the field for the Mimosa Stakes, a five-furlong race for two-year-olds on Tuesday and they ran first, second, and fourth. The winner was Far Vista, and a close second was Fiona. Far Vista is by Rego and Fiona by Star Kingdom. The Cummings stable started the day by winning the Cup Hurdle with Embason, and ended the day with a Storm Ruler victory in the Yan Yean Stakes.

Storm Ruler .a brother of the former champion filly Storm Queen, caught the New Zea-land-bred Kathey’s Son close to home and just lasted it out in the face of a brilliant late challenge from Axinite. Fans, a gallant third in the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, could have two or three more races in Australia. E. Ropiha has jnade no definite plans for shipping the horse back to New Zealand, and he is confident he will have at least one good middle distance race before he does so. The Sydney jockey, George Moore, made efforts to interest Australian owners in buying Fans before the Melbourne Cup. If that had happened Moore would have almost certainly taken the ride.

The Melbourne Cup is one race that has eluded Moore, and the Sydney jockey showed interest in Fans as a possible mount this year after he had ridden in a gallop with him last Thursday.

Not for the first time Australians were claiming it would be folly to put up a New Zealand rider on Fans when Moore and others were available.

Th New Zealand stayer was in some trouble for a few strides just after Impetus was checked near the half mile, but he recovered quickly and doggedly kept up a long run for his third placing, which was worth more than 15000.