RACING Styleman Just Wins In Spectacular Finish

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31933, 10 March 1969, Page 5

RACING Styleman Just Wins In Spectacular Finish

Styleman just resisted a brilliant late challenge from Noir Filou for victory in the H. R. Chalmers Handicap at Trentham on Saturday.

There was only a short head in it, and then an even finer margin, a nose, to Lochcourt, which had led close to home.

Styleman is a four-year-old by the Aureole horse, Arragan. also the sire of the 1968 Wellington Cup winner, loofah, and he showed a promising glimpse of stamina in running third behind II Tempo and City Court in the 1969 Auckland Cup. But stamina did not enter .strongly into final consideration for Saturday’s race. Styleman took 3:23} to run the two miles over a fast track, yet City Court, which had gone almost six seconds faster in winning the Wellington Cup in January, could manage only tenth on Saturday.

D. A. Peake's tactics on Styleman, could have contributed to the failure of City Court on Saturday.

Kept Wide R. W. Taylor appeared to have a good chance of getting a commanding position for City Court inside the first half mile, but Peake kept the Wellington Cup winner three wide around the two turns going to the mile and all the way to the three furlongs. City Court did not have .'much left on the home turn • and was dropping back /through the field soon after'ward. ,» Styleman has been a suc‘.'cessful venture for the Takan*Cini pair, Mr and Mrs 1 R. „ -Tucker.

Tucker trains the sturdy -brown for his wife and had , him looking ready for anything on Saturday. No horse ‘ went down in the prelimin-

ary more keenly, and ability to take up a forward position [in the early running counted for much in a closely-con- ' tested finish. i Noir Filou was able to keep fairly close to the casual pace but R. B. Marsh had trouble finding a run for him [through a close-running field and finally had to bring him wide on the track. It was a surprise to nearly everyone “past the line” that Noir Filou had run Styleman so close. In fact few would have been prepared to bet

’ that Noir Filou had pegged i Lochcourt back to third. Noir Filou will probably do • his Easter racing at Riccarton, and his run on Saturday i has made him one of the I early favourites for the [ George Adams Handicap. i J. F. Harris was left with I much of the pacemaking on i Lochcourt, but the race took on fresh character when Mr ’ Fagan and Corumba im- : proved to form the leading i line at the five furlongs. Lochcourt stayed handy on ; the inside, regained her lead

early in the run home, but was out-finished by Styleman and Noir Filou.

Highland Rebel, a winner at Trentham at his previous start, ran right up to his best form on the course with a fourth under difficulties. He was in cramped quarters until late in the race and had he worked into the open a little earlier he might have been a danger to the winner. Corumba tired to fifth and Mr Fagan was a weakening sixth.