Fourth stallion bought for Canterbury stud

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32836, 9 February 1972, Page 8

Fourth stallion bought for Canterbury stud

Mr D. B. C. Allin’s Morwenstow Stud at Kaiapoi has entered the big league with the purchase of a fourth stallion. The Irish-bred Keekerok will arrive from the United Kingdom son to join the imported stallions Greek God and Orbiter and the New Zealand-bred Fountainhead at one of New Zealand’s biggest thoroughbred nurseries.

Keekerok, a winning half-brother to the Irish National Stud sire, Tudor Music, which stands at a fee of $2200, was shipped from Britain earlier this week.

Negotiations for the sale of Keekerok to Canterbury were started with the Anglo-Irish Bloodstock Agency of London by Mr D. B. Clarkson, bloodstock manager of Pyne, Gould, Guinness, Ltd, while he was in the United Kingdom last June.

Keekerok, now a five-year-old, was sired by Kythnos (a son of Nasrallah), winner of the Irish Two Thousand

Guineas and the Tetrarch Stakes, and third in St Paddy’s Derby. A whole brown of 16.1

hands, Keekerok won as a three-year-old the Beauparc Stakes, six furlongs, at Phoenix Park, and the Curragh July Handicap, six furlongs and 60 yards. He ran second in the Cork and Orrery Stakes at Ascot, and second at the Curragh in the Kildare Handicap. He was placed in one of his two starts at four years but tendon trouble put him out of racing when he was being prepared for another tilt at the Cork and Orrery Stakes at Ascot. Keekerok was one of three winners left by Fran, a daughter of Acropolis, ownbrother to Alycidon and halfbrother to Agricola and Borealis.

The next dam, Marilene (by Court Martial) won two races, produced six winners, and became the grand-dam of High Top, a leading two-year-old last year.

Marilene’s dam. Mannite (by Mr Jinks), also left six winners, and was grand-dam of Hard Sauce.

Keekerok’s half-brother, Tudor Music, won six races —the International Stakes (Kempton Park), Richmond Stakes (Goodwood) and Gimcrack Stakes (York) at two years, and the Cork and Orrery Stakes (Royal Ascot), July Cup (Newmarket), and Vemons Sprint Cup (Haydock Park) in his second season. He was retired to stand at the Irish National Stud as the winner of £27,353.