Melbourne Cup hopes fared only moderately

Press, 6 November 1978, Page 18

Melbourne Cup hopes fared only moderately

NZPA Melbourne Racegoers left Flemington on Saturday with no real i indication of a winner for I tomorrow’s $210,000 Melbourne Cup. Not one of the first four place-getters in the L.K.S. Mackinnon Stakes (2500 metres) is engaged for the cup and the 2500 metres Hotham Handicap told punters little more. In all 19 potential Melbourne Cup runners were out on the track-on Satur-; day but one that was not! there, So Called, has; emerged as top favourite for the cup. Early markets have the New Zealand-bred four-year-old at 9 to 2 favourite followed by the former New Zealand horses Arwon, at 5 to 1 and Caulfield Cup winner Taksan, at 6 to 1. So Called, by Sobig out of Calling, was the courageous winner of the W. S. Cox Plate (2050 m at Moonee Valley last week. In the 3200 m cup he will (be riden by the former New (Zealand jockey, Brent ThomIson, who was in superlative j form at Flemington on Saturday, winning the MackinInon Stakes with Family of Man. the Victoria Derby on Dulcify and the Craven “A” Stakes with Always Welcome.

When the barriers draws; for the cup were made on Saturday* night So Called again fared badly with No. 18, repeating the bad draw he received in the Caulfield I Cup. I Two of the four New Zealand entrants in the cup drew outside So Called. They were Karu (19), which had a great trial when fourth in the Hotham, and Dandaleith (21), which did not fare so well when coming 10th. Of the others Big Skipper has drawn the No. 2 barrier while Big Gamble, which races in Australia as Our BigGamble, has drawn handily! at No. 7. In the Melbourne markets; 'yesterday. Big Skipper and Dandaleith share favouritism jon the seventh line, at 11 to: 1, while Our Big Gamble is i on the fifth line at 8 to 1,; behind the Irish galloper.' Panamint. (7 to 1). I | The weight-for-age Mack-; ; innon Stakes saw a fierce; battle at the finish between’ i Australia’s weight-for-age I champion. Family of Man. I land the New Zealand cham-j 'pion, La Mer. I I In the thrilling photo nnlish Family of Man held on 1 to win bv half a head from j La Mer "with the sparking New Zealand three-year-old I Kankama, which shared 4 to 1 equal second favouritism with them. third. two lengths and a quarter away. The 7 to 2 favourite, Letroy, was seventh. I The race was run at a 'slow pace, taking 2min 4sec to run the 2000 m. four seconds outside the record. j La Mer, out to regain her I name after her disappointing bun in the Cox Plate, was ' caught very wide until the

1200 m when her jockey. Des Harris, allowed the Copenha-j gen II mare more rein and she moved quickly up to third.

She dashed clear in the ; straight and for a while 'looked as if she would hold; off the challenging Family ■of Man. [ For a few strides near the i 100 m mark it looked as if i I Family of Man was ready to! draw away but La Mer; (fought on bravely for the | close finish. A clearly disappointed trainer, Malcolm Smith, said | afterwards La Mer might ■ have done better if there! had been more time to pre-I pare her after the Cox Plate. “We just ran out of time.” he said. “Another stride and she would have had Family of Man. La Mer will return to New Zealand on November 15 and after a spell race in the autumn, said Smith. Kankama’s trainer, Mark Sullivan, said he was very pleased with his perform-’ ance. , v , i The first home of the Melbourne Cup hopes in the. j field was Arwon. which was| [fifth behind Salamander. He! [was followed by Panamint,; [Lefroy and Vive Velours. Arwon’s trainer, George; i Hanlon, was pleased with | the former New Zealand; (horse’s performance. [ "The only thing now is for Arwon to make the: 3200 m journey and I feel he I will,” he said.

The Hotham Handicap, the final cup trial for 11 cup: runners was won by Jury (15-1 in cup markets) by half a neck from Sungei Wang with the New Zea-land-bred Rang Again (20 to 1 cup market) half a head back third. Karu continued his irn-i provement, shown when fourth to Boldness in the Governor’s Stakes (2600 m , last week at Moonee Valley, with another fine fourth after being up with the lead [for most of the distance. His trainer. Jack Holmes, said afterwards he considered Karu had had a terrific run and was in top form for the cup. “He has done really well

and on the weight (48kg) and with a bit of rain he will be hard to beat,” he confidently predicted. The Bart Cummingstrained Lloyd Boy, needing a place in the first three to get a cup start, ran seventh, Dandaleith)- the record holder for 3200 m in New Zealand, went out to 5 to 1 (favourite on Saturday but ; faded on the home run to [finish tenth. However his trainer, Allan . Pringle, said he felt the six-year-old would do better tomorrow.

The $lOO,OOO Victoria Derby (2500 m saw Brent Thomson on the New Zea-land-bred Dulcify (Decies — Sweet Candy) in a thrilling finish, beating the 13 to 8 favourite, Karaman, by a length and three-quarters with Turf Ruler (33 to 1 > a length and a quarter away, third. The cup field is:—

4.46 p.m.— MELBOURNE CUP $210,000; 3200 m 1 746 Panamint <6/ 56 0 R Higgins 2 219 Taksan (14) 35.5 J. Duggan 3 600 Stormy Rex (17) 55.0 K. Langb.v 4 207 Lefroy (1) 54.5 B. Andrews 5 201 So Called <18» 54.5 B. Thomson 6 143 Our Big Gamble (7) 53 5 B. Compton 7 306 Belmura Lad <l6) 52.5 P. Trotter 8 501 Jury (4) 52.0 A. Trevena 9 500 Valadero T 23) 5L5 G. Palmer 10 282 Big Skipper <2) 51.0 ■J. Stocker 11 580 Lady Athenaia (13) 51.0 12 125 Arwon '22) 30.5 H. White 13 380 Dandaleith ‘2l) 50 5 T. Autridge 14 621 Boldness (24) 50 0 A. Clarfce 15 008 Mainspring 20) 50.0 16 263 Rain Circle <3) 50.0 17 971 Becidium <lo> 49.0 18 200 Deceits <9i 49.0 19 712 Drumshambo <8) 49 0 20 263 Rang Again <5) 49.0 L. Masters 21 660 Bilgola Boy (15) 48.0 22 344 Karu <l9 • 48.0 23 408 Massuk (12) 24 158 Vive Veloun (11) 48 0 J. Letts