Ebony Belle likely Easter Stakes favourite

Press, 21 April 1984, Page 24

Ebony Belle likely Easter Stakes favourite

Special correspondent Auckland One thing pretty near certain at Ellerslie today is that for the second year on end the Te Aroha trainer, Keith Opie, will produce the favourite for the XXXX Easter Stakes. Last year his runner was So Dandy. This time the stable representative will be Ebony Belle, a three-year-old filly which on so many counts must be rated the leading prospect for the Auckland Racing Club’s big 1600 m race. To begin with Ebony Belle is at peak form. She was an easy winner in both of her last two attempts, over 1400 m at Ellerslie on April 14 and 1600 m at Te Aroha on March 31. Then again she has arrived in the Easter, with Castlemaine’s help and a big subsidy from the New Zealand Racing Authority now worth $78,000, at a nice weight. The luck of the barrier draw went her way. She has all the quickness to

make the most of being in No. 5 gate. Opie, who turned 34 years old this week and has been training for six, suffered the disappointment 12 months ago of So Dandy, his very first Easter runner, finishing eighth when best backed of the 18 starters. He might well feel entitled, then, to look for a win this time as something in the way of compensation. So Dandy had been a brilliant sprinter before he tried the Easter but hardly more impressive than Ebony Belle, which is in the big race with 4kg less than the other horse carried. Ebony Belle will be one of two three-year-olds in the Easter Stakes, which has been such a rewarding race for horses of her age group. The good ones have invariably run well and any number have been successful. Whereas Ebony Belle can be almost guaranteed to race with the leaders the usual style of Abit Leica, the other three-year-old in the Easter, is to give ground

early and depend on a sharp run from the home turn. This worked impressively for Abit Leica against I’m Henry and others in the Wellington Stakes and again in the Lion Brown Sprint at Te Rapa but he has not been as effective lately. About equally certain as Ebony Belle being favourite is that the big race will again be run very quickly. Last year Clear Gold won in 1:33.19, a record for the event. The conditions could be every bit as conducive to another very fast gallop and several of the runners, besides Ebony Belle, have the speed to force a tough pace. Glenside usually goes very fast, as do Reutemann and the topweight, Deb’s Mate. Reutemann comes from Hastings and Abit Leica from Stratford. Among the other prominent candidates are Idaho’s Gift and Silveroider, from New Plymouth, and Glamour Star, from Hawera. So horses from outside Auckland and the Waikato must be consid-

ered in good strength. A win for their group is due because the last one successful was Nordic Star, from Hawera, back in 1973. Reutemann, a four-year-old gelding trained by Don Sellwood, has been consistently good in his racing this season—only once further back than third in 11 starts. All told he has had four wins, three second placings and three thirds since he began his four-year-old racing back in the early spring. Last time he came third behind Zephyr Souba and Turanganui over 1400 m at Tauranga on April 7. That was on top of a close second behind Burletta at Trentham and a 1400 m win at Hastings. Deb’s Mate merits respect even though he has not raced for months. In similar circumstances, and with half a kilogram less weight, he went close to taking the Easter last year, when he was beaten by half a length and three-quarters of a length by Clear Gold and Pride of Rosewood.