Region’s Australian form will command respect

Press, 3 August 1985, Page 27

Region’s Australian form will command respect

By

J. J. BOYLE

Region, a dashing ’chaser from Waverley, gets his chance to put some gloss on Australian jumping form in the Koral Steeplechase at Riccarton today.

Three weeks ago he earned ?12,000 for a second in the Victoria Racing Club’s Grand National, in which he carried 63kg. That was his seventh minor placing from eight starts since he opened his Australian campaign with a win at Flemington on March 23. The only blot on an admirably consistent record was in the famous South Australian race, the Great Eastern Steeplechase, in which he made a mistake and bumped Stephen Jen-

kins to the ground. Jenkins will be at Riccarton today to continue his association with Region and to renew his association with Gun for Fun, which was luckless in the running for that combination’s bid to win the Great Northern Hurdles in June. Gun for Fun, at 11 years, is close to being the veteran of the Sydenham Hurdles field today, but showed he was of durable stuff before he was put to jumping by reaching minor places in the Auckland and New Zea-

land Cups as a nine-year- ( old. v The veteran of the Syden- s ham Hurdles field, at the I age of 12, is Stipulation, which will be running for i the Ken Browne stable. 1 Browne scratched Gold t King for the Amalgamated 1 Packaging Handicap yester- t day, but he will have a t runner in each of the four t jumping races, and seems likely to supply the < favourite for the Trial < Hurdles in the consistent t Curdu. < Crown Star, last year’s .

Grand National Hurdles winner, will be the Browne stable’s hopeful for today’s Koral Steeplechase. Four years ago Browne’s arrival from the North Island coincided with a deterioration in weather, and he won the Grand Nationals double with those adept soft track performers, Charlestown and Dark Purple. Rain returned to Christchurch yesterday, ending any hopes of anything better than a soft track for the opening of the Canterbury Jockey Club’s carnival to-

day. The softening of the track makes a T.A.B. double triumph for the Awapuni stable of Eric Temperton a lively possibility. Temperton-trained hopefuls for the feature flat races will be Nalu and Flying Tui. Strategy is another winter track specialist in the lineup with Nalu and company in the Amalgamated Packaging Handicap, and Bronze Valley boosts Central Districts’ chances in the Paparua Handicap.