Win hat-trick completed

Press, 4 April 1989, Page 40

Win hat-trick completed

By

JEFF SCOTT

Little Buckaroo, bred to Northern Hemisphere time (a January 1 foal) three years ago, entered calculations for the $150,000 John Andrew Ford Great Northern Derby later this month when he completed a hattrick of wins at the Auckland meeting last Friday. “If he was just a bit better mannered he could have been down for the New Zealand Derby. You have to watch him early,” said Mark Purdon, a son of Little Buckaroo’s senior training partner, Roy Purdon.

By the sire of crack youngster Tight Connection, Soky’s Atom (1:53.6), Little Buckaroo has recorded his latest wins over the Great Northern Derby distance of 2700 m (mobile). He was successful over another likely North Island Derby runner in Speedy Alba, in

3:27.3 for the distance last Friday, but bettered that time in his two wins last month.

His quickest winning time has been 3:25.7, a 2:2.6 mile rate, when successful on New Zealand Messenger night at Alexandra Park. Little Buckaroo had to sprint twice on that occasion, moving up to the trail with 1300 m left, then coming clear to win easily by two and a half lengths. Purchased by a trio of northern owners at the 1987 International Yearling Sale, Little Buckaroo was recording his fifth win from 14 starts for the Roy and Barry Purdon stable last Friday. His sire, Soky’s Atom (by Albatross) won 30 races in North America and was the leading first season sire of New Zealand two-year-olds last term, thanks to Tight Connection.

Soky’s Atom, whose old-

est crop are three-year-olds, has left eight individual winners of 19 races this season. Beside Tight Connection, sidelined with injury after winning twice this term, and Little Buckaroo, other promising youngsters by this National Bloodstock importation includes Mississippi Raider (three wins), and Soky’s Belle, which broke a pedal bone during a six-and-a-half-length juvenile win at Cambridge last month. Little Buckaroo is the ninth foal from the Morano mare, Floral Barmin, and the second winner from two to race.

Floral Barmin’s foal by Royal Scotchman, Rose Tabella, left a former Great Northern Derby placegetter in Prince Sharvid, the winner of six in New Zealand and later a 1:55.8 performer in North America, and Sharvid Lobell, the winner of five in New Zealand and a

1:56.4 winner in North America.

Another of Rose Tabella’s foals, Tabella Sunshine, has left the smart Queensland three-year-old Sunshine Knight (1:59.5). Little Buckaroo’s dam is also an unraced sister to the former smart North Island pacer, Sunshine Boy (nine wins), while his third dam, Rosewood, founded the big-winning family for the Watsons of Annat.

Rosewood left 16 foals, nine to race for eight winners. Her daughters include Wee Doll, the lightly-raced dam of eight winners including the dam of Tempo Cavallo (1:58.9, 23 Australian wins); Roseford, the dam of Watbro (10 wins); and Torlesse, the dam of the 1967 New Zealand Derby winner, Good Chase, the winner of 20 races in New Zealand and North America, and later a successful sire.