NOTES AND COMMENTS

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 105, 6 May 1927, Page 5

NOTES AND COMMENTS

(BY "VBDEt'TE.")

Nominations for the minor events at the Auckland Racing Club's Winter Meeting close to-night at 5 o'clock.

Most interest at Hastings to-morrow will be centred in the Ormond Gold Cup. Last year Reremoana scored a comfortable victory fronr Rapine and Grand Knight, and all three are entrants again this year. Joy King may also be in the field, and, being a delicate customer, no doubt he is being reserved for this, for he has no engagement on the first day. Much depends on how Grand Knight shows up today whether he will have a chance with Keremoana, who will have to improve on Awapuni form to beat even Joy King. Commendation's absence from the race will rob it of a great deal of interest, and it is to be regretted that this horse has missed one or two real opportunities of showing his mettle this season because of very minor troubles.

Mr. A. H. Fisher has purchased the Solferino.mare Coch-y-Bondhu, and secured a nomination to Tractor. Coch-y-Bondhu is closely related to Charleyille, the dam of Windbag,l and at some time or other she may be bred to a horse of the Dark Ronald—Hampton line, and bo breed something on the same lines as Magpie. King Snjock has been a most consistent performer at Te Rapa, for he has won six races on this course. He seems to have a penchant for the Puketaha Highweight Handicap, for.he won it at the Autumn Meeting in 1925, while he was second to Golden Krist in the same event last season, and captured the race for the second time on Saturday. In addition he has won the Claudelands Handicap, the Rangiriri Handicap, and the Tauwhare Handicap. He was also second in the Consolation Handicap in 1925.

The Fox is still being kept going at Ellerslie, but the Romeo two-year-old will not be raced again this season. He has only started on one occasion, when he ran second to Prince Otto in the Onslow Stakes, on the opening day at the last Auckland Meeting. The Fox has grown a good deal since he was first put into work, and should be a useful sort nest season. .

It is understood that the well-known horseman, W. Ryan, will shortly enter the ranks of trainers, with headquarters at Ellerslie. One of his patrons will be Mr. N. Donald," whose imported gelding Importer will be one of the first horses to go into his charge.

A short time back the imported horse Musketoon was placed in work with a view to receiving another preparation, but the attempt to train him again has been abandoned, and he has been thrown out of work.

The Papakura trainer, J. T. Jamieson, is likely to make a trip to Sydney this month with a few horses, probably leaving on the Ulimaroa on Friday fortnight. It is not yet known which members of his team will be chosen to make the trip.

Tall Timber (T. Chaplin) was schooled over the pony hurdles at Ellerslie on Tuesday, and completed the task safely, although his fencing was not impressive. •

Automne has left P. Conway's stable at Ellerslie and- will in future be trained at Paeroa by J. W. Cathro, who took charge of him a couple of days ago. Thursby has also had a change of trainers, and is now under the care of R. E. Brown at Ellerslie.

It is difficult to say how Tinokoa would have fared with Paddon had lie not fallen in the Beerescourt Hack Handicap. When the accident happened near, the turn hu was going well on the rails in about sixth -'position, and looked certain to have taken a" hand in the finish. It is understood that Tinokoa escaped injury in the fall, but he was not started on Wednesday at Te Bapa. «■

jocelyn, who is being selected as a possible staying three-year-old next year in, ;K?w South Wales, is; from Maltinc, a really' great mare in her day in Australia, and a winner from six furlongs to a mile and a half. Maltine was twenty years of age when she threw Jocelyn to Rossendale.

On King's Cup Day at Flemington, when all the elite were present, the unmistakable "office" in the hurdle race was The Governor. He duly obliged by winning at lucrative odds.

When imported Larkspur was offered at auction a little while back there would have been no difficulty in obtaining over 2000gns for him, but that did not approach the vendors' idea of his value. Subsequent developments proved that Larkspur would be very difficult to train again, and he only realised 850gns at auction at the recent sales. Ec was probably bought with a view to stud purposes, and, being by Spearmint from Laragh, by Troutbeck, breeding favours a successful career for him.

The fact o£ seven of Valais'. yearlings realising 15,000 guineas at the recent sales should be highly pleasing to the Messrs. Thompson, who, when they gave 14,400 guineas for him three years ago, were, by many, reckoned to have exceeded the price warranted by the Australian market. They did not own all the youngsters by him that were sold, but by next season "Valais will probably be showing them a substantial profit in servioe fees and sales, and as they will presumably race some of his progeny, they will also have the chance of picking up some of the valuable ■two and three-year-old stakes provided by the A.J.C., V.R.C., and V.A.T.C.

As several owners mf social importance were keen on winning the King's Cup at Flemincton, there were smiles at Randwick when a telegram announced the success of owner-trainer W. Leyshon's mare Spear Maiden, writes "Pilot." Leyshon is a first-class trainer, but has not made himself sufficiently popular with some of the leading racing lights in Melbourne for his win of Saturday to be entirely pleasing to them. In some respects Leyshon resembles a successful Sydney trainer, whose ■ attitude towards prominent racing personages has not always been one of marked respect.

Fred Williams is going for a world tour some time next year, and in consequence does not desire yearlings to be added to his team. This necessitated the Messrs. Brien looking elsewhere for. a trainer for their young stock, and they are giving G. Price Rampion's good-look-ing brother and another to prepare. At auction Rampion's brother was passed in at 3000 guineas, and it is understood his owners could have since sold him at a higher figure. Although the Messrs. Brien are generally included .among the lucky men of the Turf, they will be specially fortunate if, at such a short interval, the same breeding gives them something equalling Rampion. Nevertheless, the fact that very few mares throw two topnotchers is about the only thing that can be urged against that possibility.

A few years ago stud fees were comparatively low in America, but the position is different now. Running through a list of stallions serving in that country this season, it was noted that the most expensive was Sun Briar, whose fee is £600. He v/as followed by Stefan the Great at £500/ and then Black Toney, Epinard, Friar Rock, and North Star 111., at £400 each. At £300 came American Flag, Chicle, Mad Hatter, Mad Play, Marvex, Pennant, St. James, Sir Galahad 111., and Whisk Broom 11. Then there were thirteen at £200 each, one at £160, and forty at £100 each. These were given in one paper, and possibly only covered the stallions advertised in its columns. The other day a trainer was heard to remark: "Give me Melbourne jockeys for Melbourne; Sydney jockeys for Sydney; and Brisbane boys for Brisbane." Taken all round, that idea holds good, as I have seen some Sydney riders shape very badly in Melbourne, while it is equally certain some Southern jockeys are not nearly as good on Sydney tracks as on those of their own city, says "Pilot." Cairns, however, is one of the exceptions. He is as much at home, at Randwick as at Flemington or Caulfield, and, though Heroic did not win the Sydney Cup, it was not due to any fault of his rider. Heroic did not cover a foot of unnecessary ground, and, though jockeys are rarely praised for other than winning races, even those backers who lost their money on Heroic could not find the least fault with, the way he was ridden.

The veteran Steve Donoghue showed his marked ability again at Epsom a fortnight ago when he brought off the big double, scoring on Kinniard in the Great Metropolitan, and on Embargo in the City and Suburban. There is no leading course in England on which Donoghue rides befcter than Epsom. The sharp drop from the fha farioßgft...£iL tbq JJerby track,.iaa ap..

terrors for him, and while many riders are inclined to steady their mounts at the downhill entrance to the straight, about three and a half furlongs from home, it is at that point that Donoghue gains ground.