AUSTRALIAN DERBY PROSPECTS

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 128, 3 June 1927, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN DERBY PROSPECTS

ROYAL FEAST FAR AHEAD

Good two-year-olds were plentiful . the season Heroic was out at that age, but the same cannot be said of the current season. Contemporaries of Heroic were Fujisau, Versine, Mercian King, Spearfelt, Nigger Minstrel,,and Windbag, One would need to go back a long way to find bo many good horses out in one season, says the "Leader." Spearfelt and Windbag were not great two-year-olds, and when the autumn lacing had concluded they i were not.regarded as being in tho front rank of those of their own age. They won races, but they lacked the! brilliance of the others, as they matured more slowly than their more precocious rivals. Windbag won twice in his first season, his successes "being, gained in nursery handicaps, the second being the Mile Nursery at Randwick on the last day of the Sydney Cup.' He had only 7.4 that day, and won by a long head. There was nothing in the form, suggestiya of the great things he accomplished later on in life. Spearfelt also won-twice as a two-year-, old, his first race being the Gibson Carrnichael Stakes.: at-; Flemington and the Easter Stakes at Randwick, both races being over seven furlongs. Even as a two-year-old be gave ;promi.?e of being a stayer. Metellus waß second to him in both the races he won. Both Windbag and .Spearfelt were greatly inferior to Heroic as two-year-olds.. Heiroic was a ready-made galloper,: and c dominated all the others of his. own age in their first season. : ';, ...V;; '- The position' is;,much the same this year, as Royal "Feast has shown himself to be vastly superior to the other two-year-olds.' He is just as far ahead of his rivals as Heroic was in his year. , That superiority may not be so pronounced when the spring comes round, as some of the backward two-year-olds might catch up with him just as. Windbag and Spearfelt did in their time. There is the possibility of Royal Feast making just as much, progress, as he is -a. very big and massive colt. He has a big frame to grow j to, and time will probably do a lot for him, as there, is still plenty of room for development. There has been much speculation among racing men as to whether he will stay. Many people are inclined to doubt his staying powers, and support their contention by pointing to the lack of stamina in his brother, Mercian King. It is quite true Mercian King won only over | sprint courses, and there is no doubt about him being a first-class sprinter. Whether Mercian King stayed or not was never settled, because he was never trained for distance racing. *He'ran" in a Williamstown Cup, but did not long work for it, and in the race he fought with Bempsey he literally choked himself. The only other time he atteriipted to go beyond a mile was in the V.R.C. Final Handicap, run over ten furlongs. He was sore before the race, and had 9.7, so it was not surprising he did 'no better than finish j sixth. The charge against Mercian King of being a non-stayer must be regaided as not proven. So far as his. breeding is concerned tliere is no' reason. why Royal Feast should hot. stay, aiid ,he has shaped in all his races like a horse to.whom a journey will not come'amiss. He is one of the easy going placid sort, who docs just as much as is asked.of him and no more. He .won the A. J.C. Sires Produce Sakes with the greatest o£ ease and simply cantered away from his opponents over, the last furlong. CAIRNS v. M'CARTEN. Cannon defeated him in the Champagne Stakes, but. Cannon is smart over six furlongs, and the distance was probably a little short for Royal Feast. It is more than likely Cairns rather than Camion brought about the downfall of Royal Feast. Cairns is a master of tactics, and outrode M'Carten, who probably underrated Cannon, as he beat the St. Anton colt easily enough in the Ascot Vale Stakes after Cannon had got a break on him in the last furlong. On the known form Cannon looks to be the second best of _ the Victorian two-year-olds, and hs gives the impression that sprinting will be more in his line than staying. As a three-year:old he will probably get a brilliant mile, but probably no further. A colt that has to make his debut on the Turf is Murthong, the brother.to Man-

Fred, for whom Mr. Ben Chaff ey paid -s/50 guineas. He lias not been hurried, as he is a big fellow and wanted time, but report speaks goldenly of him, and he has been showing promise. He will not race until the early spring, and there will be a keen desire to see him in action. We very much doubt whether he will approach- the standard set by Manfred, as he was not such a true-shaped one as a yearling as Manfred was at the same age. la the course of a conversation recently in Sydney a well-known judge, whose knowledge of horses and racing dates back to the days of The Barb, declared Manfred to be the most perfectly made horse he Jiad ever seen. Murthoug could Be much inferior to Manfred and still be a good horse. A NEWCOMER. A colt likely to be heard of in connection with the Derbies next season is Weamlight, a brother to Epilogue. He Has done very little racing but he showed great pace in beating Triangle over six n,a.a.,Jlalt furlongs at weight for age in Adelaide. He is being trained by James ocobie, and is regarded as quite a Derby possibility by him. He is a nice solid Jookmg colt, and being by Comedy King H-om a Sunstar mare., fs bred' on staying lines. He has shown pace, and if he has stamina with it he might prove the most dangerous of Royal Feast's opponents in the Derbies. His stable companion, In valve, has shown good form, but so tar the Cykions »have not shown any liking for a distance. He does not appeal as a Derby possibility, iior does The Wensum or Sacedon. So far the high-priced Avant Courier has done nothing suggestive of success in the classic races. He has started a few times this season, but never looked like winning a race. His sister, Valicare, did not come to hand early and he may be one of the slow-maturing sort. He is one of the sort of whom time will do a lot, but he will need to make more than ordinary improvement m the next four months if he is to justify his b'g price by winning one of the Derbies. Another high-priced Vaiais colt that lias so far been a failure is Sion. He has been backed several,times, both in Melbourne and Sydney, and has cousisteutly tailed. He must have shown good form a V me' as his : owner is a shrewd man who does not'bet on any of his horses unless they have given him good reason to fancy them. , ■•■ - A REAL DERBY COLT. Glenaviff, who was one of the high-priced yearlings of last year, did not realise expectationF, at the recent Sydney Cup Meeting, lie has won one race. The going was all agamsfc him at Randwick last month, as he is a very big colt, and one totally unsuited by heavy tracks. He is still rather immature, and the next few months will make a wondrous difference to him He will look a real Derby colt by the time the spring comes round. He-is a halfbrother to Belgamba, by Valais. There are two Rossendale colts in Sydney, of wnom good things are expected. One is Rosso, a big, lengthy, strong-looking colt, who gives the impression of being likely to stay He has not realised; expectations so tar^but he will be a good deal better next season, as he wants time to develop, The other colt is.Winalot, who has scored recently. He belongs to Mr. H. Chishblm, a member of the A.J.C. Committee. He takes a little time to get going, but goes at a great pace when at his top; and seems to stay well. He is regarded in Sydney as_quite a good Derby possibility. Form' points to Royal Feast winning the Derbies next season, unless the New Zealanders bring across another Limerick or Ballymena. Royal Feast looks to hold safe the pick of the Australian Derby candidates, and will be the winter favourite for the classics. .