TRIGO'S ST. LEGER

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 111, 6 November 1929, Page 8

TRIGO'S ST. LEGER

ATTENDANCE OF 400,000

IRISH HORSE, OWNER, JOCKEY

(From "The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, 12th September.

For the Doncaster Races, the old Yorkshire town has been very full, all hotel accommodation having been secured weeks ago; small villas have been let at good prices; and entertaining has been, very general.. The Earl.of Lonsdale took-a house in. the town' for the week, and his guests included Princess Mary and Viscount Laseelles.

The historic :■ St. Leger, the event of 11th September, was run, as a Doncaster corrcspoiident remarks, in something like the atmosphere which used to characterise the meeting, in, the later days of King Edward, who was very partial to this autumn fixture. • The great interest taken m racing by Princess Mary and her husband lias given a great filip to the Doncaster Meeting. 'In addition to the races there are the famous yearling sales, so that breeders and. enthusiasts have plenty to interest them. Well-known figures m the racing world who saw the St Leger run included Sir William and Lady Aoreen Bass Colonel and Lady Etheldred Wackham, the Earl of Sefton, and Major i^eatherstonhaugh. (the .'manager of the Ivmg.s racing stables), the Earl of Derby \ iscomit Astor, -Loftl. Stanley, the Duke of Portland, Major Vandaleur Beatty Sir Abe Bailey, the Aga Khan, Sir Hugo Cunhffe-Oweu, Mr. J. B. Joe], Mr. S.'B Joel, Sir Walter Gilbey, the Hon. George Lamb ton, Mrs. Sofer Whitburn, Lord Allendale, Sir Victor. Sassoon, > and the Jiarland Countess of Liverpool The at tendance totalled 400,000 people constituting the second largest gathering on record. . • ■ ORIGIN OF THE NAME. Moat, of the events on each of the four days are interesting and important, for entries are charaeterised-by their ,hich class. ■ But one" hears more of ' the \St Leger than any other of the events. It is recorded that many, a proud Derby winner has been humbled in the race which ~ot the world-renowned ' name •of . St. Le°er at the i Marquis , : of Rockingham's suggestion, when he.andlhis friends Were dining at thei Red Lion, Doncaster, a century and a half .'ago. _■ He suggested it as a compliment to Lieutenant-General Anthony St Leger, a soldier-sportsman of some note then living near by. at. Park Hill, but otherwise unknown,to fauiei What the Yorkshire crowd has always loved to see is a Derby winner stripped to hold his own and this is what they did see on Wednesday last, for the outside winner ol the Jipsoni classic carried off the St' iieger, too, by a narrow victory. The gallant Irish-bred and Irish-owned Ingo (Blandford-Athasi) ridden by the Irish born jockey Michael Beary won a thrilling race by a head from Lord Derby's Bosworth (T. Weston up), with Horus (Sir L. Phillipps) third and Haste Away (Mr. C. W. Gordon) fourth. Lord Astor's Oaks winner, Penhycomequiek (H. Jelliss) was made favourite', but could not do better than take sixth place. She was the onlyt filly in the race, which, is run over a dis'tace of about 1 mile 6 furlongs and 132 yards. There were U runners. Many people,who'thought Trigo's Derby victory to have been a fluke, have now come to realise that he has great merit and a stout heart. . \. ■ THE JOCKEY'S STORY. One who was present writes; ,It was in every respect a beautifully- ruit: race. There was none of tho heller skelter tactics which we have come to as-. sociate with the Derby.,: In the St. Leger- the jockeys usually: settle down to ride a steady race and give their mounts a chance to get the trip./ It was Gordon Richards who, saw there;' was no' hanging about. He at once took."En Garde into the" lead. y •/■•'. Hero let Michael .Beary take "up the story. "Bosworth was,the first to have a go at the leader," said the jockey, "arid I followed in -his wake on the outside. We were soon joined <by Penuyeomequick, but she could not hang.on, and about a furlong from home I tackled Bosworth, and had not much trouble in going into the leadJ' , From the time, we got into the straight my colt always gave me a good feel, and I felt'that I could go .aud win my race whenever I elected to do so. Bosworth was closing/in' again in' the last few strides, but I never felt like being beaten." WON ON MERIT. My own view is,that, the winner scored distinctly on merits All the way up the straight I could see Beary was quite comfortable, and content with the position he held, and when he made a forward move Trigo-.did it all in a iew strides. Even if he had had about enough at the finish he went about his business like a good horse and the spoils were rightly his. Frank Butters (tranler of Bosworth), was perhaps' a'little 'disappointed at getting so. near and yet' sp'^fai'. I went to see the race with the' Stanley House trainer, and he'remarked: "I don't feel "quite so happy about thq prospect of watch-ing-to-day's race, as I did.last year." So he niusfc have been "pleased that his colt ran so well> .He told me after the race, that Westoh had -said he would have won in a few more strides,, and Butters was quite sure that", there would have been a different story; to tell.if he. had had an-, other three weeks Jwith .the_ colt.. Bosworth has ..made' great' strides in the. last mouth or so. There ;aro more unlikely things than that he will have the brightest future of. all.the horses that ran yesterday. Weston had no excuse,, except that Trigo had a little too much speed for him. Bosworth had a perfect position all the wa^, and "Westou went the nearest way home. The owner of the second had come to see his colt perform, but Bosworth was nofc quite good enough. He would have been something approaching a good thing for the Cesarewitch, But he has be.en taken out of the race. It is curious that though Son-in-Law has sired so many winners, he has never had a classic winner, although Bosworth made a great attempt to end the bad luck. THE MANTON HOPE. Pennycomequiek failed just where she was expected to shine. "When I went up to Trigo I was going so well,"; said Jelliss, "that I thought I was going to win,'but after getting to within a neck of ?Beary's mount I found the filly dying away in my hands. It looks as if she does not stay. as well as we thought. I am not even going to say she would have done.any better had the going not been bo firm. She went well enough on it, andy the only thing is that I was beaten by better.horses."' .1 thought the'filly looked on the light side, but she, had satisf ed at home, and Joe Lawson told me.th.it the only thinp to do was to accept'the form. He paid a tribute to R. CX Diiwsori when lie remarked: "But how much Trigo has improved since the Derby!" Perhaps that is tho moral of the race. : VARIOUS VIEWS. Following' are .interviews' which the "sporting Life" had with owners, trainers, and jockeys connected wlfli the principal performers in the race. Mr. W. Barnett said:- "I would have been disappointed if the horse had not-.pulled it off. After winning'the Derby we decided to save Trigo for the-.St. Leger; and he has not been out >since. I am .very pleased with the horse's,victory,-especially as so many of the' boys who came over from Ireland to see the horse run-had backed him heayily. I .did not see-much of the race, because I ■ was late in getting a place, and there, were so' many people there. My colt will mn again in the Irish St. Leger, provided he is no worse for to-day's race. . (He won this event.) He is a delightful horse, and never gives the least trouble to anybody. I cannot say yet whether he will be kept in trainmg next year." T. Weston, who :rode Bosworth• saidwas going weil from the start, where

I was about fifth. Trigo challenged a tuilong and a half from home, and was just too good for me." Lord Derby (owner of Bosworth): "It was a very near thing that I did not win the St. Leger for the second year in succession, but that short head, of course, made all the difference."

J. Jarvis, trainer of Horus and Haste Away: "Up to a fortnight ago I did not know which was the better of the pair. I had, however, given up hopes of Horus, becausa of the hard ground> and he would not have run had it not been a classic race. If the going had been yielding I think Horus would have won. T. Leader said: "Tom Peartree broke down, but for which I think the colt must have very nearly won." . It is not t often that R. C. Dawson, the Whatcombe trainer, gets the least excited during a race. He is 'too old a practitioner for that, but he had to admit that he shouted "Trigo" when Mr. Barnett's colt had to deal with Bosworth's challenge There was never a gamer three-year-old than Trigo. ' . ■ COLTS' GAME EXHIBITION. The racing representative of "The Times", says: "Both Beary and Weston deserve all praise for-their riding, while the two colts did all that could be expected of them, neither of.; them ever uinchin™ for a moment the task that they had been set. It is races like; this and finishes as closely fought out that make horse racinoone.of the great spbrts of the world and account for its enormous-popularity. I can see no excuse for- the failure of Pennycomequick or the others who were beaten, but a word off praise must be given to Horus, who ran a good and game colt, beaten by two better than1 he. I have never enjoyed, watching a race for the St. Leger more. :I have, never seen a gamer exhibition by two4colts or finer examples of the art. of race riding, each quite different, or a more exciting finish in the whole of my racing life." J. Marshall rode Trigo in the Derby, but M. Beary is first jockey at Dawson's stable where I Trigo has been quartered ever since June. Before the St. Leger the stewards were asked to decide whether Marshall or.Beary should ride Trigo at Doncaster. They came to the conclusion that.-the latter was entitled-to the mount being first jockey" for -.the Whatcombe stables. '."■•".'. •'"•' ' ■ ST. LEGER ■■ "SWEEP" LUCK. Trigo's victory has wQn £15,000 for Miss Mary Anderson, of Edgehill Lodge, near Cmderford, Gloucester&hfte;"-' daughter of an employee of the .Forestry Commission. She held the lucky'ticket in the Calcutta sweepstake, the first-prize in which is £24,000, but she sold a half-share of it for £3000. Tt is the second time that Trigo has brought good" fortune to 'Miss Anderson. She had a joint bet with her brother on the horse for the-Derby. When she went to the bank witK her winnings the manager invited1 her ■to buy a Calcutta Bweepstaketicketv She did so under the name ot "Winnit." ; -. ■'.-..'