WELLINGTON MEETING

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 93, 17 October 1934, Page 8

WELLINGTON MEETING

POOR TWO-YEAR-OLD FIELDS

APPARENT LACK OF CLASS

. Many brilliant two-year-olds have enlcr'ed their names on the winning list in ' 'events at tlie Wellington Spring Meeting 311 past years, Jmt the class engaged in the two juvenile \\its on the opening day of this year's Spring Meeting at Treiitham - is surprisingly poor on paper, and it does - -not seem likely that more than two or three of them at most are destined to take " rank among the lop-flightcrs. Of course, ; it is rather early yet to offer any critical judgment, but one at present could not .concede the possible possession of class - "to other than three of the Trentham ac- - ceptors—Galilee, Legatee, and Severe. ' - 'The two-year-old races on the opening day on Saturday are the Taita Handicap and the Wellesley Stakes, and small fields •will go to the post in each of them. There are only six acceptors (including a bracket) in the Taita, compared with thirteen last year (when Coronilla was the winner) and eleven the previous year (when Dole was the winner from Golden Hair); and the important Wellesley payment numbers only nine (including two of the Taita acceptors), compared with fifteen last year (when Whenuakura was successful) and twenty the previous year (when Red Manfred led the big field home). It is disappointing, too, to find so few of the juve.,nile winners to date engaged this week. THE HANDICAP EVENT. The Taita Handicap promises to be a poor event for such a good stake, for all the field have been raced already this season but none of them has given the least 1 indication of superior class. Sometimes this race has brought to light something unexpectedly brilliant, as Gesture and Dole in the last half-dozen years, but there does ■ not seem to be anything of the sort in Saturday's contest. Romp Along and Round Up are a pair •owned by Mr. A. Symes and trained tit _Awapuni by Mrs. A. McDonald. The former is a chestnut colt by Chief Ruler from the King Mark mare Queen's Ferry, who descends from the Sister Agnes taproot, a branch of the No. 2 family that does not now survive very strongly but which some years ago produced a good handicapper in the "Wellington Cup winner Nobleman. Round Up is a brown coit by Lord Quex from the Wormwood mare Nukerakau, hence he is a full-brother to Bodyline, who was favourite for and ran third in the Taita last year. Romp Along and Round Up have both had a couple of starts to date, the former having finished 'a poor third at Masterton last Friday. Going Gay is a bay filly by Chief Ruler from the Comedy King mare Comedy Queen, and is thus an own-sister to To,} Rank and Michael Angelo. At the last Trenthara sales she was one of the Westmere Stud lots and was bought at 200gns ■ by Mr. S. E. Hill, of Wellington, the owner of Princess Doreen. who is racing her in partnership with his brother, Mr. T. R. Hill. Her only start to date was at Foxton, where she did not begin well from the jail position but was running on a poor fifth at the close. Haut Monde may be the most promising of the field, for he was still backward in his initial start recently at Napier ParK, yet ran a creditable race, the winner lioiu;,' his bracketed companion Kotou. He is a chestnut colt half-brother by Lord Qucx to Coronilla (last year's Taita winner), Dorado, and Doree, so that he descends from the same family as Desert Cold, and be also carries the well-known colours of his breeder, Mr. T. H. Lowry. Hororata is Sir Charles Clifford's repra- ' sentative, but she was not bred by this well-known breeder and owner. She is a bay filly by Tea Tray from the Taper Money mare Scrip, a granddaughter of Stepka and a winner of the D.J.C. McLean Stakes, and on these lines she should not be lacking in speed. Her breeder " was the late Mr. H. M. Reeves, from whose estate she has been acquired by Sir Charles. She has had three races to date, her best effort being a fourth in the McLean Stakes. Matrimony, who completes the field, ;s a brown filly by Lord Quex from, the ,"Leight'on mare Wedded, a half-sister to ' Gay Ballerina and La Moderne, and she is owned by her breeder Mr. T. A. Duncan, ■who acquired her dam at the Flaxmere dispersal come years ago. She had her first racing at Masterton last week but made no particular showing in either start. THE WELLESLEY FIELD. , The Wellesley Stakes is not likely to I)<3 contested by more than half-a-dozen youngMers at most. Going Gay and Matrimony look almost certain to prefer the easier Taita, and from northern advice Singara •has probably been left in the field by mis.takp. The field contains three winners, Gali- • 'ke, Severe, and Legatee, the first-named pair having been twice successful. On all form that has been revealed these three youngsters stand right out. ' The natural favourite is the northerner Galilee, who won the A.R.C. Welcome Stakes on. Saturday from Symeony and "Gay Sheik, two previous winners this term, ' and who in two earlier starts waa second in Gay Sheik on the first day of the Taumarunui Meeting, and, in receipt of nearly two stone, beat Gay Sheik by a neck ■on the second day. Galilee has obviously .improved a lot since then, for her success ;\.t set weights on Saturday was decisiveThrough Symeony she is the best two-year-old yet out this season. She.is a chest'■juit daughter of Chief Ruler and Lady Bede, and she was bred by her owner, Mr. JK. H. Cucksey, who did well last season ' with Baroscope. Her dam (Lady Bede) was by Adam Bede (an imported son of Adam) from Lady William, a daughter of William Rufus and Mareoa, by Cherry Tiipe. A few seasons back Lady Bede left a somewhat -unlucky daughter to Catmint in Princess Bede, who won the W.R.C. Taita for Mr. Cucksey in 1030. Severe also has a record of two wins and a second in three starts, but she has not made the same apparent improvement from race to race as Galilee has. There was little to enthuse about in her length win over Alchemic at Masterton last- Friday. She is a brown daughter of Limond ' and the Absurd—Drax mare Drastic, a half-sister to Spiral, and she is being raced «>n lease by the Awapuni trainer J. P. : Coyle. Legatee is the high-priced youngster of Ibt< field. He is an attractively-bred brown i-olt by Posterity from the Absurd—Pennon mare Motley, a winner of the G.N. AVplcorae and Foal Stake*, Wellington Stakes, and Manawatu Sires' Produce ' Stakes as a two-year-old, and since at the stud the dam of Midinctte (Manawatu Sires' Produce Stakes) and Variant (C.J.C. Champagne Stakes). One of the Jvoatanui lots at the January wiles, he was acquired by the; Awapuni trainer G. "\V. New on behalf of his patrons, Messrs. ft. and N. Smith, of Gisborne, for 575gns. "In three races to date he was fourth at. Marton, won the Wanganui Debutant Stakes, and waa beaten a couple of lengths by Symeony at Foxton when conceding 91b. It is p_ossiblo to discount hid Foxton defeat a little, as he did not^ bogin well on that occasion, whereas Symeony was quickly under way. Since tint race one of his part-owners has acquired Symeony, who has been allowed to drop out at Trentham apparently in his favour. Nightlassis the Nightinarch—■ Matata filly being raced by the Ballinger estate, and she will require to improve a lot to win here. Medway, a daughter of Colossus and the Hymcstra mare Mnidstonc, and owned l.y Mr. J. J. D. Bolton, of Masterton, did not make much of a- showing in her (ir.-t jace at Masterton. Singani is ;< halilirother by Whirlwind to linmbiiry and has yet to race, but as lie is in llir same stable as Galilee, he- is riot likely tn bo coming south. Penelope is tinl half-sister by Iliad to La Poupee and (up Dearer. !>■■- ins; owned by her breeder. Mr. ■"!'. M. Samson, and her only start to iUte was in -the novice, event won by Kiiinnull ,it OamsiPi.