THE NEWMARKET

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 48, 26 February 1937, Page 13

THE NEWMARKET

AUSTRALIA'S BIG SPRINT

Most important of the autumn fixtures in Victoria is the Victoria Racing Club's Autumn Meeting at Flemington, and this year's fixture will be opened tomorrow, when the six events to be decided include the Newmarket Handicap, the Sires' Produce Stakes, and the St. Leger Stakes. Outside of Melbourne Cup Day, and possibly Derby Day, Newmarket Day is the big day of the year at Flemington. The Newmarket Handicap is the principal six-furlong event of the year in the whole of the Commonwealth. This year's contest is the sixty-fourth since the race was inaugurated, and it carries a stake of £2500. It is decided over a perfectly straight course. With large fields the rule it is an exceedingly difficult race to follow. The recordsized field was 38 in 1925, but,the 30 mark has often been exceeded. Last year tt\ere were 30 starters, but the number tomorrow will be considerably fewer than usual, as there were only seventeen final acceptors.

The big autumn double commences with the Newmarket, and is closed with the Australian Cup, which is run on the third (final) day a week later. The double is usually one of the best betting mediums of the year in Australia. One of the biggest coups in recent years was landed when Mr. U B. Kellow won the Newmarket with Heroic and Sir Samuel Hordern took | the Australian Cup with the Domimon'bred Pilliewinkie. . New Zealand early had an interest in the Newmarket. The winner o$ the second contest (1875) was the Traducer mare Calumny, who was one of three horses taken over to Australia the previous year by Edward. Cutts, founder of the Chokebore Lodge stable at Riccarton. Calumny, who had been a good performer in New Zaland, was sold with her two companions in Victoria, and in the Newmarket, as a five-year-old carrying 8.0, she flaunted the colours of Mr. J. Ward.

The first Newmarket success by a purely New Zealand visitor was achieved in 1887 by Mr. G. G. Stead's five-year-old Prince Charlie horse Lochiel, who "in the following spring added the New Zealand Cup to his excellent record. Lochiel was the favourite in a field of 24.

Another notable New Zealand-bred winner of the race was Soultline, who scored for Mr. S. P. Mackay in 1909 with 9.11 on his back. This remained the winning-weight record till 1930, when Greenline succeeded with 10.2. No Dominion-bred or owned horse has won the Newmarket since Soultline, but there have been only occasional New. Zealand contenders of any note for the prize. The only horse of New Zealand breeding in tomorrow's race is Country Party, a Chief Ruler four-year-old in J. T. Jamieson's team.

The favourite for this year's Newmarket at most recent advice was the Oakleigh Plate winner Aurie's Star, but Disalto is also likely to be well fancied now after his success in the Hawksburn Handicap, over the same distance, at Caulfield last Saturday. Pamelus, Beechwood, Regular Bachelor, Plymouth Sound, Falstaff, and Studio are others who will have their confident followings.