WANGANU'S OPENING DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 60, 8 September 1937, Page 15

WANGANU'S OPENING DAY

SPRING SESSION UNDER WAY

HORSES IN LIKELY FORM FOR TOMORROW

(By "Rangatira.")

The spring campaign in' the Dominion will be ushered in this week" with the Wanganui Meeting, which opens tomorrow and concludes on Saturday, and, judged through the fields that have been secured for the first day, the inauguration of the new flat term should be highly successful, The Wanganui Guineas and the Debutant Stakes are reserved for the second day, but tomorrow's card is an interesting one and the form line is likely to be instructive for the first of the classics and also for the numerous meetings following during the next two months and leading up to the Wellington and New Zealand Cup Meetings. .

Until the last week more settled weather than often prevails in the spring was experienced in the Wellington Province, but there was insufficient drying to firm the tracks at most centres, and report from Wanganui is that tomorrow's going is likely to be easy after quite an amount of .rain over the weekend. However,' the Wanganui course is rarely excessively heavy, owing to its sandy subsoil, and it dries out very rapidly after even the heaviest rain. . During the last few months a number of improvements have been effected in the public enclosures at Wanganui, among these being the enlargement of the niotor-park. The betting as usual -will be under the single-pool system. The club adheres very closely to schedule, and the starting signal is generally given within a couple of minutes after tne cessation of betting, so that the public are not inconvenienced with long delays. Form as shown at the1 Combined Hunts Meeting is customarily a useful guide for Wanganui, and it may be so again, though the Wanganui track sometimes does hot suit horses that have just previously been racing well elsewhere. On the other hand, the Wanganui course is. one on Which the adage of horses lor courses has frequent exemplification. THREE OPEN EVENTS. Tomorrow's main item will be tha Higgle Handicap, run over a mile and a distance and attracting a field of eight. Last year this event was decided on the second day, with the mile and a quarter handicap on the opening day, but the present order is much the better, particularly so early in the season. The real form, horse in the Higgie Handicap is the topweight Taitoru, who incidentally has been successful at the last two meetings of ,the club. Since he resumed racing twelve months ago this son of Sandstar has built up a fine record, in this period having won no less than ten races and half of them in open class. His consistency and fitness will make him very hard to beat again this week. ' Among Taitoru's likeliest opponents may be Fersen and Gold Mission, who have both had recent i racing and should be improving all the time now. Except that Grand Jury had a race at Manawatu in July,*the others have been off the scene for periods ranging up to twelve, months in the case of Maine and Hunting Cat, and until they have been produced again.it is difficult to assess what their prospects may be. Hunting Cat ' and Maine both come from stables that can produce winners first up. TRIAL FOR GUINEAS. The big interest in the Flying Handicap will be the. form of the Guineas candidates, particularly Royal Chief and Haughty Winner. A three-year-old in Karl, carrying 7.9, won the. race last "year, Gallid being unplaced under B;7i and what Karl could do either of the "southern-./pair; should^at least -be capable of emulating.- > Royal Chief; the crack.juvenile, of last season, has 31b": above w.f.a., and he is said to be well forward, but he might, be better for a race. Haughty Winner, with lib'under wia,, is perhaps closer to Royal Chief than his record entitles, but the Wanganui handicapper probably has considered the fact that he comes from a stable that wins first up and also that he succeeded last spring at his first two outings. ■■■•■.■■•',.• Other three-year-olds in the field are the fillies Greenwich and Iciiig, both, of whom possess the requisite brilliance 'to make crack sprinters. Greenwich at times last: season: went close to class performances, while Icing l was winner of the Wanganui Debutant Stakes last September. In Ben Braggie, Pakanui, Laughing Lass, and Debham the younger horses will find real testing metal. j The third open event on the flat is the Seafield Handicap, for which, like the other two, there are eight acceptors. The elect of the stablemates, Friesland and Lowenberg, will probably be the favourite, and, as the course is rather turning for the Derby winner, it is' likely to be Friesland in whom reliance is placed. Friesland, backed down to favouritism over the distance last Saturday, finished fourth, and he is sure to have benefited from that race. Gay 'Rebel and Myriani looked likeliest of the others on recent form, and success for anything else would be an upset. ADDITIONAL RACE. Two of the other events are for the jumpers, the opening Hunters' Steeplechase being a new item this year, replacing the former juvenile parade, arid thus making a card of eight totalisatorraces. In other tiroes the club always had steeplechase events on the spring card, but they we're dropped in 1928. /It is-unfortunate that the two-year-olds could not be paraded tomorrow, instead of during the off (Friday) afternoon, but possibly tha club will incorporate the parade between races next year, as it serves a valuable end in encouraging investors to become interested in the Debutant Stakes on the final day. I

In the Hunters' Steeplechase Croyden and Platter are the form pointers from New Plymouth.- and Croyden, who won on the course in June, when Platter was third, will probably be made a good favourite. Platter, de-

spite his recent consistency, has never yet won a race in any department of the game. Cotsfield seems past his best, but is now down in the weights on a track on Which he has previously succeeded. Tambo, backed. down to win favouritism on the first day last week, and Book Law are likely improvers. •' . ' Trackman, with Sporting Song out of the way, has his chance in the Okehu Hack Hurdles of going the necessary point better than he did when sent out favourite at New Plymouth last Saturday. Donegal, who is generally best after respites, may be his most troublesome opponent. Aiguille is another who races well fresh, and True Shaft might be better for his race last week. Among the novices at the game, Even Money, from the Sporting Song stable, has the pace if she can compass the Course. HACKS AND MAIDENS. The hack sprinters are catered for by the Durie Hack Handicap, in which many of the field are fresh up after spells. Joviality and Dancing Lady have the likeliest form, but Felicitation, Rhodesiari, and Free Gold are a trio who have in them the makings of ■ useful horses this season, particularly the last-named pair. In the Putiki Hack Handicap, for the staying hacks, Tidewaiter, whose form has been hard to follow, looks to have likely credentials, but he will nevertheless encounter strong opposition from Black Fox, Quadroon, Hunting Queen, Middle, and Tractile, /ill of whom look favourably enough placed; and there are other possibilities as well in a field. in which the betting should cover a wide range. The three-year-old group generally finds the winner of the Maiden Race at tills meeting, and likely sorts in the category tomorrow, are Relative, Seaham, Aureus, Final, Sigurd, and Gay Hunting. , Great Memory is a Clifford representative, so many of whom win first up. Aria, though bo far a disappointment, may prove best of the older lot. Relative and Sigurd are maidens with Guineas aspirations' on the final day. / . PROSPECTS AND CARD. . The following horses are likely to be well supported:— Hunters' Steeplechase.—Croyden and Platter, '-'' Maiden Race.—Relative, Final, and Sigurd. Okehu Hack Hurdles.—Donegal and Trackman. ,■■■■■< Putiki Hack Handicap.—Tidewaiter and Black Fox. ■■'.„• Higgie Handicap.—Taitoru and FerSeafield Handicap.—Friesland and Gay Rebel. ... Durie Hack Handicap.—Joviality and Rhodesian. :. ... ■ Flying Handicap.—Haughty Winner and Pakanui. ' The card is as follows:— 11.50 ' ' : ' HUKTERS' STEEPLECHASE; £120; about Z. miles, ,; '

Croyden .... 10 9 Bed SHnt »... 9 0 Cotsneld .... 9 9 Book Law .... 9 0 Platter ...... 9 1 Star Mond ... 9 0 jambo 0 0 Tommy Atkins 9 0 'Bimbo fl 0 Ruenzorl .... 9 0 Acron ...%.. 0 0 . ' MAIDEN RACE, £100; 0 furlongs..'-■. Aria .' S. 5 Final ..;... 712 Kotira-Bua .. 8 5 Florence Mills ;7 12 Civil ..; -8 -B ■ Great Memory '7 12 JooLoui* ■■ 8; S Sigurd ....... 7.12 Amoroso .... '8 5 White Gold .. 712 R6yal Treat .. 712 Amatory .... 7 12 Aureus 7 12 Mahutai ' .... 7 12 Seaham .... 712 Relative .... 712 Gay Hunting .. 7 12 1.10 OItEHTJ HACK HURDLES, £140; 1 mile 4',i furlongs. Donegal .... 10 12 Top Hat', 0 2 Trackman ... 9 8 Cyclopean .. 9 0, Master Norval .- . 0 6 Book Law.... ') 0 Even - Money . 8 3 Mahalu t !l 0 Algulllo ..... 9 2 ' King Pluto ( . !) 0 Truo Shaft ..0 2 1.50 • POTIKI HACK HANDICAP. £150; 1 mile and 110 yurds. , Tail Light .. .ft 2.; Black Fox ... 7 9 Hunting Queen 810 Brilliancy .._. 7 4 Winsome Lv . 8 5 All Spirit ... 7 4 quadroon .... 8 4 Ngatlrahlrl ".; 7 4 Middle ...... 8 0 Master Llmond 7 2 Tidowalter ."•■.- 7 13 Olivette. 7 0 Tractilo ..... 7.10 Warehl ..,.., 7 0 2.30 ■..-.■■ ..'■'■ ■;. ■ ;.; ', ": ■ HIGGIE HANDICAP, £250; 1 mile and a. distance. Taitoru ..... 9 3 Entai! , 7 8 Hunting Cat... 8 10 Maine 7 8 Fersen S 6 . Cerne Abbas .. 7 8 Gold Mission . 8 0 Grand Jury .. 7 4 3.15 ; ■ ■ ■ SEAKELD HANDICAP, £150; ■. 7% furlongs. Friesland .... .9 6 Slippery ..... 7 5 Lowenberg ..8 3 Jubilee Song ..75 Gay'Bobel ... 7 10 Myriam .... 7 3 Might ...... 7 f Imposture ■... 7 0 4.0 ■:'..' - DORIE HACK HANDICAP, £120; ■ '. . 6 furlongs. Joviality 8 8 Shirred Ribbon 7 9 Dancing J.ady (! 8 Scarf Dance .. 7 5 Felicitation .. 7 33 Olivette 7 5 Rhodesian ... 7 12 F.alr Mo 7 5. Free Gold ... 7 12 Helios • 7 3 Raco Call ... 7 9 4.45 : FLYING HANDICAP, £1GO; C furlongs: Ben Braguio .. 9 0 Haughty Koyal Chief ..S3 Winner 7 13 Lauchlng Lass 8 2 Greenwich .. 7 6 Debham .... 82 Icing 7 0 Pakanui .... 8 2