DOUBLE EVENT AT TRENTHAM

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 61, 14 March 1939, Page 13

DOUBLE EVENT AT TRENTHAM

(By "Rangatira.")

GLANCE OVER FORM OF FRIDAYS CONTESTS

• The- two races on the opening day on Friday that will attract principal ■notice are the Thompson Handicap and ■the Railway -Handicap, which form What is popularly. known as "The •double." ■ Considerable subsidiary interest, however,' will also be manifest] in the St. Leger Stakes, which offers . Beaupartir. his first real opportunity to place a classic success against his - name; and also in the. Pacific *Handi- • cap, which :is of ten won by a two-year- _ old destined to be one of- the best of "the following season's three-year-olds. A feature of the first day's fields this year is-' their, balance in size and quality. In this respect the card is a much better one than'twelve months ago, ; when the Thompson Handicap dominated the acceptance, With sortie of the fields below average in the other ' events. Every face has. filled well for Friday. . The seventeen acceptors for the Thompson Handicap make a much less unwieldy array than the 28 last year, and the decrease in this race is compensated for by an increase of three to fifteen in the Railway Handicap. Tne; Thompson Handicap issue' is now rather. easier v than, it looked . at the declaration of 4 the weights, particularly With-Suleiman's not making the double acceptance. The actual weighting of the horses for this big mile event has already been received,and so One may now confine one's attention to the form of the horses remaining in the field. THE THOMPSON TOPS. ~-. Mr. H. Coyle has separated Royal Chief and Smoke- Screen far enough from the others to indicate how these two horses stand apart in class^ Both are capable of winning ,on their recent form,, each having a success to his credit in his last start. Royal Chief won the JBazlett Gold Cup at Dunedin, attractively if .not by a great • margin over' Queen' of Song, and the racing he had last month .will have brought him forward a lot." Smoke Screen, having his first start since he ran one of his few bad races at Trentham in January,, was capable of sub r duing his opponents in the Taranaki Stakes on Saturday, and he will in this respect be. at, an advantage compared to twelve, months ago. When he finished second to Oratory, and with a bit of luck might have won, in, his first outing for over four months. Royal Chief and Smoke Screen were the best three-year-olds m the Dominion last season. They met .four times, and the' honours-were with Royal Chief in-three of those, encounters. In their first clash Smoke Screen 'beat his rival a head in the Great Northern Guineas in'race record .time. Royal Chief turned.- the tables, in the Trentham Stakes, also a mile, ..winning by half a length; and in the New Zealand Derby Royal Chief .wag again victor, this, time by -&' heck. ■ -but' com* fprtably. Their other.meeting was-in "the- Awapuiti Gold :Ci&f in' Vvhi'ch <$byal Chief,.was second to, Strettb, who ran course record time,' But Smoke Screen broke down.: The. 31b now between the pair represents about their difference on last ■■ season^ form, but Smoke Screen, who' registered Domin•ion record time for a mile "at Ellerslie In December, . may be preferred at this distance on the .day,, particularly •as' he is better proved in handicap class. ■ -■-.-•■ •. . : One of the best-treated horses purely on weights appears to be/ Trench Fight, who is probably, at his best at a mile and is not far short of being the best miler in the Dominion on his day. .Trench Fight has lost races by his: hard-pulling tactics, but with 8,8 ift the saddle instead, oii his usual 9.0 odd he could be allowed to go the. Whole way in the Thompson and he Should then take a power of; pulling ."Back. He- is a horsfe who should appreciate his drop in weight* He also ■ has form, to recommend him, as at jiis last start hie was beaten only a.lenlth by Queen of Song in the C.J.C: Midsummer Handicap, after, trying to lead throughout the mile, and a quarter, and Queen of Song the following week tSaid high tribute to that form at the Dunedin. Meeting. . ALL WELL HANDICAPPED. " Other horses who have nothing to Complain about in their weight are Haughty Winner, Lady Montana, The Bigot, Meamea, and : Laughing Lass. Haughty Winner has a fine record on 'the Trentham track, with further wins at his two outings there in January, and he is only 21b worse off with Trench Fight than he was when winning the W.R.C. Summer Handicap, li miles, in which Trench Fight was Unplaced. Lady Montana, narrowly beaten by Haughty Winner that day, Comes in. 31b better, but there is still some doubt about whether she will have, made sufficient recovery from her recent injury to start. The Bigot was winner of the Thorndon Handicap, 1 mile; on the final day in January under 8.7, and he now meets Dungarvan, who was only third, at 71b.better terms. Meamea ran second to The Bigot under 8.5, and now comes in at 31b better. Laughing Lass, Who was fourth that day, is weighted at '41b • better compared with her stablemate, and, not only is she a mare Who has gone some of her best races at Trentham, but she indicated in January that she can get a mile without trouble and she was an attractive winner, recently at Wanganui at her latest outing. , Dungarvan a fortnight ago was under & special preparation- for the race following his Egmont victories, but lie went a bit sore and he is still under a" cloud Though he has none the feest of the handicap, particularly when compared with several of those below him, he is very, fit except for his soreness, and the recent rain will have finproved Ms prospects of starting. Some will doubtless remember that one 6f his stablemates, Alunga, nearly always sore, stepped out more than ' Once to run surprisingly good races ; on his home track. ! LIKELY THREE-YEAR-OLD. .Three three-year-olds remain in the acceptance, but* it is likely that Amigo Will run in the Railway Handicap in preference to the Thompson. At the weights Gay Son should beat Taurangi. It is difficult to. understand how Taurangi' has been -required to face Gay Son .at. worse than w.f.a. terms, for She has won only handicaps to date. Say Son's form is mixed, but he is a brilliant customer on his day and he ■is quite capable of winning a race like the Thompson at w.f.a. Over 11 furlongs at Trentham in January he was beaten only in the last' furlong by Lady Montana when-carrying 8.5, lib less thdn he. has in the Thompson, and he now comes in at 111b better terms with this mare, through whom a comparison may be obtained on most Of the others in Friday's field. Taurangi, who is a stablemate of Smoke Screen's, is a solid filly who could win such a race," but the figures- point to Gay Son's, being the better prospect among the three-year-olds.. The other five acceptors for this race will probably form the outsider division. Dictate and Mittie, however. are a pair' who could not be left out Of calculations, particularly the former, who is consistently, in the money in the bigger events.. Wild Career, who is on the minimum, will have a following simply because of the fact that be iS being brought up to Trentham all • the" way from Invercargill, which indicates that he has shown fhis connections some worthwhile trial. His form includes, successes in his last two starts, the open sprint at Win-

With all the preludes, completed, the eyes ot racing enthusiasts will how turn to the Wellington Racing Club's Autumn Meeting, which will b<2 held on Friday and Saturday. For nearly 15 years the club has raced in the autumn on St. Patrick's Day, and as this date falls this year on Friday, the meeting will be staged on consecu- - live days, instead of with a day in between. Under these circum-. stances splendid fields have been secured for Friday, with several additional fresh horses to come in on the second day.

ton,"when he beat the consistent ToroKoura easily, and over a. mile and a distance at Gore, when he again scored facilely. The Thompson bears its usual open appearance, and there is scarcely a horse in the whole field who will not carry good support. The favourite at present seems likely to be Smoke Screen, but Trench Fight, Royal Chief, Haughty Winner, and Gay t Son. are horses likely to trouble him at the weights, and The Bigot, Laughing Lass, Meamea, and Wild Career will have followings among the lighter weights.