SIEGMUND'S AUTUMN

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 88, 15 April 1939, Page 22

SIEGMUND'S AUTUMN

QUICK TEAVELLING

HOW HE WAS TAKEN SOUTH

For the second year in succession Trentham provided the winner of the C.J.C. Great Autumn Handicap when Siegmund put up the most notable performance of his career. Second to him was last year's winner, Arctic King, who was also second to Willie Win in the same race two years ago. Siegmund has not the same outstanding Riccarton record as Arctic King has, but as a three-year-old he was a winner of the Stonyhurst Handicap on the course. Siegmund's victory had more than a touch of piquancy about it, as he stepped off the ferry only on the morning of the race. His final trial was done at Tauherenikau last Saturday, and though he then failed to catch Trebor his owner, Mr. F. Kettlewell, and his trainer, H. B. Lorigan, were satisfied that he was a good thing beaten by the shortness of the straight. Efforts were made to, ship him south by an extra boat that was leaving on Sunday night, but when that could not be arranged it was decided to send him down on Monday's boat. On Monday afternoon he was still in, his box at Trentham. The stable apprentice, A.« Sagar, returned after riding in the first three races at Tauherenikau to take charge of him and see him on the boat. His trainer joined them before the vessel sailed, and on their arrival It Lyttelton after a perfect passage he was put on a float at the wharf and taken over to Riccarton, where he was plated, given his breakfast, and then allowed an easy time till the afternoon. According to his owner he was perfectly content and at ease from the time he left Trentham. FINE STAMP OF HORSE. Siegmund was a very fine stamp of two-year-old when he was first put into training at Trentham, but, though he was just beaten by Brabant at his first start, he failed to finish again in the money that term. It was a wet season, and Siegmund had the ill luck to strike bad tracks nearly every time he was produced. In the early autumn he was gelded and turned out to finish growing till the following spring. Early as a three-year-old Siegmund won a hack double at Masterton, and then went on to capture the Stonyhurst Handicap, for horses of his age, at Riccarton. He did not succeed again till the following season, when he was a winner first up for the term at Masterton again. He was unlucky during the next couple of months, but he came back with a vengeance to score at Woodville and then on all three days at the Manawatu Summer Meeting. His only subsequent success last season was in the Summer Handicap, 1-J miles, at Trentham, when he won so impressively that a four-figure price was offered and refused for him. For a long time it looked as if a mistake had been made in not accepting that offer, as he raced 28 times before his next win came.

Siegmund could not finish in the first dozen in the New Zealand Cup last November, but on the third day of that meeting there was a flash of the old form when he pressed Defaulter till the straight in the Canterbury Cup. On his return from Riccarton he was let up for a month, and when he came back into training he was handed over to H. B. Lorigan, who has been responsible for his marked progress during the last four months. It was not till February that Lorigan was satisfied he had the gelding right again. After a somewhat unlucky third on the opening day at Woodville, he at last placed his name back on the winning list in the Autumn Handicap on the second day, when he beat a moderate field. . From there he went on to win the Wanganui Cup at his next start, and after a brief lapse at jCarterton and Trentham he was second to Galteemore at Manawatu, unlucky in the Hawke's Bay Cup, in which he was badly left, and won the Hastings Handicap on the final day. His only other start prior to the Great Autumn was at Tauherenikau last Saturday, on a course that hardly suited his style;

HIS RACING RECORD. Siegmund's full racing record is as follows:—

It is seen from this record that tfie gelding has had a lot of racing in the last two seasons, but it must be said that during the last three months he has really thrived on it. Since Lorigan took him over in December he has had 17 starts for four wins, three seconds, and two thirds, earning £1905 in stake-money.

Siegmund was bred by Mr. Kettlewell, who secured the dam, Lilimond, a daughter of Limond and Farce, as an unraced three-year-old and in foal to Lysander for 60 guineas at a sale at Trentham. Lilimond was to have been sold as a yearling at the 1929 National Sales, but when being sent down from Koatanui to the Trentham sales stables she suffered hock injuries in a railway box and so Mr. G. M. Currie could not offer her. Mr. Currie returned her to Koatanui to recover, mated her with Lysander in 1930, and then sent her up for sale as a brood mare the following January.

•Lilimond's Lysander foal was born dead. The next season Mr. Kettlewell had her mated with Siegfried, and then he gave her to Mr. A. H. Marshall, of Marton, under an arrangement that he should keep the mare in return for rearing the foal, who was to be named in due course Siegmund.

Mr. Marshall has since bred two more horses from Lilimond who have raced. One of them, Wildflower, returned to the winner's list at Feitding last Monday, and the other is the two-year-old Beau Pere filly La Coquette, who has made only three appearances as yet and is being allowed plenty of time in which to develop. Lilimond is a member of one of the best Koatanui lines, that descending through the Simmer mare Our Lady, dam of Cowl, Bronze, Farceur, Anklet, Beau Soult (sire of Beauford), and others. Through Bronze, a high-class performer herself, have come such [good horses as Grotesque, Glenross, land Lady Desmond. The Cowl branch, however, has been the more successful at the stud, its numerous winners including Rational, Veilmond, The Monk, Smoke Screen, Pelmet, Habit, Prince Pombal, Siegmund, and Wildflower. There is thus no question as ,to where Siegmund has obtained his racing qualities. It is interesting to note that his sire, Siegfried (sire also of Wotan), is one of the several Son-in-Law horses now in the Dominion. He is a much better doer than the majority of the Siegfrieds, as he is apparently the better the more racing he has, but his owner is not going to ask him for much more racing this season, as he will be giving him a holiday on his property during the winter and will then bring him in fresh again next spring.

! At 2 years .... At 3 years .... At 4 years .... At 5 years .... Starts. , 9 , 14 . 27 , 25 Wins. Places. — 1 3 — 6 8 4 7 Stakes. £ 10 360 1645 1945 Totals .... , 75 13 16 £3960