QUALITY NEAR BEST

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 3, 3 July 1940, Page 11

QUALITY NEAR BEST

HURDLING FIELDS

PLENTY OF WINNING FORM

While the steeplechases provide the most exhilarating fare at winter fixtures, there is often excitement of a comparable degree in the big hurdle races, and the fields that have been secured for thesa events at Trentham next week promise to provide splendid contests. The open Trentham Hurdles, If miles, on the first day may not be as numerically strong as the other races on the card, but it will nevertheless be a field of select quality. The hack event, the Vittoria Hurdles, with its nomination strength of 37, looks like being a very field for such a race, The principal event in this department at the meeting is the Winter Hurdles, 2£ miles, on the final day, and it has a very gratifying nomination, including, besides the horses engaged in the Trentham Hurdles, those three allrounders, Padishah, Clarion Call, and Erination, as well as several additions from the first day's hack field. The higher-quality horses in the Winter Hurdles will probably mean a considerably lower scale of weight than has been used in the Trentham Hurdles. Among the horses missing from the Trentham Hurdles are Streamline and All Irish, who filled the two leading places in the Great Northern Hurdles last month, but the quality is otherwise well up to standard. It is a race of many possibilities. NORTHERN PREPONDERANCE. In recent years horses from the Auckland district have had a preponderance of success in this event. Four years ago the .winner was Black Marlin, three years ago Lord Val was second to John Charles, two years ago the winner was Full of Scotch, and last year the winner was King Key from two other northerners, Loombination and Inness Lad. The province is again strongly represented. Jewelled. Girdle and King Rey, who figure on 11.7 and 11.3 respectively, give pride of place in the list of weights to the north. It is a coincidence that these two horses won the hurdles double on the opening day at Trentham last July, Jewelled Girdle taking the Vittoria Hurdles under 9.13 and King Rey the Trentham Hurdles under 10.5. King Rey went on to Riccarton to run second in the Jumpers' Flat under 11.13 (Jewelled Girdle, 10.0, broke down in this race), fourth in the Grand National Hurdles under 10.10, and first in the Sydenham Hurdles, 2 miles, under 10.13. But he has not succeeded since over fences, though he won the Storey Memorial Handicap on the fiat at Waikato in February, whereas Jewelled Girdle came back from his enforced spell to take rank as one of the leading jumpers in the current ' winter. ! The record of the racing at Waikato in May and at Ellerslie last month will show how it has^come about that Jewelled Girdle now has to concede weight to King Rey. At Waikato Jewelled Girdle won the Waikato Hurdles. 1| miles, under 9.10, King IRey, 11.11, being unplaced, and the Hamilton Hurdles, 2 miles, wider IQ;6, Kin_j Rey not being a starter. Then in the Great Northern Hurdles, Jewelled Girdle, 3,0.2, sent out favourite, fell at the first fence and King Rey, U. 7. again failed, thqugh he stood up. Neither started on the second day, but on the third day Jewelled Girdle, 10.12, won the Campbell Hurdles, 2 miles, while King Rey, 11.5, finished in the ruck. Jewelled Girdle has not raced since, but King Rey was a runner in the Park Steeplechase at Waipa and tired out of the money. There-was 71b between these two horses in the Campbell Hurdles, and now the difference is 41b the other way. On Ellerslie form Jewelled Girdle would appear the likelier prospect again, even at 111b worse terms, though King Rey will be helped by the quarter mile shorter journey of the Trentham Hurdles to make a return to winning form in the role. MORE WINNING FORM.

Other Auoklanders in the Trentham HurdleS are Hessketoon and Survaiyon, and they are both in recent winning form. Hessketoon has scored, at his last three appearances, winning the Panmure Hurdles, II XTOlw. under 9.0, and the Orakei Hurdles, If miles, under'9.ll, at the Great Northern Meeting, and the open Orakau Hurdles, if miles, under 10.5 at the Waipa Meeting, on the last-named occasion easily accounting for Hirangi, 10.12. His performance is thus somewhat similar to Full of Scotch's, who won the three hack hurdles at the Great Northern Meeting two years ago, starting off on 9.2, and then came down to take the Trentham Hurdles decisively under 10.2, which is 21b less than Hessketoon has this year. Survalyon was third to Streamline and All Irish in the Great Northern Hurdles under 9.0, and then he won the Remuera Hurdles, 2 miles, on the middle day of the meeting under 9.2, beating Donegal, 9.7, and Knight of Australia, 9.8. Earlier in the season Survalyon g^ve 81b and an easy beating to Knight of Australia in the Kawau Hurdles aX Ellerslie in November. He has not started since his success at the Great Northern Meeting, and Vith 9,11 next week he appears to have a very favourable impost. Hirangi and Aussie Ra, who have 10.0 and 9.12 respectively, did their racing last month in the north. Hirangi now meets Hessketoon on 111b better terms than at Waipa recently and he is a staying jumper who should be at home on the Trentham course. Aussie Ra fell in the Great Northern, but on the final day, with 9.10, ran a close second to Jewelled Girdle in the Campbell Hurdles, and it may be worth re^ calling in his case that last August he was second to Padishah in the Grand National Hurdles tinder 9.5 and second to King Rey under 10.4 in the Sydenham Hurdles, which marked him out as one of the most promising of the younger brigade of jumpers. CLUES FROM WANGANUI.

Wanganui form to clash with the northern in the Trentham Hurdles is represented by Old Surrey, Soho, Curie, Blue Tiger, and Student Prince. Old Surrey was winner of the Century Hurdles, 2 miles and 194 yards, under 9.9, Curie, 10.13, being second. Blue Tiger, 9.11, fourth, and Student Prince, 10.5, tiring after a brief move on the turn. On the final day there Soho, 11.3, a bit unlucky, was third to Hunt ing Lore and Bisquit, who are not engaged in the Trentham Hurdles, and Curie. 11.5 was fourth. Old Surre-

__... . __v goes up to 10.1 in the Trentham Hurdles, and the others come down to Soho, 10.9, Curie, 10.6, Student Prince, 9.11, and Blue Tiger, 9.0. Curie has already proved himself as a hurdler at Trentham, as he won the Winter

4?iurcues una- -v,- last -ivy, apa, 11 he is produced sound, he may dp the best of the Wanganui form on a track on which he has done so well in the past during the winter, his wins there including the Whyte Handicap as a four-year-old seven years ago. A hack hurdler in the field who has won at his only two starts over fences is El Meynell, and though he has been given 9.12 in open class he is one of the real form horses engaged and another who has succeeded at Trentham in the winter, winning one of the hack miles there last July under top weight. He is a horse who is not. troubled by average imposts. The only South Islanders in the race are Araboa, 9.5, and Esperance Bay, 9.0. Araboa made his debut in the role at the meeting last year and he was going like a possible winner when he

fell two fences from home. From there he went on to win the Trial Hurdles at Riccarton, and following that race he was spelled till recently. He failed in a couple of starts at Dunedin, but he is sure to strip a better horse if brought to Trentham. Esperance Bay won lover hurdles at Trentham last October and again in the role at Riccarton at Easter, and though he has been off the scene the last two months he has the stamina to be a possible danger off the minimum at Trentham. The best of the Dunedin form is missing from the Trentham Hurdles field, but two of the winners there, Turaki (Otago Hurdles) and Hunting Chorus (second in Otago Hurdles and successful in June Hurdles), are listed to take part in the Vittoria Hurdles next Tuesday and they figure in the Winter Hurdles field on the final day. Trentham Hurdles entrants also nominated for the Vittoria Hurdles are El Meynell, Aussie Ra, Araboa, and Esperance Bay, the first three being required to concede weight to Turaki and Hunting Chorus, which indicates how these southerners will be assessed in the Winter Hurdles, subject of course to form shown during the earlier days. The Vittoria Hurdles will be a hard race to win, as it contains many promising novices, including, in addition to those mentioned, Smoke Screen, Tidewaiter, Jack Tar, Pekoe, Galteemore, Gold Ballad, and Grand Sport, and, though all of these are not in the Winter Hurdles on the final day, the form in the Vittoria Hurdles may have an important bearing on the more important event.