SPORTING

Evening Post, Volume CXXXII, Issue 134, 3 December 1941, Page 16

SPORTING

"BLACK MONDAY"

BACKERS ASTRAY

FAILURE OF FAVOURITES

(By "Binocular;") Racegoers at both Ellerslie and Feilding on Monday will not forget the second day at either fixture in a hurry, for it was a black and gloomy one for many as a result of the failure of favourites to fulfil expectations. At the Auckland Meeting not a single favourite won either day. Matters were! not so bad at Feilding. On the opening day five favourites scored and one ran second. The pendulum swung in the other direction on Monday, however, and not a favourite won, although three returned a fair percentage of their outlay by running second, the 75-25 per cent, system of betting reducing the loss. Would be Helpful. Some contend that where a stable has two or more horses engaged in a race the horses should be bracketed, as is done in trotting. Had such a rule been operating at Feilding backers, would have found the selection of the favourite in the hack sprint each day a simple matter with Graeco-Roman and Caroline Bay hailing from the stable of ,L. G.,Morris. The pair ran firct and second on the opening day and again on Monday, but with Caroline Bay meeting her stablemate on 51b better terms the majority of patrons anticipated that the filly would turn the tables. While there was not much in it, Graeco-Roman was again the victor, and backers of the unlucky Caroline Bay, who appears to be fated to fill minor placings, were left lamenting. Change in Card. According to the racebook at Feilding on the first day Distress Signal and Hagen, who ran second and third respectively, were trained by F. C. McHugh at Marton, but on the second day Hagen's trainer was given as his owner, Taihape. In his previous outings Hagen had been showing steady improvement, and after his excellent showing on Saturday it-was not surprising to see him get on the winning list. The Siegfried horse" appears to. be quite sound again and a fiat race, should not be beyond him, while his future in the jumping role looks particularly bright. Coining to Hand. Assisted by the lack of pace in the early stages of the Manchester Handicap on the opening day at Feilding Dynasty made a bold showing, even though Kotua carried too many guns for him. Over the shorter distance on the second day the Posterity gelding was beaten into sixth place in a| blanket finish, and a winning turnl should come his way before long. Poor Return. The Trentham contingent at Feilding was small, and the return was j poor, the second by Enrich and the third by Pay Roll in the open sprint on the first day being the only stakemoney won. Siglow ran two useful races in the big. handicaps without proving capable of getting into the money. All three have had a fair amount of racing of late, and it is possible that they have lost the edge of their form. A Grand Finish. The finish of the Rongotea Hack Handicao on the second day at Feilding was "one that thrilled the onlookers, for only the judge could determine the placings, and a stride past the post the order was quite different. Nevertheless, the merit of Te Oriko's performance could not be disputed, for after being pinched back at the start he had a lot of leeway to make up. Five furlongs from home he steadily improved his position, but it required a sustained effort to carry him to the front and it was not surprising under the circumstances to find him weakening on the post.