MY FIRST CUP

Evening Star, Issue 21639, 7 February 1934, Page 2

MY FIRST CUP

[By Oj,d Identity.] I was in Australia when Lurlino, Templeton, and Pimgawerewere won what our grey-hairod racing men always consider the three first races for the Dunedin Cup, but the details of these races have been so often told in my ears that they have the tenacity of nursery talcs. Ancient sports used to rave about Lurline, and declare that she was the best of the many good ones that Henry Redwood ever raced. Jt was a common saying that Dick Alason, who on her had the one and only ride in m ■ Cup, had nothing to do but to sit on the mare. She started at 2 lo I, and won anyhow by three lengths from Templeton (dvrs, 6.12), Stuart Waddell riding Air Hazlott’s Atlas into third place. in 1875 Delamain's Templeton had come on so well in Ids fourth year that he had to carry 8.12, including 71b penalty, and the crowd thought that the 71b extra would settle him, so they made Nosworthy’s Traitor and Redwood’s Ngaro equal favourites at .'1 to 1 each. James Wattie had the mount on Templeton and landed him the winner by six lengths from Geo. Coombs's Right Bower, on whom Tom Cotton had the ride. Traitor was third and Ngaro last. Delamain’s Pimgawerewere had what some said was a fluky win in 1876, but J don’t know where the fluke came in. This filly was on the day the best of an indifferent lot. There wore fifteen starters, and only two good ones amongst them—those being Fishhook, then three years old and miniature, and Guy Fa wkes, who had the steadier of 9,2. .Boh Dcrrell rode Fishhook at 7.5 —his first mount in the Dunedin Cup. 'Punga won anyhow from Bight Bower, with Harry Green’s King Philip (said by some to have a short leg) third 'These three races were run in March, and Alarch was still the month of the Cup Aleeting when Fishhook won in 1877. 1 saw that race. It was run on heavy going owing to rain in the morning. Fishhook, fancied "a bit the year previous, was not a public pick this time, the favourite being Templeton (9.. - !) and Pnriri (7.1), the hitler me of a team of four that Harry Redwood started. Fishhook had Perrctt’s services again, but Devitt was all the better for his year’s experience, and Fishhook had developed into a strong horse of the lean kind, and lie won by a couple of lengths from the Auckland colt Hippocampus, ridden by Tom Allen at 7.1, with Noswnrtby’s Fallacy third and Delamain’s pair, Templeton and Titania next. Rumour had it that

Dan O’Brien, owner of Fishhook, did very well out of the race. In the next year the Cup date was brought forward to February. These were the times when the hackmarkers had the betting to themselves, the totalisator not appearing till 1879. They were the times, also, when one could cut a straight line from Kensington Corner to Forbury by jumping the ditches, for the Flat was then mostly a swamp. Also, they were the times when man as well as woman dressed for the races. The “ belltopper sweep ” was one of the established features of the inside crowd at Forbury, all who wore top hats being eligible.