SPORTING Foxbridge’s Progeny Have Won £500,000

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 March 1950, Page 7

SPORTING Foxbridge’s Progeny Have Won £500,000

The progeny of, the imported sire Fpxbridge have now won more than £500,000 ip Australia and New Zealand. Up to the end of last season they had won £424,350 in New Zealand, and with their .earnings across the Tasman the total stood at £466,288;}. To February 18 of this year his stock had won £45,001} in New Zealand, as well as a considerable amount in Australia.

Foxbridge has been the leading sire in New Zealand for the past nine seasons and he appears to be in an unassailable position again this term. As well as this, he has twice been’ the leading sire in the British Empire on a stake basis.

He was foaled in England in 1930 and, after a successful track career, he was imported to New Zealand by Mr L. S. Otway, of the Trelawney Stud, Cambridge. He was an immediate success as a sire in this country and he has generally maintained a big margin over his nearest opponents. In addition to this he has been proving himself as a grand brood mare sire, and his effect on the sport in New Zealand should continue to be felt for many years to come. Foxbridge’s first crop of foals raced in New Zealand in the 1938-39 season and they won three races and recorded 19 placings for £ 930 in stakes. The following season he moved into sixth place on the winning sires’ list with £9619 10s in Stakes. In 1940-41 he headed the list with £23,459 15s, compared with £11,301 10s earned by the progeny of Beau Pere, who was second.

At Top Of List

From then on his position at the head of the list has never been endangered; often his progeny have earned almost twice as much as that of his nearest opponent. Last season he tipped'the list with £55,350, compared with the defunct Salmagundi’s total of £48,661, which is the nearest any sire has approached him since he first headed the list.

In 11 seasons of racing to July 31 last his stock won 771 races and were in the minor money on 1324 occasions. He has sired winners from four furlongs to two miles, and among the most successful of his progeny have been Sleepy Fox (winner of four successive Easter Handicaps at Ellerslie and more than £21,000), Foxwyn (Auckland Cup), Catterick Bridge (New Zealand Cup), Majesty (£10,775), Lou Rosa (£13,055), Swanee (Auckland Cup), Al-Sirat (New Zealand Derby), and dozens of other classic and important handicap winners. Foxbridge came into prominence as a brood mare sire when Hiraji (Niza-i

mi-Duvach) won the 1947 Melbourne Cup. The last Melbourne Cup went to another horse bred on the same cross when Foxzami (Nizami-Honey-wood) beat a big field. He is also the sire of the dams of good winners in New Zealand, including Ninnid, Flying Control, Foxbay, King’s Law, Revolte, Knight Templar and Terminate.

High-Class Galloper Before goincr to the stud. Foxbridge proved himself 'a high-class galloper, numbering among his success the Liverpool Atlantic Cup from a good field. He is by Foxlaw (.winner of the Ascot Gold Cup, Northumberland Plate and the Jockey Club Stakes) from Bridgemount (winner of four races), by Bridge of Earn from Mountain Mint (winner of the National Breeders’ Produce Stakes), by Spearmint. Bridgemount is also the granddam of Gold Nib the leading sire of two-year-olds in New Zealand last season, and the dam of four winners, including Cresta Run (One Thousand Guineas). Foxbridge is now 20 and he is limited to a few selected mares each season, but he should continue to be high up on the yeading sires’ list for a few years yet.

H. H. Phillips To Retire From Race Riding After a riding career extending 13 or 14 years, H. H. Phillips, who can lay claim to have been one of the most successful jockeys on the West Coast, intends shortly to give up race riding. Mr Phillips left Greymouth this morning on his way to Little River, where he is to take up a position as barman at Mr A. E. Ellis’s hotel.

Phillips started his career as a jockey in Southland. He was apprenticed to the fairly successful Gore trainer T. G. Pollock, and was riding as far back as the 1935-36 season. Probably one of the best horses he was associated with in the far south was the hardy sprinter Phalanx.

Since transferring to the West Coast, Phillips had ridden with conspicuous success. His style of riding seemed to be suited to the small West Coast tracks, as he was an alert man at the barrier. In his opinion easily the best horse he rode to victory was Chellow Dene—a veteran still capable of winning for C. J. Walsh, whose stable Phillips was associated with during his time here. Phillips had about 14 wins on Chellow Dene. Bambalina and Robin Tor are other horses which Phillips rates highly. It is probable that Phillips will have his last race ride at the South Canterbury meeting on March’lB.