SPORTING

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 21 July 1925, Page 3

SPORTING

RACING FIXTURES. July 23 —Waimat - listriet Hunt Club. July 23, 25—Gisborne R.C. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

(By Maecenas.) The postponed meeting oi' the South Canterbury Hunt Club is set down for Saturday next. The YVaimate Hunt Club’s meeting is on Thursday next. These Hunt Club lixtures will be a. boon, for some of the southern trainers, whoso charges nie backward owing to bad tracks. The winter meeting of the Gisborne Racing Clubs opens on Thursday and concludes on Saturday nexC The acceptances are good tor an East Coast meeting. A number of horses that competed unsuccessfully at the recent AY eliington meeting are engaged at the Gisborne meeting, and in weaker class may show up well. Among the acceptors lor Gisborne is the Grand National Hurdle candidate Highway, which is engaged in the YY r inter Oats Handicap. In years past: horses have raced at the East Coast fixture and lniv© done well at the Canterburv meeting following. Although King Cheops failed to gam a. place at the recent meeting al Treutham lie was showing up about a fill-long from the post, so with the advantage of sucli racing this gelding may do better at Gisborne on Thursday and Saturday next. Killoch ran well at recent meetings held in Hawke’s Bay, and at present is wed so in moderate class at Gisborne lie should certainly pay expenses iof the trip'. t Kendal did not run as well at the Wellington mooting as his ad-mui ei s expected, but may do bettor at Gisborne on Thursday. Ranui ran a fair race at the Hawke’s Bay meeting, but the three miles of the Gisborne Steeplechase will possibly prove too lar tor tins gelding, butt Miahia should be well suited thereby. - f Of a big crowd of maiden pertormemi engaged in the Maiden; Hack at the Gisborne meeting on 11 1 urs ci ay Mixed Heather may be one that will run well, as lie has previously shown forms on the East Coast. An acceptance of thirty tor the Winter Cup must be deemed isatisfacitory, and as nsu'al this mile race bears ait open appearance. The handicaip is more “flattering” than is usually the case with this race. Past records show that at the weights allotted the division; between nine and ten stone had rather an advantage. If we except Comical, none of the fancied candidates were withdrawn from their Grand National Hurdle race engagement. Bochson went wrong at Treutham. Bougihrea-, even it put in at nine stone, may not have been 'accepted for. Oinalni showed poor form in the YY inter Hurdles at '1 rentham. while Dubious liti-s boom retired Imm obstacle racing for the present. None of tboM-j lower in the handicap that Cell out on acceptance bight would have many admirers for a race like the Grand National Hurdles. Although the ex-Tlaranaki owned To Kawii (appeal‘S in the Hadlo-w Hiiirdle-s at the South Canterbury Hunt Club meeting, lie may not start in that event, but in all probability the gelding will ibe a runner for the Bevel a Hack (six furlongs) and may take some beating, so he is working well. The acceptances received for the Grand National Steeplechase and Handles and YY’iiite-r Gup, to be decided at R'.ieciarton next month, are quite up bo the average and are actually better than generally expected. As Rational appears as «wi acceptor for the Grand National Hurdles, one may expect the son of Absurd to .start. K. AY r arner is mentioned as the, rider of Rational at Riceaifon.

After earning a I2lb penalty, Santiago was narorwly defeated by .Lochson at la.sb year’s Grand National Hurdle race. Santiago-is again an acceptor this year, .and S. Wallis is given out as ihi.s rider. Santiago will carry the siame weight (10.2) as carried by him in last year’s contest. .Although Mr. N. Rlutherford has not any luck with, that gay deceiver Teuterfield, lib di<l not prevent the southern, ispou-t.smani .speculating in another of Mr. Kenrhall’s horses, the YVai narapa owner 'selling A'agabond to Mr. R.ut'herforcl at the 'Wellington meeting. Vagabond ran -a fair race in the AVinlter Hurdles at Trentlnam, and is a decided possibility at the coining Canterbury meeting.

There will be three Fleet ’ meetings in’ Australia. The A.J.O. is giving stakes to the value of .£3OOO, the Moorfield Club are distributing £ISOO, and the Rosahill Club are offering £1350. In little New Zealand, the Wellington Racing Club are offering £SOOO, the Auckland Trotting Giulb £4500, and the Foilbury Trotting Club .£l-10-1). Still there are per, sows dense enough to argue that the tot-alisator is not re~ •sponisible .for the good prize money offering in this Dominion where sportsmen. are few in numbers compared with the racing centres of Australia. In the past Mr ,J. Paterson has had more than ordinary luck with horses raced bv him, and on these grounds-' many stuck to Zircon throughout the Wel'ington meeting, but although the good-looking son of Merry Moment whs

' picture to look ;>t, lie raced like ia “quitter.” Certainly he did not do his host-. Zircon, fell out of the Winter Clip. On his Trenthnm form, his owner wouVl he-hrave to so to Iliccarton with the gelding. There is no donht nlimit Zircon being able to "allop, and it is possible that when understood by his new trainer Zircon may repay for past failures. It is the great ambition of alt Englisli sportsmen to win the Derby, and many an owner would gladly forfeit the stake for the honour. For this reason the successful rider of the winner of Ihe blue ribbon usua-My get s a small fortune frmn the overjoyed owner. Mr ff. Morris, owner of Manna, the winner of the last English Derby, made no secret of the fact that it was his life’s hope, and after his colt had won rmnoirrs were freely circulated naming various amounts as the sum ho gave to that great rider, S. Donoghue, for steerino- Manna in. the wor’d-famed race. Mr Morris refused to state the sum ho gave Donoghue as a present, hut some who profess to know put the amount down a q £IO,OOO. which to we iVpw Zealanders nnpears incredible. As Dc.noghae has ridden the winner of the Derby oil six occasions, it would he interesting to know what amount he has received in presents. Some little' time ago it wa,-, stated that the trainer of Comical had cabled the gelding’s owner (who is in Eng-

land at present) for instructions as to whether Comical should start at the Canterbury meeting. Comical was duly handicapped at 11.9. and was generally regarded as nicely weighted, arid on his Winter Hurdle performance at Trentham, lie promised to start one of the favourites for the big hurdle race at the Canterbury Jockey Club’s meeting. Imagine the surprise of sportsmen, and more especially double bettors, to. find Comical’s name missing from the Grand National Hurdle Race. Although it is illega) to back a double, the fact cannot. lie disguised that this form of betting is still in a flourishing condition in this Dominion, and naturally Comical would lie in much demand, and for tliis reason it is most unfair to those unlucky hackers that such a performer should he left in til 1 the last possible moment. Certainly Comical’s owner would not favour thi s form of business.

Nothing of much importance, lias dropped oid of the Grand National Steeplechase, although it was thought that Sii- YY : ai and Waikawa would accept. Of the nine acceptors for the Dominion’s chief “cross country” race Master Peter lia s gon e wrong, while Peter Annins showed such a dislike to sod wall s that it appeared useless to attempt to win with the ge’ding at Riecarton, where such obstacles predominate. En Route appears in the Winter- Cup .run on the same day as the G.N. Steeples. Bonibrook ran so bad.lv in bis AVellington engagements that’ bis winning at Riecarton was a very remote possibility. Although the class of the accentors for the Grand National Steeplechase fads short ol many former years, it contains most of the eligible . candidate-., at present in commission in this Dominion.