FRANKLIN MEETING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20866, 7 May 1931, Page 7

FRANKLIN MEETING.

PROSPECTS FOR SATURDAY. THE PUKEKOHE CUP FIELD. CHANCES OF ANTIQUE. Useful fields are carded for the Franklin Racing Club's meeting at Pukekohe on Saturday and the prospects for an interest- I ing day's sport are bright. Meetings at | Pukekohe, which is within easy distance of j Auckland, have become very popular with j city racegoers, and a fine day is all that j will be necessary to attract a largo attend- | ance. The course is reported to be iri good I order, and, unless rain falls before the j meeting, tho conditions for racing should be excellent. The Pukekohe Cup has drawn a field of 12 | and should provide a 'good contest. Taneriri will definitely not run and possibly there may be a few more defections if the track becomes soft, although present indications point to most of the others running;. The topweight. Royal Doulton, has not started since winning the Ohinemuri Cup in March. On that occasion she carried 8.9 successfully and she must have a good chance if again produced in the same form. Eager Rose and Sir Mond. When True Blood raced at Avondale recently he was much above himself, and it is scarcely likely that lie will have made sufficient progress in the meantime to bo ready yet, so that he may not be fancied on that ncco.int. Antique won the Storey Memorial Cup with 7.12 at his Inst start and uoiV with 8.7 he should again race prominently. Eager Rose and Sir Mond me another likely pair, who can be relied upon to run good races, although neither will be. suited if the track is heavy. There aro several possibilities among the lightweights and the best of these may be Brampton, who has not run a bad race lately. Like some of the others. Brampton does not relish soft ground, but on a dry track his chance should be a good one. Manawhenua is a fit horse and should make a showing under any conditions. while_ the best of the others may be British King. Cynthia N and Clopton. However, Clopton wants the ground dry to show his best, and, unless the conditions are favourable, his prospects may be at a discount.' State ol Going a Factor. The state of the track on the day is going to be a very important factor because of tho fact that so many bf the candidates will be affected if tho going is not good. At the time of writing the outlook for the weather is not too promising, and, in con-se-quence, any definite ideas of the prospects may have to l>e revised before the day. However, with a continuation of lino weather, horses who may command strong support aro Antique, Royal Doulton and Eager Rose. With only five acceptors for the Harrisvillu Flying Handicap, the chief spri.it event is unlikely to attract as much attention as usual and more interest will be focussed on tho Pacrata Handicap, which has attracted an acceptance of 17. The topweights, Havering and Paganelli, represent better class than the others, ;»nd Havering can be relied upon to make a bold showing under any conditions. On the other hand, Paganelli, who is also in the Itarrisville Flying Handicap, is averse to soft going and the track will require to bo dry to enable him to show form. • British King and Vandyke. British King and Vandyke are recent winners likely to run solid races and soft going might not come amiss to either of them, particularly Vandyke, whoso main trouble is that ho is not well behaved at the barrier. Volimond should be capable of a solid effort, but at the difference in weights she may 'ie troubled lo beat lightweights like Chief Joy, Valroe and Tetrarchate. On a dry track Chief Joy's chance should be good, but under other conditions he is unlikely to reveal his true form. Lack of recent racing might be against Standfast, but Helium is a lightweignt likely to make a showing, especially if lie strikes heavy going, to which lie is distinctly partial. Envoy and King Willonyx may he equal to running creditable races, although at the weights they will require to improve on their latest form to have winning chances. On a dry track Paganelli might be favourite if started, but there is a doubt whether he will run, and the horses who may make most appeal at present are Havering, Vandyke and British King. AUCKLAND WINTER MEETING. GENERAL ENTRIES TO-MORROW. General entries for the Auckland Racing Club's Winter Meeting close at 5 p.m. tomorrow with tho secretary, Mr. W. S. Spence.

JOCKEY'S RIDING RECORD. H. GRAY'S NINETY-FIVE WINS. H. Gray's two winning mounts at Hawera yesterday bring liis tally of wins for the current season to 95. This is easily a New Zealand record. The record number of wins for one season in (ho Dominion was previously held by C. Jenkins, with a total of RO. The late B. Deeley was nnother who succeeded in going close to this mark, and his best season was when lie steered 88 winners. With over three months of the current season still to go. Gray should add considerably to his total before the end of the term, and should so welL over the century mark.

NOTES FROM EVERYWHERE. TRACK AND STABLE GOSSIP. Like his well-performed full-brother. To Monanui, Taurua is evidently going to do best over a distance. When bustled early to get a position in a Bprint race on the first day at Whangarei he cut up very badly and was well beaten. On the second day, in a milo race, lie was allowed plenty of time to find his feet., and. after tailing off early, he smothered the opposition at tlio finish. Taurua should make a capable handicap horse next season and may yet prove worth the 1025 guineas he cost as a two-year-old. It is a great pity that Vandyke ia still proving very wayward at the barrier. His three successive victories lately have proved beyond doubt that he is a good galloper who will not find promotion from hack to open class a bar to further buccoss if he can bo relied upon to leave the mark correctly. Vandyke's display at tho barrier on the second day at Whangarei was one of his worst and in the hands of a less capable horseman than H.' Gray he might easily have been hopelessly left. One more win will causo Vandyke to lose his hack status, but he is partial to soft going ar,d ho might win a good race at ono of the wintei meetings It would appear that Escalus is not partial to going that is in any way soft, for ho performed indifferently in his races at Whangarei, where tho ground was soft after rain. Escalus was never in better condition than he is at present, but. unless he. can handle soft tracks better than ho did at Whangarei, his immediate prospects might pot be bright now that tho winter is setting in and tho tracks are likely to be affected by wet weather. Escalus in engaged at Pukckohc on Saturday and his chance will depend to a great extent on the stato of the going.

The soft, going on the first day r.t \Yhangarei completely settled any chance. Clopton possessed in the Mclnnes Memorial Handicap and he was well beaten two furlongs from home. As the conditions were much the same, he was not started on the second day, when tho chief event attracted only fivo runners. Clopton is an acceptor for tho Pukekoho Cup on Saturday and I e may make a showing if the track is dry However there seems e.very likelihood ot tne going being 011 the soft side and in coiisequenco his prospects may: be at a discount.

CANADIAN TROTTERS. engagements at te aroha. The trotting horses Mr. Penalty and Miss Braeside who were imported from Can.ula a few months ago by the Epsom trainer F. J. Smith will haj;e their first ex peri en :e of racing in New Zealand at "re Aroha on Saturday Miss Braeside is engaged in tho mile and a-half Elstow Handicap foi improving trotters, but. while she is a solid typo of mare, she may not be quite forward enough to do herself justice. However, she should gain useful experience by the racing and later on will probably make this class of competition interesting. Mr. Penalty, who came to Auckland with pacing credentials, did not please Smitri with his hoppled displays, and has since been put to the trotting gait, at which he has made good progress. He is in the twomilcs "Waihou Handicap, and, provided that he goes away correctly, he should make a good showing. At present he. has a tendency to leave the .mark pacing, but when cured of this fyibit he should prove more than useful.