HOLD THE STAGE AT RICCARTON, AINTREE OF NEW ZEALAND

NZ Truth, Issue 1079, 5 August 1926, Page 11

HOLD THE STAGE AT RICCARTON, AINTREE OF NEW ZEALAND

NATIONAL STEEPLECHASE IS WINTER CLASSIC

Irt Big Field the Chances of Tufci, Fireblight and Birkenella May Be Most Favored by Punters

In recent years racing at Riccarton has lost some of its glamor, and especially is this so m connection with the New Zealand Cup. Nowadays the spring and autumn meetings do not attract the attention from the outside world that they did ten years back. \

Though this lack of interest is predominant when the "Cup* and Easter fixtures are held, it is just the opposite when it comes to the Grand National. The National is the tit-bit of the winter racing season.

N Tuesday nex t( another Grand National meeting will be under way. Since Trent ham last month all talk m the sporting world has been the National treble, and ■ perhaps the most discussed race o f the three big events is the Grand National Steeplechase. Run over a course of three and a-half miles, with real fences to' negotiate, and with a prize of 2000 soys to. be split between the placed horses, iWs no wonder the race always attracts the best 'chasers of the year. \ . And next Tuesday's race will be no exception. All the best jumpers m commission are engaged, and though acceptances have not closed at time of writing, the field will be somewhere m the vicinity of .eighteen.

It cannot be said that the class this year equals that of previous years. The handicap shows that. The top weight is. Landbird. He has 11.5, and to date he has won one steeplechase— at Wanganui. In May Landbird failed at Wanganui over big fences (if Wanganui fences can be' called big!), but a fortnight latex at Ellerslie he Avon the Great i Northern Hurdles. FELL TWICE That m itself i 3 no recommendation for National honors^ and, when it is further considered that Landbird fell twice when contesting steeplechases at Trentham, his prospects cannot be considered rosy. With 10.11 Passin' Through will make a bold bid. He is partial to the country,, but the distance may be another matter. He does not stay well, but he ran third at Trentham m bad ground over two furlongs less. With good .ground at Riccarton he may ge¥ the distance. Tuki won two races m ..the autumn, but since then he has failed. w He was responsible, for a like performance last year, but Riccarton suited him and he won the National. If anything, he is m better heart now than twelve mcnths back, and he is looked upon a3 likely to repeat the' feats of Coalition and Oakleigh, which won two Nationals m succession. Two years back Master Peter was third m the National and he is a better horse now. He won the Hawkes Bay Steeples and then tell twice at Trentham. He is m the same class las1 as Landbird— those two falls cannot give punters confidence. Thought to be near the end of his tether, Omahu is coming back again. He was going particularly, well at Riccarton on Saturday when h6. came down. Still, he may remember that

fall and hit the ground again. Then, again, the track will not be absolutely to his liking; What of Birkeriella? After his Trentham success he was the early favorite, but the sod wall brought about his undoing last Saturday, and now he has drifted m the market. Perhaps there is some excuse to be offered m his case. Not by any means a fast horse, he was always- tied up with the pace set by the lightweights last Saturday, and this brought,' about his downfall. "•'.- The pace will not. be so severe on Tuesday next. His rider is : lacking m knowledge of the country, arid this will not help Birkenella, but if he is given reasonable time to find his feet the fences should not prove his master again. . ■ ..THE BIGHT SORT . Second last year, F!ireblight again bids to' be hi the money. y The mare, a stable-mate of Landbird's, is the right sort for Riccarton country. She is not fast, but is rather one of the slow but sure type. She can "stay for ever, but she never gets above the one pace. She is a fitter mare this year, and a place must go to her. Kendal jumped the I country well enough last Saturday. /He will be one of the early leaders, but at the end he will be a. tired horse. The distance is going to beat him. " Charlatan is still the same horse, and he will also be troubled by the journey. Second m both the big jumping events at Ellerslie m June, Kawini is going to have many friends. Unable to start last Saturday — he had been a little lame — he will be all right on the day. , Possessing more pace than the average 'chaser, Kawini vwill make it merry. His party are not m the least frightened of his ability to jump the counti-y. They should know, but to ask a horse to win a National m his first endeavor over the fences is a huge assignment. Uncle Bob jumped well last Satur-

day, and finished up behind the placed horses. On this race it would be hard to select him as the winner next week. Peter Maxwell will be passed by, aa will jmost of the crowd down at the bottom of the card. Ranui and Red Cent will go fast while their stamina lasts, but the pair should be well licked at the end of two and a-half miles. OTHERS There are several others on the minimum— Kipling, Night Raid, Whipcord, Osterman and Frenchman — and if the winner is likely to come from this division it would appear to.be Frenchman. He ran a good race last Saturday, and the effort would be m, his favor. Still, all things considered, the winner should come from the tenstone division up.

. It is quite possible for there to be happenings between now and Tuesday that would alter the whole complexion of the race, but, taking that risk, the horses that are looked to are: Tuki(W. Rennie), Fireblight (G. Holland) and Birkenella (E. Garrett), with Kawini (R. E. Thomson) the horse m the nine-stone division.

Tuki will run again on Tuesday,