SPORTING.

Southland Times, Issue 19513, 12 May 1922, Page 3

SPORTING.

NOTES BY GIR MODREbg The Ashbutfon Ounty RC.’s Autumn meeting opens to-day. Entries for all events at the D.J.C. Winter meeting close at 5 o’clock to-night. Acceptances for the Auckland G.N. Hurdles and Steeplechase are due this evening. Rorke’s Drift is reported to be making satisfactory progress in his hurdle-jumping lessons. Auckland Arran will make his appearance this winter with the hurdle-racing division. It is reported from Auckland that an unusual number of holies are qualifying there for hunters’ events. Among the horses engaged at the Wanganui meeting is imported Valkyrian, by William the Third—Valkyr. He was imported t 0 Auckland some time ago, and it may be mentioned that he displayed winning form prior to leaving England. The New Zealand-bred sire Reputation has not been a great success at the stud jn Australia, but at the recent Sandown Park (Victoria) meeting last month he was represented by a winner in Imputation, from Lady Wallace, who scored in the race for the Maiden Plate. It is stated that before Mr G. D. Greenwood recently left for England he gave instructions to nominate his horses for all the principal events at the leading Spring fixtures in Australia, so that there may be a chance of Gloaming, Beauford and Euryihmic me ar unng strides next season. Mr W. G. Stead does not intend to continue racing next season. His horses are to be sent to Sydney in the near future and an attempt will be made to dispose of them there. In another column the Christchurch correspondent of this paper furnishes a report of a discussion on Wednesday at the monthly meeting of the Board of the N.Z. Trotting Association in connection with foul driving in light harness races. Mr H. F. Nicoll, of Ashburton, led the way in a Fpirited speech which will appeal to all qualified people who have the welfare of the sport at heart. Mr Nicol is a gentleman particularly qualified to speak on this subject and it will be admitted by close observers of the sport that the words of the Canterbury owner and breeder bear the imprint of truth in every fine. Mr Nicoll truly points out that a penalty of from £2O to £5O for foul-driving will not act as a deterrent where the alleged guilty party can win a rich stake, and instances could be advanced by most racing people in support of this statement. The speech is a strong indictment of the laxity of control ?xercised by some of the stipendiary stewards and as such should serve to spur the paid officials referred to into action. The wellknown Canterbury owner deserves the thanks of his fellow owners and the general public for the determined stand he has Taken and it is safe to say that he will have the support of the sporting press in an endeavour to have justice dealt out to unscrupulous drivers and riders. This is a matter that the pises have had to tackle in a gingerly fashion owing to the inadequate protection afforded by the law of libel in force in this country, but, with the N.Z. Trotting Association leading the way, the task would be a comparatively easy one to clear the trotting paths of Maoriland of some of the abuses relating to foul driving and riding. When lengthy terms of suspension, to include the busy periods of the racing season, are substituted for mere fines the practices referred to will immediately to & very large extent disappear. The English jumping jockey G. Duller must be classed as an exceptionally successful horseman when it comes to crossing fences. During the period from January 1 to-March 23 he rode in 84 races, winning 31 events. Duller’s seat in the saddle is of the pronounced Sloan order. The crack Australian horseman, W. H. McLachlan, has departed from Melbourne on a visit to England. In 1911 McLachlan went to the Old Country and rode for a portion of a season, his record being 14 mounts for two wins, two seconds, and two thirds. In his first visit McLachlan complained of the weather and the consistent travelling from meeting to meeting, and it remains to be seen whether he will take more kindly to English conditions on the present trip. Mr A. E. Whyte, secretary of the Wellington Racing Club, who recently returned from a visit to Sydney, expressed the opinion to the Wellington writer “Sir Lancelot,” that had Gloaming met Beauford at Randwick he would have been beaten. Mr Whyte was greatly taken with the judging at Ascot, one of the Sydney pony courses. The judge’s box is close to the track, and high up, and the judge is assisted in picking out the placed horses by a steel rope stretched across the track from the centre of the box. It was an innovation he thought was well worth adopting in the Dominion. Mr W. G. Stead’s brilliant filly Radiant Light is reported to have recovered from her recent mishap and to have resumed work at Hastings. The descendant of Demosthenes and Sunlight is one of the smartest of her tribe and her rivals will know all about this if she should “come back” in N.S.W. in due course. A trainer who has been a regular attendant at Addington trotting ground for some years past has been requested/to cease preparing hia horses there, and his case has been reported to the Licensing Committee of the Trotting Association. It looks as if Mr A. H. King (Bluff) secured a bargain at Mr G. Hunter’s sale at Wyndham on Wednesday, when the brood mare Castout, with foal at foot by Coldstream Bells, and in foal to Sungod, fell to his bid at 50 guineas. The daughter of Boldrewood (General Tracey—Mermaid) and Castoff (Berlin, imp.) is the dam of Downcast, Away and Outcast, while her halfsister, Cast Pearl, is the dam of Prize Pearl, Hayseed and Brown Pearl—all wellknown winners. Writing in the Australasian, “Teviotdale” ■aysßeauford has three strong strains of St. Simon, combined with Musket and the grand Flora Mclvor, and as a result we have a horse—he is a gelding, which is all in his favour—the like of which we do not see once in five and twenty years. He caries not one ounce of lumber, is shaped 'ike a certain type of the best English horoughbred, and he is a typical St. Simon : rom head to heel. St. Simon himself *as just such another, only he was a stallion, and, therefore thicker, and he also iad had the advantage of an English rearng and education. At the present moment I have no hesitation in affirming that Beauford would beat Eurythmic, at weight for age and sex, over any distance from six furlongs to two miles, and Eurythmic would beat any other horse in the country over the same courses. Khartoum, winner of the Egmont Steeplechase, £5OO (24 miles) on Wednesday, is a son of King Rufus—Lady Grattan. He was a useful hurdler and has been freely selected to develop into a front rank crosscountry performer. It is only a few weeks ago since he was in a bad way suffering from influenza, which makes his performance all the more impressive. Oakleigh won the event under notice, but was disqualified for missing the last fence. The ancient Sir Solo was narrowly beaten by Khartoum find Calma, who was fourth, went up to take third money (£35) for P. T. Hogan. The Macßae Memorial Handicap, £4OO 11} miles) at the Egmont meeting on Wednesday went to Omahu, by Maniapoto—Gold

Cord, by Gold Reef—Cordelia, by Torpedo— Cornelia by Traducer. He is a half-brother to that good hurdler The Native and the well-known steeplechaser Gang Awa. AN APPEAL FOR DRASTIC ACTION. LAXITY OF CONTROL CONDEMNED. (Special to the Times.) CHRISTCHURCH, May 11. At a meeting of the New Zealand Trotting Association to-day the question of foul driving in races was discussed ,and a resolution carried expressing the opinion that if an offence of this nature was proved it should be punished by disqualification. Mr H. F. Nicoll, who brought up the question, said that thirteen years ago, when he first joined the Board, the matter had been discussed and a sub-committee had been set up to deal with it, but no action had been taken. Foul driving had been prevalent during the whole of that time and it seemed to be getting worse. In speaking of foul driving, he referred to team driving ,crossing, boring and the improper use of the whip. These offences were of almost daily occurrence and very little notice was taken of them. This was due to the lack of observation on the part of some stewards, a lack of strength on the part of stipendiary stewards and inadequate punishment when offenders were caught. Stipendiaries rarely saw and recognised these offences, because they often viewed races from a position from which they could only see a brief portion of a race, instead of the selection of a point of vantage where they could command the best oversight of the whole contest. Foul driving was not dealt with severely enough. He had read that in Australia foul riding had greatly diminished since the stewards there had taken drastic action against some of the leading jockeys. A fine of £2O, or even £5O, was no deterrent, especially to a man who had won a race. Indeed, it was a direct incentive to those who used unfair tactics to try them again. Some drivers would plead lack of bad intent or unconsciousness of wrongdoing, but an offence was an offence, whether intentional or not, and carelessness must be punished as well as evil intent, because, in harness races, the contest was so keen that the careless driver was nearly as dangerous as an intentionally foul driver. Conditions to-day were so serious that it was time all concerned in the progress and good management of trotting should take a stand and determine to check this grave abuse. There were many professionals whose habitual clean driving and general conduct were a credit to themselves and the sport in which they engaged, but, on the other hand, there were some reinsmen who habitually used the “win at any cost” methods, and whose presence in a race was often a menace to the other competitors. He made these remarks w’ith the intention of calling the attention of those in charge of the sport to the need for more energetic action in dealing with this offence, which was equally prevalent to-day on metropolitan and country club courses. It was an abuse to be removed and it wpuld take severe and intelligent action to cleanse trotting from this reproach. The president (Mr P. Selig) said it was a pretty severe indictment of those responsible for the conduct of the sport and it was a pity that if, as Mr Nicoll said, this trouble had been going on all the time it had not been dealt with. The question of team driving had been referred to previously and it should be dealt with severely if proved. One of the troubles was that the stipendiaries frequently viewed the racing from the stewards’ stand, which was not always the best vantage point. Mr J. H. Williams considered the stewards’ stand was the best place on many courses from which to obtain a view of the racing. He certainly considered that on the metropolitan club’s course the stewards’ stand gave the best view. Mr Nicoll endorsed this view. He thought the ideal arrangement was to have two stewards on the track and the stipendiary steward at an observation point. Mr W. H. Denton agreed with Mr Nicoll’s remarks. He was satisfied that* a great deal of foul driving was going on in which many professionals were concerned. The president said he thought the Association must be prepared to take some of the blame themselves for the position. If they knew these things had taken place and that they were so serious they should have varied the punishment and made it more severe in cases that came before them. Mr H. W. Kitchingham endorsed Mr Nicoll’s remarks. One could not go to racecourses without seeing these offences. He had in mind two recent cases in which the whip had been thrown out in front of another horse. Cutting in was also prevalent and not enough notice was taken of horses breaking in races. It was common to see them gallop for two or three chains before they were pulled up. He did not think club stewards were so keen now that they had the paid stewards. Mr R. W. Short said that the difficulty was to get a rider or driver to make a complaint against another man in the race. It was resolved that the attention of clubs be called to the - prevalence of foul driving, consisting of team driving, crossing, boring and the improper use of the whip and that in the opinion of the Association a more serious view should be taken of these offences and where a case was sheeted home disqualification should be imposed.

WANGANUI JOCKEY CLUB. HANDICAPS FOR MINOR EVENTS. (Per United Press Association.) HAWERA, May 11. The following minor handicaps for the Wanganui J.C. Winter meeting have been declared: — BOROUGH HANDICAP (6f.)—Rational 10.4, Irapuka 9.8, Chimera 9.7, Pavo 9.4, Kinsem 9.0, Awake 8.6, Valkyrian 8.3, Hepta 8.3, Blackmail 7.12, Miss Gold 7.12, Tama-a-roa 7.11, Sunny Corner 7.11, Strategy 7.10, Red Bob 7.8, Kilreid 7.8, Birkie 7.6, Demos 7.5, Inah 7.3, Amber Tips 7.2, Weldone 6.12, Triboulet 6.12, Orchid 6.10, Mockery 6.10, La Paloma 6.8, Comic 6.7, Cold Steel 6.7. HACK STEEPLECHASE (2m.)—General Raven 11.9, Kyoto 11.7, Te Maire 11.3, Ngakanui 11.3, Active 10.11, Te Toa 10.10, Master Boris 10.9, War Loan 10.6, Hyttus 10.4, Mangawai 9.9, Fibre 9.5, The Baronet 9.2, Oak Rose 9.0, Marshal Neil 9.0, Dumper 9.0, Lady Lyddite 9.0, Pip 9X). KAITOKE HACK HURDLES (Ijm.)General Advance 11.10, Wamba 11.8, Vagabond 11.8, Passin’ Through 11.4, Ladogeur 10.13, Simonides 10.11, Sunray 10.11, Ruatara 10.6, Matatua 10.2, Voluble 10.0, Clicquot 9.13, Triboulet 9.11, Spook 9.10, Bancgue 9.8, Fiddlestring 9.8, The Baronet 9.7, Ethiopian 9.5, Guianform 9.4, Halcyon 9.2, Whetoke 9.2, Whizz Bang 9.0, Circulate 9.0, Rekapoto 9.0, Second Choice 9.0, Hindi 9.0, Noble 9.0. CONNOLLY HANDICAP (1 mile and a distance) —Marqueteur 9.11, Tame Fox 8.9, Printemps 8.6, Punka 8.4, Bonetter 8.3, Correspondent 8.0, Tenterfield 8.0, Dissertation 7.10, Egmont Park 7.9, Mangamahoe 7.9, Scion 7.8, Sunny Corner 7.8, Demos 7.5, Blackmail 7.5, Demand 7.4, Cleasanta 7.4, Stork 7.2, Eerie 7.0, Kareao 6.11, Zircon 6.10, Cold Steel 6.7, War Path 6.7, Mort Avis 6.7. PURUA HACK HANDICAP (Im. and 110 yds)—Crossfire 9.5, Mort Avis 9.0, Auckland 8.8, Left 8.8, War Path 8.7, Regard 8.7, All Cerise 8.5, Ben Nevis 8.3, Marble Crag 8.1, Comic 8.1, Lady Nassau 8.0, Birkenella 7.13, Martulla 7.13, Velociform 7.11, Te Kuri 7.11, Gold Star 7.10, Pantier 7.10, Skylight 7.10, Molleen Oge 7.8, Blissfulness 7.8, Big Push 7.8, Yankee Dan 7.6, Manchester 7.5, Price 7.5, Fiddlestring 7.3, Sweet Song 7.3, Merry Queen 73, Santiago 73, La Amour 7.2, Satin 7.0, Michaelmas 7.0, Ecuador 7.0, Bonny Rill 7.0, Favonian 7.0, Merry Ann 7.0, Patrogen 7.0. Re-handicape:—Wanganui Steeplechase— I Khartoum 9.10.

FOOTBALL. NEW ZEALAND RUGBY UNION. (Per United Press Association.) WELLINGTON, May 11. The New Zealand Rugby Union reinstated Douglas, the Otago player, who was suspended in 1915. June 24 was set apart for charity day matches. 'Two selectors, one from each Island, were appointed a selection committee for the New Zealand team to tour New South Wales. The North v. South Island match will be played at Wellington, and, Auckland will be given a match against the New Zealand team before it sails. Messrs Humphreys (Taranaki), Nicholson (Auckland), and Griffiths (Wellington) were appointed selectors for the North, and Messrs Drake (Canterbury) and Stuart (Otago) for the South, with another to be nominated by minor unions. It was resolved to ask Auckland for an assuarance that they will play only the rules and modifications authorised by the English Union. An application from the Otago Union for a loan of £l5OO was deferred for further particulars. EASTERN DISTRICT SUB-UNION. MEETING OF COMMITTEE. Mr F. Wallace presided over a good attendance of members of the committee of management of the Eastern District at Gore last night. The St. Mary’s football club wrote, stating that they would enter a team in the primary schools competitions, and asked permission to play one boy overweight.— Held over. The Southland Union advised that June 3 would be set aside for the match Town v. Eastern, and asked the Sub-Union to advise a suitable date for the return match.— The letter was confirmed and the date was held over. The Mataura Club wrote, stating that Lorenz resided at Mataura and was therefore eligible to play for Mataura Club. The • same club applied for leave to play three members over 18 years of age in the 3rd grade.—Lorenz to appear before the Union and permission granted to the three players to play. The Wyndham Club wrote, stating that they would offer no objection to Shepherd being granted a transfer to an Invercargill club. They suggested that he be admitted to play for both Wyndham and a town club.—Received. Albion Club applied for a re-grade of D. Robertson from first to second.—Granted. J. Robertson applied for transfer from the Riversdale to the Mataura J?lub. The Albion Club applied for a transfer for P. Curtin from the Mataura Club and J. Collet from Winton.—Granted. J. Collet from Winton. —Granted. S. Whelan applied for a transfer from Woodlands to Mataura. _Jt was decided that the boundary between Edendale and Wyndham, known as Mataura River boundary, be cancelled. Mr A. W. Castles gave notice of motion that the boundaries of all clubs be defined. —The motion was lost. The Edendale Club protested against the decision of the referee in awarding a try to Mataura second grade team after he had ordered a scrum, and asked the Union to give a ruling. They also protested against Mataura Club playing non-members of the Club.—Explanation from the Mataura Club and referee asked for. SOCCER. AUSTRALIAN TEAM FOR NEW ZEALAND. (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) SYDNEY, May 11. (Received May 11, 7.30 p.m.) The British Association football team to tour New Zealand has been selected as follows: —Goalkeepers, Cartwright and Hamilton; full backs, Fisher and D. Comerford ; half backs, Henderson, Peebles, Doyle and Gibb; forwards, Dane, Bratten, Ward, Maunders, Brown, J. Comerford and Thompson. The team includes seven Queenslanders. GOLF. ST. ANDREWS PROFESSIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) LONDON, May 10. (Received May 11, 9.30 p.m.) In the £lOOO professional golf championship at St. Andrews, Boomer, a Frenchman, is leading with 150, S. Wingate 151, Gadd and E. Ray 153, Gaudin 154, and Massey 155.

HOCKEY. FIXTURES FOR SATURDAY. The following are the fixtures for tomorrow: Union v Winton at Winton. Rosedale v St. Mary’s, Queen’s Park. The town match will commence at 2.30 p.m. BILLIARDS LINDRUM AND STEVENSON. THE RECORD BREAK. (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association.) SYDNEY, May 11. Lindrum, in play has scored 12,000, snd Stevenson 4042. Lindrum’s break is a world’s record with benzoline balls. With the exception of two cannons, the score was made off the red. George Gray made 2196 (unfinished) in England off crystallite balls, but this was not recognised. Interviewed, Lindrum explained that it was his first match against an English player and he was anxious to excel himself ; and also friends offered him a big sum to nothing if he made a thousand break. PIGEON FLYING. The Invercargill Homing Society flew the second race from Milton on April 29 under very fair conditions. The birds were in the good hands of Mr Foote, the stationmaster, and were liberated up to time for their journey home, the air-fine being 80 miles, and the birds put up good times. It was a very close finish between the placed oivners. 39 birds competing. The result was:— A. F. Clark’s 80-Peep, 2hrs smin .... 1 H. S. Strang’s Bright Spot, 2hrs smin 10sec: 2 J. Knuckey’s Prosperity, 2hrs smin 30sec 3 A race from Msogiel was also flown on May 6, which brought forth 49 birds to do the journey home of 103 miles air-line. homers were liberated by Mr Pringle (stationmaster) up to time, and this proved a fast contest with a close finish as in the preceding event. Messrs Clark and H. Strang’s birds landing at the same time, but, unfortunately, Mr Strang’s clock stopped after timing in, which robbed him of a place, the rest close up. The result was as follows: A. F. Clark’s Delta, 2hrs 25min 1 J. Knuckey’s Mystery, 2hrs 25min 30sec 2 D. G. Strang’s Sun Spot, 2hrs 27min .. 3