ALMA’S BRILLIANT GALLOP

Southland Times, Issue 23406, 13 January 1938, Page 10

ALMA’S BRILLIANT GALLOP

COUNTERFLIGHT AT VINCENT PROSPECTS OF ADINA AND JANET GAYNOR Nominations for the Tapanui meeting close on Saturday.

A northern report states that the crack filly Peerless will accompany Cuddle to Randwick. Both race in the same interests.

Philein 7.7 was inadvertently omitted from the list of acceptances for the Spottis Handicap on the first day of the Vincent meeting.

Trench Fight is an unlikely starter at the Wellington meeting.

Mr A. H. Fisher has had the misfortune to lose a colt- foal by Irish Lancer from the Silverado mare, Tizzy. Pink Robe and McHeath are now in H. Anderton’s charge at WingatuL The big fields at the Vincent meeting this week will tempt several outside jockeys to make the trip, and J. W. Jennings, C. T. Wilson, H. W. Hibberd, and M. Caddy, from Riccarton, are likely to be included among the visiting horsemen.

The logical favourite for the Clare Memorial Handicap, the chief event on the Vincent Jockey Club’s card tomorrow, is Counterflight who won at both Wyndham and Invercargill. The distance of his Wyndham success was a mile and a distance, the same as tomorrow’s race. Counterflight has always heen rated above the average but it is only now that he promises to comfirm the good opinions expressed of him earlier. He was taken to Australia more than 12 months ago but failed to win a race there, but now that he has stood up to racing and is in winning form it may take a good one to head him tomorrow. Most opposition may be expected from Hanlon, whose recent form has been particularly good, and of the others, Auctor and Pink Robe may be expected to do best. The issue is fairly open but on the day Counterflight, Hanlon and Auctor may be the favourites.

At Wingatui on Tuesday morning Alma was responsible for one of the best six-furlong gallops ever seen on the course, reports The Otago Daily Times. The going could not be considered fast after the heavy rainfall over the week-end. The trestles haa been shifted in on the course proper a few feet, but Alma finished her gallop on the extreme outside of the course. She carried P. Spratt, and Valarth had a feather-weight up. They ran two furlongs in a tick under 25sec, three in 38sec, and six furlongs in Imin 18 2-5 sec. Alma covered far more ground than Valarth, and was not fully extended to beat him home comfortably in the fastest gallop ever seen on the outside of the Wingatui course. By way of comparison, it may be recalled that the fastest gallop put up prior to the recent meeting was Imin 20 2-ssec. It is understood that Alma will be raced at the Wellington Cup meeting. Retainers are customary between owners and jockeys in England, but they have been uncommon for many years in the Dominion. At present, however, three retainers are registered here—C. G. Goulsbro to the Te Awamutu trainer A. Cook, A. Messervy to Mr E. Hay, and C. T. Wilson to Mr D. Grant.

For one who had only graduated from the novice ranks the week previous, Adina tackled fairly strong company in his races on the southern circuit during the holidays. There will be good reason to respect his chance in the sixfurlong races he will contest at the Vincent meeting this week. The Rosenor gelding will be opposed to Counterflight and Valmarch, both double winners in Southland during the holidays, and, though he may find Valmarch more than his equal, he may hold too many guns for Counterflight over the shorter distance.

Although F. D. Jones, trainer of Royal Chief, is going to Australia for the autumn racing, he is not likely to take Royal Chief with him. Royal Chief was sore when he raced at Ellerslie, and consequently was unable to give of his best. With the prospects of hard tracks

and courses in Australia during the autumn, one cannot visualize a trip to Sydney for the Riccarton three-year-old. Royal Chief is particularly good, and when produced at his best again will be a very hard horse to beat. Although with 8.13 she is at the top of the handicap among the sprinters at Vincent tomorrow, the field is not a particularly strong one and Janet Gaynor should again be expected to show up. During Cup week she proved herself well up to weight and although she has almost two stone more than she succeeded with at Invercargill an allowance will bring this down to a reasonable allotment.

A pun is said to be the meanest form of wit; but making a name by simply reversing the letters is possibly a still meaner form. A two-year-old Surveyor colt has recently been named Royevrus. It will be something for the broadcast announcers to ponder about in due course, remarks a Wellington writer.

A false value may be placed upon the form shown in the Royal Stakes (says an Auckland paper), for, apart from Te Hero, who was an easy winner, the other four runners, Peerless, Francis Drake, Play On and Money Raid, finished almost abreast. Peerless ran about a good deal and also went wide on the home turn, and the rider of Francis Drake had to concentrate on preventing his mount from boring out, although he had three horses on the outside of him. Considerable improvement may be anticipated from Francis Drake, who, in the past has not been at home at Ellerslie, in spite of his brilliant successes there.

Although Lord Derby did not take such a high place as usual on the list of winning owners during the English season on the flat, he looks like having an excellent time with his stud horses. This owner has no fewer than eight high-class stallions, and at a rough estimate their earnings will amount to about £60,000. All are in England with the exception of Plassy, who is in France at a fee of 10,000 francs. The foremost of Lord Derby’s stud horses

are Fairway and Hyperion. The former was champion stallion in 1936 and was second on the list to Solario during the past season. The first of the stack of Hyperion will appear on the racecourse next year. Both horses stand at 400gns and there is never any difficulty in filling their subscriptions. Bosworth is full in 1938 at 250gns, and it is the same with Caerleon at a smaller fee. Sansovino’s subscription has still to fill at £l4B, but all nominations have been secured for Bobsleigh, the youngest of Lord Derby’s stallions.