Sporting TROTTING SPORT IN ITALY

Southland Times, Issue 25546, 14 December 1944, Page 9

Sporting TROTTING SPORT IN ITALY

Dr Owen-Johnston’s Impressions By HAMPTON. “The trotting season in Rome and Florence opened at the beginning of November,” reads a letter from Major Owen-Johnston to Mr J. B. Thomson, president of the Invercargill Trotting Club. Major Owen-Johnston, who is serving with a field ambulance unit with the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force in Italy, is a well-known Invercargill surgeon and a vice-presi-dent of the Invercargill Trotting Club. “I was in Rome for four days leave at the end of October and just missed the opening days, but from a perusal of the programme it appears they run a meeting every Sunday with an occasional mid-week one.” Major Owen-Johnston said that only straight-out trotters were catered for. This was so in Austria, when he visited that country in 1930. “They are all American bred horses. In the card I noticed several Lincolns, McElwyns, Bingens, Axworthys, etc.,” he states. “At the meeting held on the previous Sunday attended by a friend of mine, in one of the races the red hot favourite was left at the post. Immediately all the disappointed backers of the favourite swarmed on to the course in a dense mass, completely obstructing the race, which had to be called off. The programme was proceeded with and then after the last event was run the obstructed race was put on again, when, to the satisfaction of the majority, the favourite got away to a good start and duly won ... a good story for racing notes in our papers, but quite true. The track is a half mile one.”

Dr Owen-Johnston added that accasionally a good trap horse was seen on the roads, but the Germans had stolen almost every farm horse in Italy, and many many thousands had disappeared. All ploughing and hauling on the roads was done by oxen. Entered at Two Meetings

There is nothing definite about the nomination of Barometer Chimes for the Gore Cup, because he is also freely engaged at Auckland. Loyal Nurse Loyal Nurse, a Gore Cup candidate, was narrowly beaten by Warform at a matinee meeting at Methven on Saturday.

An Improver On the strength of his decisive Forbury win Jeeves promises to play a big part among the improvers during the holidays. Endorsed

Trotting trainers on all sides have endorsed the intention of the Winton Trotting Club to run division races wherever necessary at its meeting on December 30. The Gore Club’s decision to run an event for horses balloted out of the novice races is also likely to meet with approval. Holiday Meetings Acceptances for the Gore Trotting Club’s meeting close at 5 p.m. today. Acceptances for the Winton Trotting Club’s meeting close at 8 p.m. on Monday, December 18. Handicaps for the Wyndham and Southland New Year meetings will be published on December 27. Handicaps for the Dunedin Cup meeting are due on Saturday, acceptances closing on December 19. Moving North . J.N. Morton, who was training for some time at Oamaru, has been with P. Burgess at Trentham for a few months and he attended the recent meeting at Riccarton. He has made arrangements to settle at Trentham, and the steeplechaser, Ballyaggan, will go north soon, accompanied by Collection, a four-year-old gelding by Paper Money from Commenter.

Entered for Gore David Dryden, a four-year-old trotting gelding by Quite Sure from Sister Rose, was considered good enough to compete in trotters’ classics last season, and he showed speed without solidity. He is a brother to Teddy Gregg, but does not show the same quality. David Dryden has been nominated for the Gore meeting on Boxing Day.

Place Money . Good Scout, who may make his nrst appearance for the season at Otaki, has collected £1620 in prize-money, but his “winnings” (first place) total only £325, so that it might take two wins to make him ineligible for hack races. He has earned £1287 in place money.

First In . For her dead-heat in the Metropolitan, First In has been raised 101 b in the Dunedin Cup, but she still has only 7.10 to carry. Foxhaven, the nearest of the South Islanders to her in the Metropolitan, comes in on 101 b better terms, but he was five lengths away. First In is in the Publicans Handicap also, but will probably tackle the Cup.

Champagne Stakes Fillies have had a wonderful run in the Welcome and McLean Stakes, but the Dunedin Champagne has eluded them since Fracas succeeded in 1933. The hoodoo should be lifted this year. Montezuma, Essay and Loch Derg will be absentees, but Psalm (in spite of a 101 b penalty) and Loyal Lady (second in the McLean Stakes) will be starters. Their strongest opponent of the opposite sex seems to be Gold Spur.

A Problem My' Bonnie 7.13 would have been almost favourite if she had started in the Stewards, in which she was weighted 131 b above Numie. Nurnie had 9.0 in the Apprentices Handicap in which Lalla Meer’s mark would have been 7.7. Obviously My Bonnie would have had to give Lalla Meer more than two stone in a handicap, but Lalla Meer was second in the Oaks and My Bonnie eighth. Lalla Meer is to race in the north during the holidays and she wil be a problem for handicappers.

High-Priced Yearling Hormuz, the star attraction of the 1943 yearling sales at Trentham, when he was bought for Mr F. M. Mehta, Bombay, India, for 1400gns., recorded his first success in the Apprentices’ Handicap at Riccarton. He had earlier shown promise for the Trentham trainer, W. Bryce, and may develop into a good class galloper. He is a big black colt and is taking time. Promising Juveniles Two interesting two-year-olds made their debut at the recent meeting of the Waikato Racing Club. They were Frontier Mac and Bhopal, and though neither of them showed up they looked worth keeping in mind for later engagements. Frontier Mac is a colt by Chatsworth from Stretto, owned by Mr A. J. McGovern, while Bhopal is a filly by Robin Goodfellow from The Begum (dam of Stretto) and is raced by Mrs McGovern. The Begum bred High Cast, Mazir, and Nizam, in addition to Stretto. R. S. Bagby trains the two youngsters, both of which are engaged in the Great Northern Foal Stakes on Boxing Day.