AUSTRALIAN THREEYEAR-OLDS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 365, 12 April 1915, Page 2

AUSTRALIAN THREE-YEAR-OLDS.

THEIR FORM REVIEWED. | MOUNTAIN KNIGHT ON TOP. Willi the finish of the Australian Jockey Club's meeting to-day the Commonwealth racing season for the present -year may be said to have rim its course. True, there'win.-be. several minor fixtures both in Victoria and New South Wales at which'three-ycar-olds are eligible to compete, but it is very doubtful if any of the cracks will be seen out at them; indeed, by now the majority have passed into well-earned retirement. Up till the decision of the A.J.C. St. Leger, the question of supremacy amongst the three-year-olds presented a knotty problem. The form presented had been of such an in-and-out nature »s to make it impossible to follow; indeed, had such reversals of form as those shown by the cracks been associ l nted with ordinary handicap running, no doubt it would have been viewed with grave suspicion.. All of which foesv to' show' that though the present uneJi of three-year-old colts and fillies may be an average lot, they dp not include in their ranks anything ! 'of outstanding merit, ',",'' The Brilliant Woorak. . In the.early part of the season after Woorak had shown the retention of all his two-year-old brilliancy, his prospects of' attaining champion . honours looked particularly bright. So it was that after his runaway victory in the Chelmsford Stakes he practically monopolised the betting in the A.J.C. Derby, his supporters declaring that it would be a ease of "Eclipse first and the rest nowhere.' ' In this they were mistaken, however, for though Woorak showed the greatest brilliancy in the early stages, Mountain Knight wore him Iflowh at the finish. A few days later the Traquair colt Avon the Craven Plate, but that may be said to have been the turning point of his career, for since then he has gone from bad to worse. Despairing of ever getting him, to stay, Woorak's trainer endeavoured! to make the most of the colt's- wonder-; ful burst of speed by especially prepar- : frighim for short distance handicap' events. Here again he let'his"backers; down on several occasions, and after! his latest displays both at Flemington! and Ban el wick must be written down as a brilliant failure. . Even so he hasj turned out a profitable investment for Mr K. S. Macleod, as during his two ! seasons' racing the colt has run up the nice sum of £9BOO stake money. Mountain Knight the Champion. Despite his several unaccountable failures, Mountain Knight's final vie-: tory in the A.J.C. St. Leger stamps him; as the best of his age, a pleasing cir-j cumstance, seeing that,, although .Aus-j ,tralia,n bred, he is New, Zealand owned.! jfcs a two-year-old he gave little promise: of attaining classical honours, but, after defeating Woorak and the best of his contemporaries in the A.J.C. Derby, he was hailed as an out-and-out champion. Then came his wretched showing in the V.R.C. Derby, in which he failed even to get a place, but he fully re-estab- J lished his reputation by defeating his \ conquerors in the Linlithgow Stakes and C. B. Fisher Plate. A victory in the V.B.C. St. Leger made his position even more secure, only to see it badly shaken again by another rank failure in the C. M. Lloyd Stakes. Though he fully made amends for this by his easy twin in the A.J.C. St. Leger, it cannot be said that Mountain Knight's career has been marked by consistency, though there can now be no doubt as to liis position as the best three-year-old of the season. Of all the fortunate purchases made by Mr E. J. Watt, Mountain Knight must, surely be accounted ;the plum, as the colt has already won iover £30,000 in stake money, and there seems no reason why he should not maintain his position as a four-year-old. Best of Her Sex. ; Amongst the Australian fillies Carlita 'easily taltes pride of place; indeed, had she managed to defeat Mountain Knight in the A.J.C. St. Leger, the honours of the season would have rested .with her instead of with the colt. Apart ;from her great victories in the -V.8.C.: Derby and Champion Stakes the New-Zealand-bred one has raced with re- : ri nark able consistency, as out of 20; starts she has only been unplaced on, (■four occasions, and has shown her ver-: ? Hatility by winning races from five fujr-1 longs to three miles. To Mr .J. B. Reid belongs the credit of her breeding, as she was sold, with her dam, when a, foal at foot.to Messrs Bouse Bros. TTn-l fortunately Couroune died when being taken over to Australia, but that fact i apparently made little difference to her •'offspring's well-being. Carlita only fmade I2sgs as a yearling, a sum that j«he has turned into nearly £9OOO in her itwo seasons' racing. As a well-known I sportsman once remarked, "There is no ' easier way of getting money in Australia nowadays than with a good horse, but the trouble is to get the horse.'' Bred for Speed. Another really brilliant filly is Tragnette, who, as a two-year-old, was Counted almost the equal.of Woorak in , the matter of pace. Her chief claim ;'to distinction rests in her defeat of Mountain King in the C. M. Lloyd 'Stakes, though she has also shown wiui jiing form iu other important events tip to a mile, r ! ' Blague has some first class porform- '■ fences to his credit, including a Newmarket Handicap victory, but he has hardly the credentials of Mountain Knight or Carlita. Still, like the majority of Bobadil's stock, he is quite -likely to develop stamina with age. ! TE.MPLAK.