ENGLISH RACING TOPICS

Taranaki Daily News, 20 September 1929, Page 5

ENGLISH RACING TOPICS

TIMIDITY OF BOOKMAKERS KILLING THE GOLDEN GOOSE. LS IT A SIGN OF HARD TIMES? London, August 8. Future event betting is more or less a thing of the past in England, writes Centaur, the News’ racing correspondent. The full establishment of the totalisator will possibly do a lot more to kill antepost speculation. In the main one can blame the bookmakers for the stagna-

tion which has gradually settled on the market and when one examines some of the future event lists compiled by the layers it is easy to understand how they have killed the goose that used to lay the golden eggs. The writer knows one horse—Bracknell Home—that the bookmakers absolutely refused to lay for the Cesarewitch. They wore obsessed, with the idea that the horse was a “rod in pickle” for the big race and would not bet against him. What was the consequence? ’When the entries appeared Bracknell Home was not even in the list. So the layers lost a lot of money which they could easily have acquired. Although Bracknell Home is not in the Cesarewitch it can be mentioned in passing that his stable companion, Arctic Star, last year’s winner, is, and here there is one of the pivots of the race. No horse has yet won the famous longdistance event twice but Arctic 'Star is a likely sort to do it. With Brown Jack, Old Orkney and one or two more Arctic Star is an outstanding stayer and one wonders where the handicapper will have to stop if he is to put them out of the race.’ They have, of course, met in other contests during the season and on balance of form Old Orkney comes out best. Nevertheless, if it became a question of choosing between the three many might take Arctic Star as the likeliest winner of the Cesarewitch. The weight compiler has to adjust 133 horses, and his task is no easy one even though top-weights are clearly defined. French horses, of course, get one guessing up to a point, but the handicappers have learned the way to look after them nowadays. Trigo, who scored a surprise win in the Derby at Epsom in June, just managed to get home from Bosworth and

lllltllltllfltinilltllllUltlflltflllfllllHUHlfMlllllKltMllHllllllttll Hobus in an exciting finish for the St. Le'ger. The leading lines in the pedigree of Trigo, winner of this year’s Derby and St. Leger, read as follows: — Sire: Blandford, by Swynford (son of John o’ Gaunt and grandson of Isinglass) from Blanche, by Gallinule (son of Isonomy). Dam: Athasi, by Farasi (son of Desmond and grandson of St. Simon) from Athgreany, by His Majesty (son of Melton). Atliasi was nine years old when she foaled Trigo.