AUSTRALIAN TOPICS

Taranaki Daily News, 19 December 1929, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN TOPICS

STAR GOD WINS DECISIVELY t NOW FAVOURITE FOR SUMMER OUP AROUND THE SMALLER MEETINGS. MAORILANDERS STILL DOING WELL At the Gosford races on December. 10 Purse Proud, the four-year-old gelding by Paper Money from Conceit, won the Maiden Handicap by one and a-half lengths from a big field. Purse Proud started at a good price. ' This wellbred gelding should be heard of again now he has struck form.

Donalbain, a four-year-old gelding by Paper Money from Glen Helen, won the High weight Handicap, one mile, at the V.R.C. meeting at Moonee Valley on December 7. Donalbain, who carried 18.5, won by half a length and ran the distance in 40|see. . F. Dummett, who ( recently completed a term of suspension for allegedly having tried to manipulate , the scales at Ballarat, was on Donalbain. He seems to understand the gelding better than any other ; rider. /■ Promissory Note, another of the Paper Money progeny, started.at a surprisingly good, price 'when he .won the Flying Handicap under 8.11 at the Kcinbla Grange pony gathering. on December 7. .Promissory Note won by two lengths and ran the half mile in 49sec, so no time was lost on the journey. At the. Pokolbin “ponies” on - December 9 Absurdity ran third in the Flying Handicap, Sweetmagne, an aged gelding • by Charlmagne 11. .from-Sweetness, won the Marlborough Highweight Handicap at the West Australian Turf Club meeting on. December 7 from another New Zealand bred galloper .in Imperial Guard, with Bonny Note third. Imperial Guard was the outsider of a field of 20 and the effort of the Valkyrian colt over a mile was impressive enough to warrant consideration of him for the rich West Australian Derby, which is run on Boxing Day. Mr. Otway Falkiner, who now races Tea Miss, the four-year-old Tea Tray mare from Miss Girons, narrowly missed a good win in the three and four-year-old Handicap at the Warwick Farm races on December 4, when his candidate was beaten half a length by Black Douglas. Tea Miss started at. double, figures. Black Douglas, by the way, is from the New Zealand-bred mare Tinkling, a half-sister to the dam of Rabbi.

The second day of the Warwick Farm meeting saw an all-New Zealand finish in the December Handicap, a £3OO mile and a-half race. Star God, who was at a good price, beat the first and second favourites, The Banker and Papatu,. by a length and a-quarter and half a length, running rtflie distance in 2min 30sec. On the same afternoon Trayimobile "(Tea Tray—Tireless) was beaten by half a length in the mile Farm Stakes. Strange to say, Traymo’bile was a double-figure fancy. . Writing about Star God’s win at Warwick. Farm, ‘“Vedette” states that since he returned from Brisbane, where he was unluckily beaten in the Queensland Cup, Star God has been allowed to take 'things steadily, and that, no doubt, influenced the extended odds.

J. Munro, on The Banker, attempted to lead throughout, as he did at Randwick, but he was not allowed to slow down the field again. Dion went with (him from the start, and worried him 'sufficiently to ensure a solid pace.

NEW ZEALANDER’S FINISH. Without letting Dion get sufficiently far in front to cross over to the rails, Munro did his best ..to conserve The Banker’s pace. He had Dion settled at the home turn, where Papatu and Luddenham were closest, and Star God had moved up from last to fourth. For a little way it looked as if The. Banker would win, as he appeared to ibe holding Papatu. But then Johnstone brought Star God along. The New Zealander swept past the leading pair to triumph cleverly by a length and aquarter from The Banker, with Papatu half a length away third. There was a gap of three lengths to Luddenham (fourth), and then followed Dion and King Conrad, with Eu'bul last. Star Goll’s New Zealand performances were not anything extraordinary, but as a four-year-old he scored twice at a mile and a-'quarter, and once at nine furlongs. Being a full brother to the ■Metropolitan winner, Star Stranger, it was natural to expect he would stay, land that, no doubt, influenced Mr. W. •Hadley to pay 575 guineas for him in the Dominion last winter.

The Queensland Cup was his first serious race in Australia, and, according to 'reports, he was rather unlucky to be beaten in that race. VERY FAST TIME RECORDED. On Saturday he carved out the mile and a-half in 2.30, which is only half a second outside Kidaides’ course and Australasian record. W. Johnstone rode 'him patiently, as he was last until the 'half-mile, but moved up smartly approaching the turn. On tlliat form Star God should be a particularly hard horse to beat in the 'Summer Cup with 8.1. He carried 8.0 'in the Queensland Cup, and 8.3 on Saturday. The Banker did well under his 9.1, considering Dion worried him for the 'best part of a mile. Papatu also ran a consistent race.

Mr. Sol. Green has received word 'from Trainer S. Darling that Strephon 'is doing well in England. “I have nothing but good to say of the horse, •and he loves galloping,” are the words used by Darling, who had not asked ■Strephon to stretch out at time of writing. More than likely, Strephon will race in the Coronation Cup prior to the Ascot Gold Cup, in which the American horse, Reigh Count, finished second this year. Australians recently returned from England are convinced Strephon will be capable of holding up Australia’s prestige, if ho strikes form.

The wealthy Aga Khan has been a successful breeder and owner, and this year for the first time headed the ■list of winning owners in England. _But the Indian potentate’s luck is not always good. Some years ago he paid ■the record price of 17,009 guineas for a yearling from the National Stud. The horse was called Feridoon. He did no good on the racecourse and was recently sold in France for 13 guineas. J. Munro has been having a great innings in the saddle lately, and many punters are adopting the plan of “Backing Munro” -instead of trying to pick winners on form. He scored four successes in the two days at Warwick Farm, and for the season has riddeh 14 winners from 72 mounts in Sydney, 'an average of almost one winner in 5. Tt is better than that when his Melbourne victories on Amounis are taken into consideration. Munro has only a few weeks to go before leaving for Germany, and no doubt he would like to win one or more of the big summer handicaps as a farewell to Randwick.