THRILLS AT ELLERSLIE

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 90, Issue 24, 30 January 1946, Page 6

THRILLS AT ELLERSLIE

1 CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS ON SATURDAY (Special) Auckland, Jan. 28. Spills ana thrills at Ellerslie are usually associated with the winter meetings, but there was enough and to spate at Auckland’s racing headquarters last Saturday. The more serious side was witnessed in the hack mile, as a resuit of which two horsemen were sent tz hospital. In the very first event last Saturday there was a thrill, for although Park Royal won nicely, if narrowly, the second horse Duke Royal, was a: extreme odas. His dividend for second place was over a quarter of a century, but this was nothing to what the Ninth Duke gelding would have paid had he won. He carried a mere £26 worth of support on the win totalisator and had he been able to reverse that neck margin with Park Royal his dividend for first would have been a littic over three centuries and a-half.

There was a spot of bother in this event, when it was allaged that Duke Royal hung in at the five furlong peg and seriously interfered with the favourite, Swift Tide, and Royal Charter, however, no action was taken. Swift Tide had an interrupted passage subsequently, and yet she finished fourth,, half a length from the winner, and Royal Charter was right up fifth. Actually on the running Swift Tide was a good thing beaten. It was in this race, too, that Diamond Pay faltered somewhere near the same spot as the interference occurred, ana it was found that she had injured herself badly enough to cause her to be destroyed. In the second race, the Hurdles, Brome threw his rider, R. Collett. so hard that serious injury was feared, for the ground was very hard. Yet the jockey received nothing worse than bruises and abrasions, although he had to be pulled from under the horse, which was temporarily winded. The third race, the Ferry Hack Handicap, provided the crowning incident. and furnished patrons with a grandstand view of a misnap, ror it occurred net more than sixty yards from the winning post. Here Golden Pay fell ana jockey N. Holland bit rhe dust, the noise rolling over on him. The favourite, Jovial Hour, who had won three races on end recently on his trip south, was just behind Golden Pay and ne came down over the fallen horse, giving E. Harding a nasty fa.. Both horsemen were taken to nospital. Neither horse had a chance at the time.

This accident was probably due to some interference, which is still the subject uf inquiry, although the evidence of the jockeys sent to hospital has yet to be obtained before it can be proceeded with. It was an expensive mishap for jockey Holland, for in tne following event he was to have ridden Balgowan in the Takapuna Cup, the winning rider’s fee for whicii would have exceeded £4O. In addition he had been engaged in each of the four following races, so on the day the incident deprived him of nearly £6O in riding fees alone.

Last Saturday s racing saw. the well-known trainer Hector Gray come into his own by saddling up two winners in Mahia Park and Hot Pursuit. The stable proauced another galloper in Honora and, strangely enough, she was actually the most favoured of the trio on tne totaiisator in their respective races, but she failed to come on in the middle distance hack event after being nicely placed to the straight. All these horses were bred by their owner, Mr. J. L. Webb, and they are out oi Caliente, also raced successfully uy Mr. Webb before being retired to the matrons’ paddock. Mahia Park is a very promising two-year-cia, one that evidently can stay, and he will be a good three-year-old next season. He is by Dink, and Hot Pursuit and Honora are by Fcxbiidge and Dink, respectively. There was also a thrill in the race won by Mahia Park, and for which Knight Templar, winner at his two preceding starts was a hot favourite, being at odds on. This youngster bounced out at the start to gain a two lengths’ advantage early, and then w hen T. Green tried to steady him his mount, cut over almost into the rails. This incident not only interfered with other youngsters in the race but caused the favourite to be checked considerably, so much so that in another furlong be was tailed off and he never improved very much. Caliente, the dam of Mahia Park, is by Polazel from Fortune's Wheel, daughter of Night Raid and Entreaty. Fortune’.- Wheel was a sister to thp great Phar Lap.