TURF TOPICS

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1416, 14 June 1917, Page 8

TURF TOPICS

A jockey’s license has been issued to W. C. Standen.

El G'allo is the best of Dominion ’chasers.

Racing in New Zealand is to be curtailed by one-third. sfs $ * *

Lady Penury is to be ridden in her Gisborne engagements by J. O’Shea.

The Auckland Racing Club’s Committee last week donated £lOO to the Red Cross Fund.

The war tax paid over the Auckland R.C. Great Northern meeting amounted to £7025 10s.

The Great Northern meeting was the thirty-third since w'nter meetings were established at Ellerslie.

J. Williamson, the Ellerslie trainer, who was n the May ballot, has passed the medical test.

J. O’Shea looks now certain to win the New Zealand jockey premiership for a second time.

H. E. Goldfinch, the well-known horseman, has ben drawn in the ballot.

Messrs. H. T. Gorrie and A. E. Price will represent the A.R.C. on the New Zealand Racing Conference.

P. Collins, an erstwhile horseman, was one of nine who enlisted and was accepted on Friday at Auckland.

Big dividends were the order of the day at the Otaki meeting in a number of the events.

F. Macmanemin, who has a son fighting in France, had another drawn in the ballot last week.

Prince Soult broke down on the concluding day of the Great Northern meet’ing.

The Auckland Racing Club never made a bigger profit over a w’nter meeting than over the one that ended last week.

Lady Hume’s daughter by Birkenhead. coming two years old, has been broken by W. Irwin, and should make a galloper.

Ashley Reed, who has been running J. O’Shea close for the jockey premiership, was out of luck at Otaki. O’Shea increased h's lead at Ellerslie.

Some visiting good backers got away with a bit of money through following Hawke’s Bay horses through the A.R.C. meeting.

Mr. J. Preston, the owner of Takanini, told quite a number of his friends that he counted on the son of Pukaki winning the Orakei Hurdle Race.

Horse owners, trainers and jockeys form a very small proportion of those called up in the last ballot.

Some of those called in the ballot and whose occupat : ons are given as trainers or jockeys are not at present licensed to follow .such work.

Fourteen horses will represent Auckland at the Gisborne meeting this week. They have some useful material up against them in every department.

Czaronus, who ran with such hard luck at the A.R.C. meeting, finished up bleeding with a broken nose after the Winter Steeplechase.

Arran and Loyal Arch, who made the best showings of Auckland two-year-olds at that age against Desert Gold, continue to be disappo’nting.

Styrax was not a starter at the winter meeting of the A.R.C. He was very well, but got knocked out in a schooling essay, and had his trip North for nothing.

Bisogne was galloping well before the Great Northern meeting, but pulled off a shoe and gave one of his joints a wrench, and it was decided not to risk starting him.

Gladful and Kirkby, full-brothers, won over obstacles on the same day, one over hurdles at Ellerslie and the other over steeplechasing country at Wingatui.

An Auckland resident tried to effect the purchase of Flying Camp, but the deal fell through. Mr. J. Hawkins retains him. The son o' Campfire jumps satisfactorily.

In two consecutive seasons J. O’Shea has ridden more winners than any other horseman in the same time since racing was introduced into New Zealand.

Stewart Waddell, trainer to the Hon. J. D. Ormond, was on a few days’ respite at Helensville dur'ng the week. His team of horses left by steamer on Tuesday for Hawke’s Bay.

Those who followed the unlucky Fisher through the A.R.C. winter meeting are quite satisfied that it was really bad luck that beat them each time the son of Maniapoto ran.

Paddington Green, who just missed paying a dividend in the only race he started in at Ellerslie, was offered at auction on Friday, but the price offered was not tempting enough and he was withdrawn.

Croesus, probably still the best five-year-old gelding sprinter in New Zealand, was beaten at a difference of lib. by Bluestone last week over five furlongs.

Gladful. Gluepot and Gluetanus, three good dividend payers at the A.R.C. winter meeting, are three geegees that will be remembered by fortunate backers.

District committees for the various racing provinces of New Zealand are to be allowed to arrange for the cutting down of racing by one third. That means racing days, of course.

The Channel, who won the Maiden Steeples at Ellerslie on the opening day, used to be a show jumper. He jumps well, and may always do so until tired and outpaced.

L. Traill, who broke a collarbone when Crown Pearl fell with h m, and F. Tutchen, who won on St. Elmn last week, were both drawn in the ballot. Traill has failed to pass twice already.

P. Coffey, trainer of Toatere at New Plymouth, J. C. Lambess, who has a number of horses in hand at Ellerslie, and J. Cameron, the Hastings trainer, were amongst those drawn in the ballot.

J. Roach won four jumping races at the A.R.C. winter meeting—three on Tiniroto and one on Luperino. Very good.

S. Morrow went in charge of Troublesome, Guiding Way and Lady Penury to Gisborne on Saturday. J. Williamson, their trainer, left on Tuesday.

The Totalisator Employees’ Soldiers’ Relief Fund in Auckland how stands at £245. At the first annual meeting, held on Friday, all the officers who acted last year were reelected for the coming year.

Gluepot and Takanini, winners at Ellerslie, have been two of the best dividend payers during their careers that competed at the meeting. Gluepot on one occasion paid double that received on Takanini on Wednesday of last week.

Gluepot was favourite when he won the Wanganui Steeplechase and an outsider at Ellerslie. They have a wholesome respect for Auckland horses at Wanganui, and Gluepot is not the only first favourite that has competed from Auckland.

Tararu Jack, Czaronus and Fisher were horses that fell twice during the recent A.R.C. meeting. El Gallo, Morecambe, Waimai, Braeburn, Spalperion, Crown Pearl, Lady Whitford, Dood, Bonnie Jean and Ranza Mist each fell once.

J. Cameron, trainer and part owner of St. Elmn, and F. Tutchen, who rode him in his engagements at the A.R.C. winter meeting, were called up simultaneously in the ballot. Cameron will likely be selling out his interests in several horses.

El Gallo was fairly tested in the Winter Steeplechase, and in finishing second to St. Elmn, and meet’ng with the worst luck in the race next to that experienced by Czaronus. as he slipped and nearly fell coming down the hill, he proved himself much the best of the ’’chasers.

A list of the winning sires after the Great Northern meeting disclosed the fact that Campfire, Glueten. Penury, Birkenhead, Henry the First, Lupin, Charlemagne 11. and All Black were imported horses that were represented.

Crown Pearl was only seen out once at the Great Northern meeting. He looks big and robust after a long t’me off and wants racing, but came to grief in the Remuera Hurdle Race early. His legs may carry him through a winter campaign where the ground is not hard.

Nita, the clever little Wanganui mare, ran below her form at Auckland, and it was because she was thought to be feeling the effects of the Wanganui meeting that she was only started on the last day of the meeting.

Tiniroto won three out of five jumping races before the three he won at the Great Northern meeting, and has now won three hurdle races and three steeplechases, and was third in a Ladies’ Bracelet. J. Roach his ridden him in each of his eight jumping essays. He should win a good race later on for his soldier owner, who will ere now have received the news of the successes of his good equine friend.

Stilts, who got second in the Fitzroy Welter to Pierrot, is by the Soult horse General Soult, who was from Hotcherina, who had no fewer than eleven foals to Soult. Marshal Soult and Canrobert, brothers to General Soult, have left a number of winners, and King Soult is leaving nice foals.

Slipstitch and Cynic, the pa’r of thoroughbreds purchased for Mr. de Latour by the Hon. Sir Jas. Carroll, and which ran well at the A.R.C. winter meeting, were taken back to Gisborne on Thursday by their trainer, Frank Loomb, together with Carlysian and the Waikato ma : den candidate Happy Valley.

The successful trainers at the Great Northern meeting were H. Morris (3), P. Jones, P. Coffey and J. Thorpe (2), and K. Heaton, S. Waddell, W. Garrett, F. Loomb, E. J. Rae, W. H. Windsor, D. Moraghan, J. J. Preston, W. Kirk, J. Cameron, H. Barr and A. Robertson one winner each. ; j

Penniless hopped out in the race he won at Ellerslie and never gave the others one and one with him. When Thrace went out in front in the same way in the Orakei Hurdles it looked as if he might do the same, but Takanini gathered him up and just beat him. He was paying, a good dividend, too.

Ulster only competed once at the A.R.C. meeting. He got one of his heels galloped on in the Maiden Steeplechase, in which he finished third. Bad luck, as he was very well. He seems to have his share of it, but may win a steeplechase ere long. He is a young gelding, and comes from the same family that gave us Kaitere.

The pencillers must have had a very fair time with their doubles over the recent meeting of the A.R.C. Backers of coincidences appear to have quite overlooked the fact that the names of Gladful and Gluepot, the respective winners, commence with the letters “Gl,” and that each name has seven letters —the main.

The Otaki Steeplechase course must be the easiest in New Zealand so far as the fences are concerned, but they are so narrow and the wings so short that the country is very likely to spoil horses. More horses run off there than anywhere else, and it is time something was done to prevent such burlesques as were witnessed at the last meeting.

When it was finally decided by the National Government that racing must be reduced by one-third, as a compromise aga'nst the half at first suggested, the Government saw the advisableness of permitting the clubs to arrange the pruning business amongst themselves. It got them off the horns of a dilemma, and the Ministers met the Racing Conference very fairly.

Morecambe finished up lame after falling in the Great Northern Steeplechase, but not nearly so lame as when he broke down in the Great Northern two years before. He may be patched up again, but his weight and deposition to run to too solid flesh, which means that he would need to undergo a sound preparation, are against him. Strong swimming work and a tan track like that at Ellerslie would be of advantage in trying to prepare one of his sort, but both conveniences are not to be met with anywhere else than in Auckland.