TURF TOPICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1452, 21 February 1918, Page 10

TURF TOPICS.

Agnestes has won three races in the lilputian ranks in Sydney. ♦ * * *

There will be no racing on Saturday in the Auckland province. * * * •

The Caulfield course .is the fifth that Desert Gold has raced and won on.

Cn the eve o; the Hamilton meeting, Step was showing signs of soreness.

The fields for the classic races at Taranaki and Egmont have proved disappointing again this year. ❖ * * *

Wanganui meeting Thursday and Saturday. The acceptances give promise of a successful meeting.

At the Dunedin JC. autumn meeting £47,072 was put through the totalisators in two days, as against £40,609 10s. last year.

More money was handled at the Hamilton meeting on Saturday than on eitiher day of the Dunedin meeting.

Gold Fran’s first win over battens encourages the belief that he, will do much better in that line as time goes on.

Volo’s defeat of Impediment at Egmont in the Atkinson Memorial was a big disappointment to backers of the Demosthenes filly.

Andy Pringle leads the trotting horsemen of New Zealand. He has always been a prominent horseman in his line.

Glensponse. who won the Flying Handicap at Dunedin on Saturday, is a younger full-brother to the consistent Glenspire, who was racing at Hamilton on Saturday.

Coonel Soult galloped like a racehorse at Ellerslie on the track last Thursday, but ran like a back number on Saturday at Hamilton. He is hardly that yet, but is moody.

Margerine, the Dunedin Cup winner, started at an outside price when she beat Wardancer and a fair field last week. Glendower’s third in that race shows that he can stay.

Estland was not started at the Taranaki meeting on account of shin soreness, but was so far all right that he was given a run at Egmont and won the Stakes there.

Returned soldiers have been in evidence in race riding of late. W. McKinnon, who rode Kohinahina at the Gisborne meetings, and AV. Dwyer, who was successful there also, have both seen service.

The scratching of Sir George Clifford’s horses for the Wanganui meeting took place after the Dunedin meeting. Evidently Adjutant’s form was disappointing to the owner of the blue and gold chequers.

Mr. H. Coyle, handicapper, was called up in October last, but is not yet in khaki, and has been able to give his services to the Wellington R.C. and also the Taranaki, Egmont and Wanganui Jockey Clubs, each of which appointed him to fill the place of the late Mr. George Morse.

War March is such a well-grown colt and has gone up so much on the leg that it would be wise to retire him for a time. He should make a useful horse with age if not taxed further until he has let down.

Torfreda, sister to Hymestra, got a bit more of her cost back by winning the Hopeful Handicap at the Dunedin J.C. meeting on Saturday. She can gallop fast and is certainly useful.

The heavy rainfall on Thursday and Friday did a power of good to the country and must have improved all the grass race tracks in the province, if it did make the course at Claudelands a little soft in one or two places.

There were a number of New Zea-land-bred horses racing at the V.A.T.C. meeting at Caulfield on Saturday. Desert Gold and Kilflinn got on the winning list there, and Sauci got a place in the Salisbury Welter, finishing third to Kilflinn.

If Silver Link had been engaged in the Taranaki Stakes, Mr. A. Alexander would no doubt have started her against Finmark and Koesian. We were hoping that Bisogne might re-appear in that race, but may have to wait for the going to become softer before seeing him race again.

Fiery Cross, the Auckland Cup winner, again proved his usefulness by winning the Hazlett Memorial Handicap at the Dunedin meeting, carrying the substantial impost of 9.12 and running the mile in Imin. 39 3-ssec., which was a record mile for the Wingatui course.

Desert Gold will probably have a harder contract in the Futurity Stakes on Saturday than she had in the St. George’s Stakes last Saturday, as she will have more weight up, though those of her opponents that have distinguished themselves will be penalised also.

Desert Gold won her first engagement on Australian soil at Caulfield on Saturday, and played her part well. This was in the St. George’s Stakes, over nine furlongs, and she beat seven others, including useful horses in Cetinge and Wallace Isinglass.

Chortle’s form last week at the Egmont meeting, when he won the Cup, was further evidence of his usefulness. He has run some fine races during his career, and those who have occasionally referred to him as being on the down grade will surely not find many subscribing to that opinion just now.

Almoner, who ran so well at Randwick and at Flemington in the spring, and who recently won the Middle Park Plate, can be regarded as about the best two-year-old of the season in New Zealand. The way he won the Flemington Stakes, carrying 9.5, in November last, showed his merit pretty conclusively.

Sergt. Charlie Hodder, one time well known at Ellerslie when attached to the late George Wright’s stable, has returned to Auckland from Egypt. He was one of the first contingenters, and has done his bit, having been wounded twice. When he receives his discharge he will probably take up some occupation in the city, and should soon land on his feet.

Cynic’s owner, if he had had any serious intention of sending the son of Henry the Third to Australia to compete in the Australian Cup, would hardly have taken him to Gisborne to race .in the interval. His running there was in keeping with his form on some previous occasions. He is some remove from good form at the present time.

Wishful has paid his owner, Mr. Gerald Stead, for giving him a good spell, by winning three useful races on end, and there are amongst those who saw him race at Taranaki who are predicting that he will go one more better before the season is over, notwithstanding his defeat at Egmont since.

The offending layer of the odds who was sentenced to a term of imprisonment in Auckland gave notice of appeal. It is something new to find a betting man committed to prison in these days, but the effect of the sentence is said to have scared a lot of stay-at-home bettors from doing business since.

Desert Gold, Cetigne and Wallace Isinglass, who filled the places in the St. George’s Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday, are the same age—five years old —and each were bred in the. colonies. If any English-bred ones ran their names were not mentioned. Their respective sires are All Black (imp), Grafton and Wallace, the lastnamed Carbine’s best Australian son.

On his way to Sydney, via Auckland, Mr. T. H. Lowry received a cable message from F. Davis, his trainer, stating that Desert Gold had been galloping as well as ever she had done. This was good news for the owner of the favourite mare on the eve of his departure to see her race, but Mr. Lowry would not be over in time to see her win on Saturday last.

The inner grass gallop has been used of late at Ellerslie, and some smart performances were registered there on Thursday by a number of horses that were engaged at the Hamilton meeting. Ritasea ran six furlongs in 1.15, Woody Glen took 1.16, beating Loyal Arch. Colonel Soult ran a circuit in 1.44 3-5, Cardrona half a mile in 49sec., Carmen Sylva 49 l-ssec., and Meltchikoff 49 3-ssec.

Kilflinn, who beat Desert Gold at Trentham over seven furlongs last May, in the North Island Challenge Stakes, won at Caulfield over the same distance in the Salisbury Welter Handicap, just after Desert Gold won the St. George’s Stakes there. Kilflinn had not won for her new owner previously since she was taken to Australia, so her win was overdue. She has been placed a bit too high hitherto.

From files to hand from Australia it would appear that. F. Davis did not let the grass grow under Desert Gold’s feet while she was at Randwick, where she was galloped solidly up to seven furlongs, a gallop over that distance on the course proper being paid for and registered in lmin. 31sec. One morning she galloped half a mile in 49secs , and it was the best of the morning done at Randwick. The tracks are not so fast at Flemington, but her gallops there were regarded as satisfactory, prior to her racing on Saturday at Caulfield, when she won.

Up to the time the latest papers to hand left England, no provision had been made for jumping meetings in the winter (says the “Sydney Referee”). In a plea for this branch of sport a correspondent from . a munition area said it would be wise of the Government to permit it. The contention was that a large number of male munition workers would then have something else to talk about of an evening besides the war, and there would be less likelihood of grumbling or trouble of any kinid.

Loyal Arch, who some writers were- selecting, when two years old, as likely'to give Desert Gold a race at the same age, has never shown any form since she fe.l in a race at Avondale, but she got on the winning list at Hamilton on Saturday, and her win was a welcome one, if long in coming. Though she beat another Marble Arch in British Arch, Dennis Moraghan’s friends were pleased to see. a little bit of luck coming his way.

At the Calcutta races on December 22 the King-Emperor’s Cup was won by Magyar, Swanker being second and Bydand third. Four others ran. On December 27 the Viceroy’s Cup is believed to have drawn the largest attendance ever known on the Calcutta racecourse. Kiltoi won, Politian was second, and the KingEmperor Cup winner, Magyar, was third. On January 6th Swanker beat Kiltoi in the Carmichael Cup.

Some of the horses which came to the registered ranks from the unregistered in Sydney a few months ago in Sydney a few months ago (says “Pilot”) have performed with marked consistency. Some Boy’s record under A J.C. rules is two wins, three seconds, and a third, but as a placegetter he is beaten by Cerise Colours, with two firsts, a second and five thirds. At horse meetings Some Boy has earned £949 and Ceirse Colours £285.

Mr. R. Hannon, the Waikato ownertrainer, has won the A.R.C. Summer Cup, the Takapuna Cup. Taumarunui Cup, Te Kuiti Cup and the Hamilton Cup races this season with horses o: his own breeding. King Lupin won the more important event, Glenopal the Takapuna and Taumarunui events, and Tinopai the Te Kuiti Cup and Hamilton Cup. Tinopai has now won the Te Kuiti Cup four times. The A.R.C. Summer Cup has gone to King Lupin twice, and the Taumarunui Cup to Glenopal also in successive years.

Thirty-five horses were nominated lor the Waipapakauri Racing Club’s meeting, which is set down for decision on March 6. There are six events, and one owner has entered his gelding, Loyal, for all six races, which include a maiden race, a settlers’ race, and the four other -events open to all-comers. For three other horses five engagements have been made. Several are in four of the events, a large number are in three, and nearly as many are in two, while of the thirty-five entrants two only claim each a single engagement. There are a few veterans engaged, come of them still maidens as denned by the conditions of the race for horses that have never won a race of the value of £5. Allegation, by Gladstone from the St. Leger mare Aleger, dam of Court Jester, a prominent performer in Australia, has the best past, but no: recent, form to refer to, but whether he is now good enough to beat the best of the others engaged remains to be seen.