V.R.C. GRAND NATIONAL HURDLE RACE.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1576, 8 July 1920, Page 31

V.R.C. GRAND NATIONAL HURDLE RACE.

The result of the Victoria Racing Club’s Grand National Hurdle Race, run on Saturday last, shows that Sandule (10.2), a five-year-old by imported Sands of the Orient (son of Rock Sand, winner of the Two Thousand Guineas, Derby, Leger, etc.), beat 18 others, and won in the record time for the three miles, over 15 brush hurdles, of smin. 41sec„ the previous best being smin. 42sec., registered by Jullunder (10.9), in March, 1916, and Marahgnong (9.0), in July, 1918. We can only conjecture how Lochella would have been getting on had he started, carrying 10.5, the weight he had with his penalty, but the performance of Sandule appears to have been a distinctly creditable one, though, at Caulfield on June 19, he only ran fairly in a hurdle race, as did Bright Plume, who carried the ex-New Zealander, H. Cairns, and was second with 9.13. The third horse, Tullilah (9.7), was also a starter at Caulfield, but had an abscess on the jaw, and, being a hard horse to control, was at a disadvantage. It was a creditable performance on the part of the ex-Auckland-er, Beltane, that he got fifth with his weight in such a big field. Mneon, who was a very much fancied candidate, fell, and broke his neck.