Strong Field For Woodville Jumps

Press, Volume C, Issue 29504, 4 May 1961, Page 4

Strong Field For Woodville Jumps

A field which is well up to metropolitan standards will contest the W. H. Gaisford Memorial Steeplechase at Woodville on Saturday. - . , Stables in the southern and mid-North Island districts will provide the bulk of the 18 runners but there will also be representation from as far north as Waikato, a province which for many seasons has produced some of the Dominion’s top steeplechasers.

But the Waikato represen-i tative on Saturday will probably not be one of the highly fancied runners. Dunray, which is trained at Te Rapa by R. T. Cotter, will attempt to make a come-back after an absence from racing since October, 1959. Before he broke down that year Dunray’s record included four wins over country including the Wellington and Eric Riddiford Steeplechases at the Wellington winter meeting. Interest in the event will be increased by the reappearance of West Derby, one of the most promising of the younger brigade of jumper? last season. This will be West Derby’s first test over country since the Grand National Steeplechase at Riccarton in August When

| brought south to compete at Riccarton. West Derby had bridged the gap hack steeples to open class with four successive wins in the north. But two bad jumps put him out of the contest in the Grand National and a stifle injury put him out of action altogether until the Hawke’s Bay meeting last Saturday week where he resumed on the flat. Preston Stable West Denby is one of two representatives from B. A. V. Preston's Tauherenikau stable in Saturday’s contest. The other is Orelino which has had three races on a fresh campaign since April 1. But this will be his first crosscountry test since his success in the Pakuranga Hunt Cup Steeples at Ellerslie last August. The powerful Woodville stable of E. Ropiha will have three runners in the race. Ropiha will saddle up Gold Caste, Amber Lu and Parasol. The latter, a last-start fourth in the Waverley Steeplechase last Saturday week, came strongly into favour for this event with an outstanding school over 12 of the steeplechase fences in company with the veteran Gold Caste at Woodville on Tuesday. One race on the flat and two as a hurdler, the second of which he won by a wide margin at Hastings last Saturday, should have brought Amber Lu to hte peak for hie first cross-country test this season. He wound up a winter campaign last season with seconds in the Mariri Hack Steeples and Mstai Steeplechase at Trentham in July. High Star, the Gaisford Memorial Steeples winner a year ago, is engaged again. This Awapuni-trained Hiawatha gelding had two races on the flat last month, ft only required the same number of runs over country at the begining of his campaim last season before he struck winning form. High Star is a member of J. Carter’s team. Foxton Trainer The Foxton trainer, K. Carter, will saddle up Brent and Great Guy. The former has by far the better record Brent ha* been placed twice over hurdles from three starts on a fresh campaign. He resumed at Waipukurau in March after a spell since the Grand National Steeplechase, in which he finished third to Quaky Prince and Calm Tide, at Riccarton last August. These do not exhaust the possibilities in the field. Havoc made a satisfactory first-up showing to finish sixth tn the Waverley Steeples last Saturday week and Court Jester and Booby’s Gift are recent form runners which will al«o have eolid backing.