COMMENT ON MELBOURNE CUP

Chronicle (Levin), 7 November 1946, Page 6

COMMENT ON MELBOURNE CUP

BYDNKY, Nov. (5. Darbv Mvmro took the risk of reeeiviug another liostile denionstration ivhen he "devilled" Russia away to a fonr' l.Oiigths ' J.ead at tlie tup of the straiglit and th.en wynt away to wiu the Melbourne Cup by iive lengths. Munro to!| the Sydney Dailv Telegraph correspondent after the race; "I .suppose they would liave wjp.e.d rae if I ljq.d bee'u beaten because I was in such a hurry, but 1 knew niy horse nnd- knevv 1 was doing the rigiit thing. "

Munro won liis third Melbonrne Cup in 3.211, equalling W.otan's raee reeonj but Russia earried 9.0 against Wotan's 7.11. The cup was only Russia 's twelftb win in (50 starts over five years of rncing. He won three fivdney j-aces as a tlir.oc-ye&r-old and thre.e the follow ing year, but he nhvays had to be coij toTit with minor plaeings in big handi cjips. This year he has had four wins and a third in five starts. Munro ves (erday broke liim of the habit of raeing Cairlv well baek in the field. ITe was always in the first four, and according to the Sydney Dail.v Herald experts had The race won barring accidents in the lirst few furlongs. Persistent nunours tliat Munro rnight rotire liave been eontradicted by the jockev himself who said that irrespec live of Russia 's win, he will ride on. Turf editors are all of the opinion that as a race strategist and tactici^n Munro has no peor in Australia. The sectional times for the two-mije race are a remarkablc illustration of tlvc evenness of the pace tliroughout. . The first hnlf-milo took 50sec, the second 5)]sec, tlie third 5(Usec, and the last .">0?,sec, The Dailv Telegraph savs tliere was no oxcuso for tlie failure of the favouri1e fordale, and quotes jockev Oeorge Monre as saying that the horse was slnw away and the task of overhauling 20 lengtlis on the horse who' won the cup in record time was obvionsly hopeless. Tlie Trish importation, Rpam, I'ailed siniilarly in the earlv part of the race.