SPORTING NOTES.

Evening Star, Issue 3864, 13 July 1875, Page 3

SPORTING NOTES.

(Bt Telegraph.) Christohtjrch, Ju*y 38. The following are the acceptances for the Christchurch Handicap Steeplechase:— ■fc. lb. Medora 12 4 Ivanhoe ... ... 11 2 Muscatel 11 0 Royalty 10 10 Mousetrap 10 7 Kapai ... 10 0 Speculation 10 0

The writer of sporting memoranda in the Nelson ' Mail' analysesthe weights issued for the Melbourne Cup, and speculates as follows on the respective chances of J.urline, Calumny, Templeton , Castaway, and King Philip for that event:— " I have departed from the customary plan of commencing with the highest actual weight, and proceeding down to the lowest, and have commenced with the highest weight relative ta age, and pursued this method through the whole list. This shows at a glance that Lurline, with 9st 71b, the only animal handicapped above her racing weight, to which she gives lib, while the next highest is the three-year-old filly, Maid of All Work, who will carry lib less than her racing weight, thus getting 2lb from Lurline. Then follows the veteran Dagworth, who gets 4lbs from the New Zealand bred mare; next the Diver and Goldsborough, who each receive 61bs from" the daughter of Traducer, and so on, her concessions of weight increasing until it teaches the modest allowance of Ist 31b to Eattler. There must be a lot of duffers entered for the race to require sueh big allowances. I'empleton and King Philip are placed on even terms, each getting 211bs from their racing weight. Now, seeing that on every occasion on which the two met, King Phillip, though receiving weight from the son of Traducer, was beaten by him, it is clear Mr Barnard knew little of the performances of these two animals. But supposing Templetan out of the field, Castaway, with 241bs allowance remaining, would extinguish any chance Captain Hutchison might have had of winning with the son of Camden. The brother of Lurline, ripe and well, is several pounds a better horse than Terafleton, so what chance can there be for King 'hillip ? Looking the whole list through, Cast-away is as well in as any animal in the race. At Canterbury, he was within a length of Papapa, and a dozen lengths before Templeton, in the fastest Derby ever run in the Australian Colonies, and his subsequent running when in condition proves him to be a horse of the highest class. Should he stand a thorough preparation, his chance of winning the Cup is by no means bad. One of the most highly esteemed colts entered is Redwood, a son of Manuka, who stands within a pound of Richmond, the highest weighted colt, and we observe that "Augur" in the ' Australasian,' makes him one of the two of his Derby selections." Of the Champion Race the same writer says: —" The Victorian weights for age on the Ist of January, for three miles, are : for three-year-olds, 7st lib; four, 9st; five, 9st 91bs; six and aged, 9stl3lbs, with 31bs allowance te mares and geldings. If Lurline keeps right, this should be her race, but, strange to say, although she will start on much bettor terms with her opponents than in the Cup, Goldsborough and Kingsborough have the call over her in the betting. In the estimate of the bookmakers, Mr Barnard has overweighted the mare in the handicap."