EDMOND CUP

Evening Star, Issue 21747, 15 June 1934, Page 12

EDMOND CUP

HARRIERS’ STEEPLECHASE RACE . PROSPECTS. FOR TO-MORROW.

[By Pistol.] ;

The most popular harrier racing even! of the season in' the dominion, the Ed. mond Cup Steeplechase, will be de« cided over a three-mile course at the Wingatui Racecourse to-morrow afternoon under the auspices of the Dunedin Harrier and Amateur Athletic Club,and the strong hold that the sport has in Dunedin is shown by. the fact that the entries now total 182, representing nineteen teams drawn from sixteen different clubs. This race is for teams of ten,, sixof whom count for points, and last year, for the second time in succession, 1 the cup was won by the Civil Service Club, while J. G„Barnes won the in« dividual , title for the third time in succession and for the fifth time in all. L; C. M'Lachlan finished second last year, but only, a fortnight ago the New Zealand mile champion beat Barnes in the Kennett Cup Steeplechase in what has been described as the best i‘ace since the inception of this event. Last Saturday,Barnes, who revels in the mud, won the Civil _ Service Club’s trial, but M'Lachlan just had an easy jog over, the journey ' for fourth place. Nevertheless, Barnes i» very fit . indeed, and, while M'Lachlan should .make .1 great fight of it, it will not surprise if Barnes rises to the occasion and again carries -off this event, in which he invariably runs well. Prospects of a great struggle between .these two champions should be . responsible for a good crowd making the trip to Wingatui, to-morrow afternoon, but there are other first-class distance men in the race ■ whose chances cannot be overlooked either. 1 1 E. C. Brown, the. unofficial marathon champion of the dominion, did not show, his true form, in the Kennett Cup race, but he went better last Saturday, and should be well up with the leaders at the finish. Last year the Civil_ Service man finished ..third. Another Civil Service'man who should be well placed is the Otago three-mile champion, A. R.Geddes, who finished ninth last year, but should do better than that tomorrow. Civil Service’s fifth and: sixth men will probably be further back, bub it will take an exceptionally good performance to beat this team. Anglican, with a number of promising cross-country runners, is expected to 1 make a better showing than for some years past, and it is' on the cards .that its team will head Caversham for second honours. No. 1 for. Anglican is Theo. Allen, who is expected to bo fighting out the final issue with such men-as Barnes, M'Lachlan, Brown, and Geddes. Allen has represented Otago in the New Zealand cross-country championship, and last Saturday beat his club mate, -W. A. Pullar, in the club three-mile event at Wingatui. Allen is a most likely distance runner. Pullar is not- quite up to form yet, having been in training only a short while after a strenuous track season, but, nevertheless, he should obtain a good placing for his club. Caversham. on paper, does not appear so strong as'usual, but the suburbanites, with such a wonderful record.in this race, invariably turn in a good teaming effort-. Among the members of this club’s No. _1 team is C. W. Frye, who competed in his first New Zealand cross-country championship in 1909, and won the national title fourteen' years ago. Although approaching the half-century mark he retains his form in marvellous fashion. Another overforty veteran who is in his club’s No. 1 team is B. R. M'Kernan. the .great, hearted Civil Service runner. The;presence.of a team from Palmerston (wearing the Oamaru colours) and another team from the Tokomairim Club gives the race still greater inwhen the huge field move* towards - the' first sod , wall after the start it should present a picturesque sight. Among those who were in the first ten last year and .are competing tomorrow are S. Anderson, the consistent Leith runner, who was fourth last year and should go a good race to-morrow, W. H: Walker (Anglican), who was sixth last year but who has shown lack of training in recent events, J. Napier. (St. Kilda). who was eighth, and W.A. Stewart (University), who filled seventh position. Other well-known runners taking part include a former Otago representative in J. H. M'Laren (Pacific), T. G. Pearson (the solid Palmerston runner), E. J. Reid (one of the best of the younger distance men here), R. Orange (St. Kilda), who has shown good form in cross-country events in the past, E. A. Taylor (ex-Otago half, mile champion), and quite a few more,The smaller clubs are all represented in the teams’ event, and the sealed ban* dicap (run in conjunction with the cup)' will be the centre of interest for many of these.