TO OPPOSE AGRION

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 121, 12 August 1927, Page 6

TO OPPOSE AGRION

DEMOSTHENES COLT STATESMAN A DERBY HORSE In discussing New Zealand's chance of winning the Australian Jockey Club’s £B.OOO Derby with Mr. G. M. Currie last week, the Wanganui sportsman led the writer to believe that He was impressed with the prospects of Statesman. With this conversation fresh in mind, it was with interest that the following article in the “Australasian” was read. It is reproduced for the benefit of readers: “At the moment the Caulfield Cup seems to be exciting: more interest than the Melbourne Cup. It is not often a three-year-old is mentioned so early for that race, but Statesman, a rising three-year-old by Demosthenes from Marcelle. owned by W. Kelso, is now one who is being kept on the safe side. LITTLE FORM “He has a little form to his credit in Sydney, but hardly sufficient to make one think that anybody would want to support him at this stage. Still, the same could be said of the last three-year-old to win a Caulfield Cup. I refer to Whittier. It was not until a few weeks before the race that people awoke to the fact that the game little son of Woorak would be hard to beat under his light weight. How he won and defeated a big field is now history. “Statesman is a nice colt, and I remember him ■well as a yearling at Mr. Percy Miller’s Kia-ora Stud. He was reared with the others of Mr. Miller’s draft, although Kelso owns the dam Marcelle. She is a good type of mare, and is by Martagon from Celine, by Cyllene. “Another three-yeax-old mentioned for the Caulfield Cup is Burnaby, who is bv Spearhead from Your Majesty, and is a half-brother to that good, but unlucky horse. Double Bezique. Mr. Ben Chaffey owns Burnaby, and he is a solid-looking customer, but whether he will stay is as yet unknown, as he has done very little racing. ABOUT THE BANKER “I think I mentioned last week that Valwvne had been mentioned for the Caulfield Cup. and Mr. Norman Falkiner has another string to his bow in Spear Maiden, who will in future carry* his colours. Spear Maiden has been coupled with several fancied horses for the Melbourne Cup, notably The Banker, who is owned by Mr. Otway Falkiner. I hardly think that that means The Banker will miss the Caulfield Cup. as last year, although his owner had backed him for a huge stake for the Melbourne Cup, he was allowed to run in the Caulfield Cup, and was narrowly beaten by Manfred!”