THE HOODOO

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 487, 17 October 1928, Page 14

THE HOODOO

Champions Robbed of Scooping the Pool MOLLISON CARRIES ON TOO Some peculiar force lias appeared to rob champion three-year-olds in the last few years of any chance of scooping the pool, says a Sydney critic. Heroic set the ball rolling by being placed under a ban right on the eve of the V.R.C. Derby through the disqualification of his owner, Mr. J. R. Corteen. Manfred carried everything before him until his barrier manners became so bad that he threw Toohey at the start of the V.R.C. St. Leger, and it was then deemed inadvisable to take him to Randwick for the A.J.C. St. Leger. The following year Rampion went wrong just before the V.R.C. St. _ Leger, and last year Trivalve, winner of the two Derbies, the Melbourne Cup, and the V.R.C. St. Leger, developed ah ailment that will keep him off the course for life. AndL now, through inferior horsemanship, Mollison has been deprived of a tremendous lift, by way of the A.J.C. Derby, toward the stakewinning record. Took Things Easy Daniels made many minor mistakes, but the lapse that probably cost Mollison the race was the rider’s failure to set up a good lead when he had the opportunity in the straight. Mollison had Ramulus beaten a little over a furlong from home, but Daniels was content to canter alongside that horse, instead of gaining a lead that at such a stage of the race would have put defeat out of the question. Daniels, of course, knew he was on a champion, and probably reckoned it unnecessary to knock his mount about; but the first rule pumped into a rider is to make for the post at the greatest possible speed, and the carrying out of such tactics would have meant the retention of an unbeaten record by Mollison. Good Winning Form Detraction from the effort of Prince Humphrey has caught public imagination. and in the reflected misfortune of Mollison has been lost much of the praise that should accompany a Derby success. All the superior horsemanship in the world would not have enabled him to run down Mollison after giving the champion a long start over the last half-mile, had Prince Humphrey not possessed the stamina to run the distance right out. His win shows the wisdom of giving a horse plenty jf time for acclimatisation. When Jamieson first brought Prince Humphrey from New Zealand, he was a good colt, but apparently not a prospective Derby winner, but with every run he so improved that he started next best to Mollison on Derby Day.