Durf Notes

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 554, 5 January 1929, Page 8

Durf Notes

Reminders Entries for the Takapuna Jockey Club’s summer meeting on January 26 and 29 close next Friday, January 11, by 5 p.m. Acceptances for the first day of the Thames Jockey Club meeting at Thames on Saturday and Monday, January 12 and 14. close 'with the secretary at Thames, and also with Mr. F. D. McVay, at the Takapuna Joekev Club’s office, at 5 p.m. on Monday, January 7. Entries for the annual meeting oi' the Matamata Racing Club, on February 2, are due with the secretary at Matamata, or with Messrs. Blomfield and Co., High Street, at 5 p.m. on Friday next, January 11. Two Out Corinax and Laughing Prince, first and second in the Auckland Cup. have not been accorded a nomination for the Wellington Cup. In fact neither horse will be at the meeting. In At Trentham Only a few Auckland horses have been entered for the Wellington meeting. They are Bright Bay, Tidal, Papatu, A war ere. Le Choucas, Nippy, Pagan ell i. Just Nell, Beau Cavalier and Footpad. To Meet Again Ceremony and Honour are to meet agairf in the Wellington Stakes this month, but unfortunately Supremacy was not entered for this classic. Honour will be conceding fceremony 101 b. the respective weights being 7.8 and 0.12, the Limond colt having a 101 b penalty. In this race three-year-olds carry B.G. and there are penalties. Paganelli beat Prince Humphrey in this contest last year.

Kilperon Sold A cable from Sydney yesterday said Mr. W. Higgins’s horses, Joy Bird, Ivilbronsyth and Pass Book are to be reshipped to New Zealand by the Ulinmroa, which leaves for Wellington today. The five-year-old gelding Ivilperon, by Kilbroney—Peronilla, has been bought by a Sydney sportsman and will remain here. At a sale of bloodstock yesterday the imported gelding Merilda (by Llangibby—Lamelba) was bought .by Mr. M. Poison for 450 guineas. Running Into Form

Although he was not at Awapuni or Marten, F. Tilley had the polish on both Ruanui and Thrift for their engagements. The latter ran several good races without collecting the thick end of the prize. Ruanui pulled himself to pieces in the Mar ton Cup, finishing out of a place, and lie managed to get third in the principal event the second day. Ruanui is one to keep in mind for autumn racing, for he looks well and may soon make amends for recent failures. How To Buy

Two real bargains of the sale ring: Aussie purchased for 75 guineas, has won £5,730; Count Cavour, also bought as a yearling, for 100 guineas, has won £14,509. It is announced that there is a prospect of Aussie being taken to Sydney to race there in the autumn. Will Win Soon

Mendip has had a strenuous time during the holidays, when lie raced consistently. He was a bit unlucky on the second day at Mar ton,of or lie was finishing strongly and just failed by a head to catch the winner. Sir Roy. Mendip is still a possibility for a decent handicap, for it must be remembered that there was a big dearth of good riders during the holidays outside Ellerslie, and so reversals in form in the near future should not surprise. A. McCauley, the trainer of Nightmarch and Sir Roy, would have a profitable tour, for he won three races with tliis pair, in addition to placings. Home Made

It would seem that Home Made is liable to capture a fair handicap one of these days, for he ran a fine race in the Mar ton Cup, carrying half a stone overweight. He was last into the straight in that race, and then was right up behind the placed division at the judge. Home Made is by Thurnham from Housewife, and the only progeny racing from this dam. Next season there is every prospect of a half-brother to Home Made making his bow in two-year-old races. Prodice’s Winnings In her five starts as a three-year-old, Prodice has won two races, been second once and third once, and fourth on the other occasion, and her stake winnings are £2,400. Add to this the £1,590 the filly won last season, and it will be seen that she has in all captured stakes to the amount of £3,990. The. Catmint filly has been a good friend to owner-trainer F. Loomb. At Her Best

The mud on Boxing Bay effectually settled Oratrix’s chance in the Auckland Cup, and on New Year’s Bay she went a fair race in the Racing ciub Handicap. On Wednesday she was most unlucky. Half a mile from home she was actually last, but from this point she commenced her run, and at the finish was going like an airplane a head behind the dead-heaters, Vertigern (who made easily his best showing to date) and Concentrate, the latter a stablemate to the New Zealand Cup winner, with whom she was coupled. It was an illuminating run, worthy of the winner of the big Riccarton race, and will draw attention to her prospects in the next big race, the Wellington Cup, to be run on January 22.

Clifford Plate Reflections A muddling pace and an error in judgment were responsible for the defeat of Laughing Prince in the Clifford Plate. The chestnut was asked to go to the front as he was going up the rise to the five-furlong post, and then his rider apparently did not make the most of his horse’s sprinting ability. Mask took him on at the bottom of the straight, and a great finish between the Morris brothers saw Mask win by a bare half length. The latter put up a brilliant performance, and actually beat Laughing Prince home when it

came to a sprint over the last two furlongs. Once again was the value of the last run exemplified. Count Cavour was beaten off, and it is apparent that he is not the horse he was twelve months ago. His best effort here this time was probably his gallop on Christmas Eve morning, and perhaps he left his race on the track.

Thames J.C. Fixture Held at Ellerslie last season, the annual meeting of the Thames Jockey Club will this time be held at the club’s own course, which has been vastly improved since last raced on two years ago. Acceptances for the opening day on Saturday next are due to close at 5 p.m., on Monday, with the secretary at Thames, or with Mr. F. A. McVay at the office of the Takapuna J.C., Auckland. Red Heckle’s Winnings The winner of the Great Northern Berby, Red Heckle, has now won £2,620 in stakes, which is very good considering that the three-year-old is in his first season. It was rather unusual in a race of this description for the same owner and jockey to win this classic two years in succession. A few seasons back M. McCarten piloted Enthusiasm and that good horse Ballymena home in the G.N. Berby, but the former was trained by F. Tilley and the latter by F. B. Jones. It will be remembered that Ballymena met with an untimely end when he broke a leg contesting an important weight-for-age race at Rand wick eighteen months afterwards. Still On Top Bespite the fact that he failed to win a race at Ellerslie, Mr. T. A. Bun can, the Hunterville sportsman, still heads the Dominion’s list of winning owners. Laughing Prince credited him with £7OO in placemoney, this being the value of second place in the Auckland Cup and Clifford Plate, which brought his total up to £5,3675, to which has to be adde da little more in place-money gained by Raunui and> Thrift at the Manawatu and Mar ton meetings. Splendid Hurdler A fine type of hurdler is Elicit, trained at Awapuni by Miss G. Maher. He won the hurdles the first day at Marton, he and Hymestrason outclassing the field. Elicit is by Elysian. Hymestrason, trained by R. E. Hatch, is the makings of a good jumper, and next winter he should win his way out of hacks. Elicit was not a runner on the second day of the Marton fixture, the gelding having cut a foot when he won.

Indolent Shows Form

A bit slow to find her feet in the Juvenile at Marton on New Year’s Bay. the Te Arolia filly Indolent finished in great style to gerff fourth, being last three furlongs from home. This caused her to be better supported on Wednesday, and although she ran well she had no chance of beating Lucky Bag, although the Northern filly had little difficulty in defeating Ihe remainder. It looks as if trainer A. E. Cox will lead in Indolent a winner round the Auckland country circuit in the autumn.

Smart Filly

A particularly smart three-year-old was produced at Marton by trainer G. New. This was Lucky Bag, who won the Juvenile each day, and won easily both times. She is a black filly by Luculius from Moonshine (by Mystification from that good mare San Pluie), and has tons of speed, and she should win in much better r/mipany than that she vanquished at Marton. Perception at Takanini

,T. O’Brien and C. Marsden, who brought the Berby proposition Perception, across from Randwick, left by the Maunganui for Sydney yesterday, but they were not accompanied by the horse, which, it is understood, is at present under the charge of the Takanini mentor, J. T. Jamieson. Perception will be allowed to browse in the paddock for a few weeks, and as to his future programme nothing definite is known.

Now a Good One

Since going into M. Gardner’s stable at Wanganui Star Area has developed into a really good horse, as he proved when he won the Manawatu Cup and scored again the following day. He was next seen out in the Marton Cup and beat all but Nightmarch, to whom he was conceding 41b. Star Area was not judiciously handled, and although he would not have beaten the three-year-old he certainly would have made a closer race of it. A race like the Wanganui Cup may suit Star Area, who led all the way in the Manawatu Cup, 15 miles, and just hung on long enough.

A Monopoly Apparently South Island stables are making a hobby of collecting Marton Cups, for they have won the last three, with Rapier, Stormy and Nightmarch. It is only of late that Southerners have been brought North for the popular Marton summer meeting, and on each occasion the venture has proved to be a profitable one. Wai p a Club

At the last meeting of the Waipa Racing Club (reports our Te Awamutu correspondent), at which Mr. A. S. Wallace presided, the secretary (Mr. J. G. Wynyard) stated that the*totalnsator receipts were £77 better than last year, and the gate receipts £7 up. Appreciation was expressed of the very satisfactory work performed by Mr. AN . Finlay as accommodation steward for the race meeting, and it was decided to forward him a small cheque 1,1 appreciation of his work. Mention was also made of the large amount of work performed by many other helpers in making the recent meeting the success it proved. Mr. J. S. Young reported that arrangements had been made by the Railway Department to transfer to Messrs. Taylor Bros., of "Green Hall” estate (adjoining the racecourse) sufficient land for a right-of-way as required by them, thus obviating the necessity of the racing club exchanging portion of its property, as suggested under the club’s option to purchase six acres for a motor parking paddock. Approval of the department’s action was recorded. It was decided that Messrs. Taylor Bros, be called upon, under the existing agreement, to grant the club the right-of-way as set out in the agreement. The following new members were elected: Walter Scott. Oparau; N. A. Coster, Mangapiko; and J. Bunleary, Kihikilii.