Plans for Nightmarch On Australian Trip

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 707, 5 July 1929, Page 12

Plans for Nightmarch On Australian Trip

j Although Nightmarch has been i ! occupying a front position in the quo- f ' tations for the Australian Jockey Club’s ! Metropolitan Handicap. and the j Caulfield and Melbourne Cups, it j is very unlikely that he will i < contest these events, telegraphs the i j Christchurch correspondent of The ; Sun. His connections are not alto- ] gether pleased with the weight allotted ( the colt in the big spring handicaps, j and his mission at Sydney will be i weiglit-for-age races. i Nightmarch won the Great Autumn Handicap so convincingly at his last I start that most racing men believed je he would run prominently in Australia i in the spring. The winner of the 1

Great Autumn, New Zealand Derby, Marton and Dunedin Cups, he certainly was entitled to be rated as a good tliree-year-old by Australian handicappers, but the weight allotted him in the important spring handicaps is far in excess of what his connections expected, and it was no surprise when Trainer A. McAulay, while talking with a Sun reporter, remarked that in view of the handicapping of the colt, his itinerary in the Commonwealth would be curtailed.

In fact, his owner, Mr. A. Louisson, has no idea of starting him in the A.J.C. Metropolitan with 9.2 on his back. The idea of racing a valuable colt under crushing weights makes no appeal to Air. Louisson.

The three-year-old is a young horse with big possibilities, and his tackling the best stayers in the Commonwealth with big imposts would be too severe a task for him, though when he

i matures thoroughly he may achieve | success in big handicaps. The present ! intentions are to race Nightmarch in ! weight-for-age races at the minor I meetings prior to the A.J.C. carnival. There are races such as the Hill Stakes. Warwick Stakes, and Chelmsford Stakes, that would suit him. and as he is very forward, and ready to race at an early date, he may win one of those races, while trainers of the Sydney c.racks are concentrating on winning the rich events at the Randwick carnival. Even if the colt fails to win a race. Mr. Louisson will not be disappointed as long as he makes a decent showing. That sportsman is making a , holiday of the trip, but whether he

will go on to Victoria is not definite. In fact, everything is in the air, so to speak, at present.

Of course, if Nightmarch runs well in tho weiglit-for-age races against the good horses, his connections may be tempted to run him in the richly endowed Melbourne Cup, and if he won that coveted trophy what a magnificent success would be achieved! But present intentions arc to nominate the colt for the New Zealand Cup, run in November, and as many of the Dominion’s good handicap performers will b© competing in Melbourne at that time, it is probable that Nightmarch may back to Iticcarton for the old-established two-mile race. Tentative arrangements have been made for Nightmarch to leave Wellington on July 19 by the Maheno for *Sydne3 r , and probably he will have as a travelling companion the two-year-old gelding True Shaft.