Champions to Meet at Randwick Next Month

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 910, 1 March 1930, Page 12

Champions to Meet at Randwick Next Month

Nightmarch — Chide —Phar Lap Amounis

Special to THE SUN

CHRISTCHURCH, Thursday. Seldom if ever before has the Dominion produced three outstanding champions such as Nightmarch, Chide and Phar Lap in the one racing season. Spring form clearly revealed the prowess of these brilliant gallopers, and all indications are that this trio of Canterbury-bred horses will again be the stars of the autumn racing carnivals. Chide and Phar Lap are already m Australia, and today Nightmarch left for Randwick to try conclusions with his doughty rivals. In A. McAulay s opinion a horse could not possibly do better than Nightmarch has done since his Melbourne Cup triumph, and he says that if the colt is beaten in Sydney ho will be defeated on his merits. He has never been better than at present. , . , Everything points to a wonderful contest between these mighty champions from New Zealand at the forthcoming autumn carnival in Sydney and their first clash over a distance will be a spectacle worth going barefoot to see. Better Than Ever Trainer A. McAulay is immensely pleased with the progress Nightmarch has made in recent weeks. The colt has built up into a magnificent type of racehorse and the general opinion is that Australian critics will be greatly impressed and surprised with his condition when he steps off the boat next week. No horse could make greater improvement than he lias done in the last few months. He is much stronger all round now than when he left here last winter for the spring meetings, and when viewed in his box yesterday be gave the impression that ae is eagerly looking forward to his trip. He is as fit as a fiddle and his trainer must feel very proud of his charge. Enter Amounis Notwithstanding the progress made by Nightmarch, McAulay says that races are going to be much harder for the four-year-old to win than in the spring. Chide, of course, is the horse he fears most. Then there is Phar Lap and Amounis to reckon with, but unless Amounis stars in the long-dis-tance weight-for-age races he may not meet Nightmarch at Randwick. More than likely Amounis will be specially reserved for the All-Aged Stakes,_ a mile weight-for-age race on the third

day of the A.J.C. meeting, while the Riccarton colt may take on the mile and three-quarters Cumberland Stakes on the same day. It makes little difference, however, which race is chosen for Nightmarch, for the opposition will be strong. If he does dodge Amounis, then Chide and Phar Lap will tackle him in the distance events. Respect for the Enemy McAulay has a great opinion of Chide. He says—“ Chide must be a great horse. It takes an exceptionally high-class galloper to aggregate such a phenomenal sequence of wins as Chide did in the spring. I did not see him at Cup time, being away in Victoria, but his form at the November carnival was sufficient to show that he was a good horse.” There are many other racing authorities who b.elieve Chide is an undoubted champion. One well-known figure in the racing world went so far as to say recently that Chide was the greatest horse New Zealand has ever sent to Australia, and he makes the bold assertion that he will go through the autumn racing carnivals unbeaten. The authority referred to is not given to boasting as a rule, and he was in earnest when he said that Chide was a wonder. Knows Him Well F. D. Jones has had experience with Nightmarch. Ho liad to be content with third place in the A.J.C. Metropolitan and second in the Melbourne Cup with Paquito as a result of bumping into Nightmarch, so that he should have a good idea of the Night Raid’s colt s capabilities. He says: “It is hard to compare both horses, but Nightmarch is really good. I think his performances to date are better than Cliide’s. I did not see the latter win the New Zealand Cup, but I saw him win the Canterbury and Stead Cups. A lot of good judges say he is as good as Nightmarch. but the Night Raid colt is extra good.”

A. Cutts, a sound judge, is of the same opinion as many other people. His view was that it is difficult to sum up the respective merits of both horses, and added that few horses in the last decade had swept all before them as Chide did since October, 1928. He has not suffered one defeat, but whether he ' . 1 continue his amazing sequence of wins will not be unfolded till the autumn carnivals progress. He is a great galloper and an undoubted chamPion. He finished up his racing in the Dominion with an honour that the great turf celebrities in the past did not achieve. He was the first horse to win the New Zealand Cup, Canterbury Cup and Stead Gold Cup at the same meeting and that honour means that lie merely needs to retain his form to }£ n L, a fortune for his new owner. Mr I. Jrautwein, who was plucky enough to pay 6,ooogns with added contingencies for the gelding after the New Cup carnival. Why Chide Was Sold

«- Murray Aynsley had the public intrigued over his wonder horse. Many wanted to know his ?o a h°,n sell , i , n S Chide, who appeared . all-conquering run before him in Ivew Zealand with the best of our champions racing i n Australia. The answer to this is that even allowing tamrtt4 eldlnS ’ S success in the most important races in this country it e oor L ke -M lo , s ? on three >’ ears to win t.uougns with him. £ y .Sf le y also knew that Chide ? br ] ,ght future, and no doubt he * u ?} as Pleased as if he still ouned Chide if the gelding wins the kidney Cup and shines in the richlyendowed weight-for-age events that the Commonwealth turf offers. During a lengthy discussion over the respective merits of Chide and Nightmarch yesterday, Mr. Aynsley said: Chide is a good horse, and with the conditions suitable, and in his best form. Chide will be the first horse to break 3.20 for two miles. He would have run round about that time had he a horse to bring him home over the

last half-mile of the New Zealand j Cup. I do not feel the least scared of j Nightmarch beating Chide, both being j lit arid well. If Nightmarch had op- : posed Chide in the proposed weight- [ for-age race at Riccarton I think the ; race would have been next to a cer- j tainty for my fellow. Indeed, had I , been a betting owner I would have put j my property on Chide. I feel certain j that the time record will go by the ■ board if Chide, fit and well, and in the ; same form as lie was at Cup time, is beaten in the longer distance weiglit-tor-age races at Randwick.” Such an opinion from as sound a judge as Air. Aynsley is well worth reading. His lengthy experience on the Turf has taught him not to boast about his horses, but the faith lie holds in Chide reveals that the horse must have shown him a track trial that would have enabled the gelding to beat even the greatest champions of modern times. The meeting of Chide and Nightmarch at Randwick should provide a mighty contest, and though Night- • march mav be the more brilliant of the pair—though that point is merely a matter of conjecture—it is the opinion of many old hands that Chide will be his master over and beyond two miles. Chide might even accomplish victory in the shorter weight-for-age races, as we have never yet seen this bold galloper extended throughout ms races. The Australian sporting public . are certainly in for a rare treat. Amor Goes, Too

An announcement was made yesterday that Amor was to fulfil his Syd- j ney engagements and the Archery I gelding left for Randwick today under A. McAulay’s charge. He also took Nightmarch. True Shaft and Stately I with him. Neither Mr. A. Louisson nor Mr. F. Williamson, the respective owners of Nightmarch and Amor, will view the racing at the autumn carnivals. Both are busy men and cannot spare the time to see their horses in action. . Stately, who was recently sold by j G. Murray Aynsley, will remain in McAulay’s charge after her arrival at j Randwick and the Riccarton trainer will prepare the Paladin filly for future engagements. For the A.J.C. Derby During his absence in Sydney J. Lindsay will supervise the training of j McAulav’s team. He will have Knocl • j any and Bay Queen, besides several j yearlings, including Phar Lap s j brother, to work on. . i Knockany was to have accompanied ; Nightmarch across the Tasman, but it was'decided to leave the Night Raid youngster at Riccarton. He has been hurried in his work and now will be eased off. Knockany is a most impressive horse and he gallops so well that it would not be the least surprising if he matures into a really good horse. If he does make the improvement expected of him it is quite on the cards that he will go to Randwick in the spring for the A.J.C McAulay is not certain when he will return to Riccarton, but more than likely he will leave Sydney directly after the conclusion of the A.J.C. meet-, m Questioned whether Nightmarch would start in the King’s Cup at Adelaide, McAulay said that he did not think so. His owner had decided that i it is a long way to take a horse from Randwick to Adelaide, and in addition | to this Nightmarch will have had his ; share of racing by the time the Rand- ! wick meeting ended. |