SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 April 1918, Page 8

SPORTING.

/ SYDNEY BLOOD STOCK SALES. - Australian Cable Association. Sydney, April 10. At the blood stock sales, Shadowlaiul fetched 350(1 guineas, Elsdon was passed at 1000 guineas, ,md The Fortune Hunter passed at HOO guineas. TURF TOPICS. (By "Moturoa.") The Awapuni Gold Cup, to be run over a mile and a quarter at Palmerston on Wednesday next, promises to be ' a memorable event. Biplane is "ready and waiting,' to quote a southern scribe, and Desert Gold arrived back from 'Stralw this week in good condition. The champion mare liad a good trip over, and should strip at her best next week. Estland and Impediment will be there, and so will thousands of sportsmen from all parts of the Dominion. Messrs Greenwood and Lowry are anxious to try out their respective champions, and a mile and a quarter trial at weight-for-age, providing the track is in good order, oilers a good field for speculation. We liavj never seen the best of Biplane in N'ew Zealand, but his deeds across the Tasnian are well known. Desert Gold proved at Randwick that she is just as good as ever she was, her three-year-old form given in, and if Biplane defeats her lie will have to go mighty fast. The trades will be piloted as follows: Desert Gold, J. O'Shea; Biplane, B. Decley; Kstland, C. Emerson. The Manawatu Racing Club is lucky to have such a trump card in its hand for the autumn meeting. The cry all round is for increased totalisator facilities, and money is being shut out everywhere. At Avondala on Saturday good money was turned away on every race, yet the total jumped up a cool twelve thousand. Some people don't know there is a War on at allThe veteran 'ehaser Golden Glow made no race of the Chevalier Steeples at Avondalo, winning practically from end to end. The fences are poorly "winged,'' and horses that have not been thoroughly schooled have little chance there. Otter was backed by certain people who reckon they get good information, but he did not stay on the cour?p for a round. Styrax jumped under sufferance, lint he was mostly a fence beliind the field, and Flynn wisely pulled him up when pursuit seemed liopelesj. Glendalough struck the rails at the gap leading into the course proper, and was so seriously injured that she had to be destroyed.

The Railway Handicap resulted in a hoil-over, the consistent Hymeona dashing off in front and making a procession of it. Madam Ristori was unlucky at the start, and was never sighted on the journey, finishing seventh. The Avondale Handicap was a case of Oazique fast and the rest nowhere. Gazique could not go slow enough for the others at any part of it, and won on the bit- Bisogne was close up at the turn, but dropped back to sixth, while Paddington Green was well astern in tenth place. OIi! Mummer looked like giving "the Hurdles at Avondale' a big shake when he broke down. The old f,en£leinnn was well in front at the end of;a. mile, ami the ethers were doing their best to keep him within sight.

Fields should lie large at Awapnni on Wednesday, and winners hard to pick. The Autumn Handicap (nine furlongs) will see Red Tiiblion. Wishful, Volo, and< ether well-performed horses v.nder silly while a groat field is carded for the Telegraph Handicap (six furlongs). If Parisian Diamond, Tnrangapilo, Croesus and Acre .go to the post it will bo a race worth watching. Otter and Arlington are well in the limelight in the Hurdles, and Demotic and Whiro in the Linton Welter. Ibex is well cared for in the Wo.->cihey Hack' Handicap, and the chances of Ayah and Melit.a look more rosy. Winning Shot will he backed as if "shot's eye" in the Maiden. The Waimate Plains Trotting Club for a one-day meeting must easily have established a record, not only iii trotting, but in gallops, so far as tote receipts are concerned, that is, if the Otago Daily Times is to be believed. This veracious journal, in an onslaught on the orgy of gambling that is driving this unfortunate country to the 'demnitioii bowwows," solemnly assures its readers that the Waimate Plains Club put £71,084 through the tote oh the one day. Our Manaia and Hawera friends can only regret it is not a bulls-eye, for then w*e would soon have stakes equalling those of tho Melbourne Cup. It is a great fall to the £17,000 actually put through, but even this for a trot meeting compares very favorably with the amounts handled by the older established clubs in bigger centres of population. "