SPORTING.

Taranaki Daily News, 30 June 1920, Page 3

SPORTING.

THE MELBOURNE CUP. , By Telegraph—rress Assn.—Copyright. Sydney, Juno 29. Aniythas is weighted for the Melbourne Cup at 9.o—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.

TURF TOPICS.

(13y "Moturoa.")

With the conclusion of the Hawke's Bay racing _ carnival—;uul goodness knows they make; a ,! welter" of it with five days sport in a little over a week—ihe excitement will subside for a whole fortnight, the next meeting scheduled being that of the Wellington Racing Club. which is set down for July 14 and 1" The Grand National meeting follows in Augusl. but whether thai gathering will take place "» the due dates is doubtful. Unless the stiliit ping embargo is quickly lifted the class of | horses likely to be seen out at Trenthnm next, l month will hardly be representative of the j Dominion's best, • while the Grand National I meeting will be a benefit for Master Strowan, | Coalition, Waimai and Crib; In fact, a fiasco, I The present situation is shrouded in doubts | and difficulties, and even the possible clearance of the atmosphere expected after the ' Hating Conference has met in July can help : these important, meeting* not one iota. The : Interference of labor unions on the jockeys' bejhalf has effected nobody very much except [the Jockeys themselves, and the latter bodv jhave anything but boquets to throw at their alleged "champions." However, the lesson is ! not without its moral. | Paddington Green made a great effort to | place the Turamoe Hurdles to his owner's credit on Saturday, but his luck was out It was a smart field of eight that lined up, and the totalisator said that Thrace would win, with j the New Plymouth horse very hnndy. Pad-1 dlngton Green Jumped superbly right up to the last fence, where ho lost considerable j ground, allowing the favorite to gain a nar- 1 row advantage which he had to fight hard, to hold to the end. With anything like a! decent jump Paddington Green would have won, but ho was by no means disgraced, and may live to win a bigger stake very shortly. Signysian was another of the unfortunates. The Fernhill flack Hurdles must have as-, suredly been his but for parting company with his rider In the last round. True to the racing instinct, Signysian completed the course riderless, and after leading the field past the winning post, pulled up and returned to the saddling enclosure. What a good little horse Gold Kip is! There is not much of ihe Aucklander, but he has won three races in the past nine days, and on 'Saturday carried the steadier of 11.10 and won onsi!?: Amongst Ihe beaten division was Parisian Diamond, whom the "heads" considered unbeatable, and who was alleged to have been backed for a ton of money awsvy from the course. Parisian Diamond was never dangerous at any part of it. Another horse that was alleged to have been backed all over the Dominion on Saturday was Molyneaux, who got home nicely from Sea Foam, M'osthenes and a fairly smart lot in the hack race. The winner returned a hort. price, which leads one to believe that in spite of the postal department's efforts to stifle betting telegrams, a large slice of money was returned to the course. Dividends cnmio through as smartly as ever, so there seems to be every reason to think that the system used is equally successful In hoodwinking the officials when betting Instructions are required to be sent through to ngkMits at the racecourse. It is a queer business ! Ethiopian was voted unbeatable in the Ladies' Necklace on Saturday, but' the public evidently failed lo notice Plro Piro finishing vlght up at the end of the hack race on 1 Thursday. Those whose notice of finished goes beyond the judge's placing had a good j win over the Merry Moments neddy, who made Ethiopian look like a runner In the next race. Mr. W. R. Kemhall's team of jumpers perj formed miserably at the Napier and Hawke's Bay meetings. In fact they looked, iC disputing lot to tackle an expensive winter's travelling and racing with. Mill o' (Towrie nnd Ilekanul shaped very disappointingly when well hacked, while Old Munglndi looks as If he has had enough of the game for one season. A number of horse trainers have agreed with this scribe's remarks concerning the necessity of raising training fees. In these days of costly feed, increased rent, wages, and living, things cannot go on as they have been doing if justice Is to be done to the horses Judging by the appearance of some sorry looking racers, a few trainers are emulating the psrson of whom the ancient (430 AD ) neopiatonist writer, tfierocles, wrote: "A fool thought he could train his horse to do without food by gradually reducing his ration. He complained that just* as he had got it down to one oat a day, the horse unfortunate died!"