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"Went awful,"
the Rosehill Gardens racegoer commented in relation to Thorn Park in
The Debonair at Flemington yesterday.
Not that Thorn Park
figured enough on television monitors to allow an informed opinion.
Also, the dust of combat should settle to get a better overview of the
performance.
Still, the questions
were being asked: "Is he overrated?"... "His Sydney form
is no good."... "The mugs that tipped him a special should
have their heads read."
Perhaps the sectional
times hold the answer, but what could be picked up was that Thorn Park
appeared to wobble around the turn at Flemington, made perhaps more
difficult by the rail being out 10 metres.
Many Sydney horses
don't handle Melbourne at their first attempt and the facts and figures
pointed to the winner, Innovation Girl. But the hurdles were evident
prior to the race, and Thorn Park wasn't up to the task yesterday.
Rosehill monitor
watchers could be forgiven for asking if the colour could be adjusted
to make sure they were looking at the right horse.
Thorn Park added
to a day of discontent for many at Rosehill, the opening program for
the Melbourne-based Sports Colour, the on-course television producers
and providers of more sectional times than previously.
The Sydney Turf
Club decided to use the big centre screen at Rosehill to telecast only
Sydney events, plus The Debonair at Flemington.
Thus those interested
in the other eight Melbourne races and the Doomben program had to watch
from designated screens inside or around the grandstands.
Even some STC directors
were unaware of the policy to limit the racing action on the centre
stage, but it will be rectified for the next meeting.
Gai Waterhouse and
the consistency of her horses was another major topic.
The leading trainer
had three winners, with Cosmic Force, Brecon Rose and Outward Display
following the recipe established by Tulloch Lodge for decades of having
hard fit horses, either in front or on the pace.
Rival jockeys had
a non-aggression policy. Chris Munce, on Cosmic Force, was allowed to
dictate terms to such an extent that he was able to run his last 600m
in 33.74secs, giving rivals little chance of making ground.
Brecon Rose, with
Glen Boss up, also gave followers no cause for concern, again making
her own way under no pressure so she could sprint home in 33.84secs.
Munce showed he
is not one-dimensional by taking a sit on Outward Display and then cruising
up along the fence to score decisively.
It was all so predictable,
yet black odds were available about them all.
Waterhouse didn't
completely steal the thunder of rival John Hawkes, who produced a very
promising two-year-old in Kusi. Making his debut, Kusi raced erratically
for Corey Brown but was too good for country sprinter Hipwell and the
Waterhouse youngster Spur Me On.
Another whinge came
from those punters who took the Kusi-Spur Me On quinella. They figured
Munce on Spur Me On had grounds to lodge a protest against the runner-up.
"There was
interference, but both horses contributed equally," chief steward
Ray Murrihy said.
Sections note: Innovation
Girl ran the approximate 1400m distance in The Debonair in 1minute 22.72seconds,
with a final 600m in 33.83secs, making it very hard for the opposition
to give her a start.
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