26/03/14
A couple of weeks ago on this website I put up Part 1 of the historical feature on writings of the late Clif Cary and noted that prior to his passing on 10 December 1986 at the ripe old age of 81, Clif Cary had left an indelible mark on two sports in the country – cricket and thoroughbred racing.
From reading his editorials last week and today, you can see that Clif Cary didn’t pander to anyone in authority and was more than happy to dish out constructive criticism to all sectors of the industry. Amazingly topics he targeted back in 1981 – some 33 years ago – are still being written of today. Topics below include 1) Cary’s obvious dislike of compressed weights in handicap events, 2) he publicly called for a stewards enquiry to sort out the facts as to why classy 2YO Crown Jester was scratched from the 1981 Sires’ Produce Stakes, 3) he also thought the stallion service fee hike on Bletchingly was ridiculous and 4) couldn’t fathom how a yearling that was expected to bring $300,000 sold for $825,000.
Clif Cary’s editorial below on “Sydney bookmakers” reads in part that an American visitor to Australia from the Illinios Racing Commission had told him that “bookmakers do nothing but destroy racing”. How amazing was it that Clif Cary wrote that specific editorial on 28 April, 1981 and the Fine Cotton Affair that would later see racing authorities implicate well-known father and son Sydney bookmakers Bill and Robbie Waterhouse, would happen just over three years later on 18 August 1984? That Illinois Racing Commission man would surely have had a grin on his face like a carpet snake in a chook coop the day of the Fine Cotton ring-in saga findings, as it’s still newsworthy three decades on.
Excerpts from Clif Cary editorials from Australian Punters Digest on 28/4/1981, 9/11/1982 and 16/11/1982 – even to the point where he had capital letters to introduce a new theme – read:
WEIGHTS have always been compressed to some extent but never so much as since metrics replaced stones and pounds at the start of the 1972-73 season. The late Jack Shaw once summed it up by saying – ‘Handicappers must be thinking of cricket and so regard anything over 56 as a good score!’
This form of handicapping is getting out of hand especially as the race limits are much higher these days. The imposts are so compressed that in many races there is very little separating the best from the worst, yet the job of a club handicapper is to juggle the figures in an effort to ‘bring all the contenders together.’ Severe compression makes the task almost impossible.
Maybe the criticism levelled at the West Australian Turf Club handicapper for the manner in which he treated Kingston Town in the Perth Cup could bring some common sense back to weight adjusting, although I very much doubt it.
It is beyond comprehension to think that last July Kingston Town was more than fairly treated when given 59 kg in the Melbourne Cup. Since then he has won over $300,000 in stakes, including the Cox Plate, yet against a weaker entry, he has been dropped a half-kilo in the Perth Cup!
I believe there was also terrific compression in the framing of the weights for the 1600m Railway Stakes – the first leg of the Perth double. I’m told there were well over 200 nominations but only 34, including many unlikely runners, were weighted at 50 kilos or more.
OTHER NEWS from my West Australian contact is that pre-post and doubles bookmakers intend to gamble heavily against Kingston Town winning the Perth Cup despite the ‘kindness’ of the handicapper. They claim there is much more to the outcome of the race than a weight advantage.
Bookmakers who want to take on Kingston Town are keeping their fingers crossed that the handicappers will not frighten owners into scratching possible contenders. Although, even if the field is weakened, they believe the champion still has to overcome three stiff obstacles.
They consider the Perth heat and the hard underfoot conditions could both affect Kingston Town. And some doubt his ability to see out a fast 3200 metres at Ascot which is rated as a much more testing course than Flemington.
Kingston Town fought on gamely against Gurner’s Lane, but he was shortening stride at the finish. Many blamed Mal Johnson for making his bid too early. Not the Perth bookies. They claim the gelding was extra well weighted, had a charmed run from an inside gate, yet still wilted even though the pace wasn’t on all the way. Someone will probably see to it that there will be no loafing in Perth.
SYDNEY BOOKMAKERS were annoyed over remarks made by an American racing official during an interview with Bob Charley on 2GB last Saturday week. The visitor, a member of the Illinois Racing Commission, blasted both bookmakers and big bettors.
He said there was no way bookmakers would ever again be allowed to operate in America. “Bookmakers,” he declared, “do nothing but destroy racing. They certainly destroyed our racing, and it was only after they were banned, and all betting restricted to the machine, that the industry prospered to become the richest in the world.”
The American added that racing rightly belonged to the small players. “A big punter,” he said, “can bring discredit to the game. He is the one who can scheme or be the one who is schemed against.”
“MILLION DOLLAR MADNESS” are the only words to describe what went on at the Sydney yearling sales last week. Buyers spent just on $16m, and the average price per lot exceeded $40,000 against $22,764 last year. Experts were tipping the Luskin Star-Visit colt to top the sale at a price in the vicinity of $300,000. He sold for $825,000!
Overall, prices were up about 45 per cent compared to the 1980 sales. I don’t know where it is all going to end especially as the service fees for some stallions have also skyrocketed beyond imagination. Bletchingly, for example, stood last year for $4000. In the coming season the cost of a mating will be $17,500 – a booking fee of $2500 with the balance to be paid when a 42-day pregnancy test on the mare is positive.
Accepted rule is that members of a syndicate owning a stallion are entitled to have one mare covered for each share they own. With heavily syndicated sires there will be no vacancies for outsiders. It is said that some of the wealthy speculators buying big in syndicates wouldn’t know the front of a horse.
Vince and Charles Tobin are hobby breeders. They bred Full On Aces (Kaoru Star – Better Draw). Last Tuesday they sold his full brother for $500,000 yet, at that stage, had not been able to get their mare back to a stallion of their choice for next season because they were all tied up by syndications.
Vince was right in declaring that the syndications were “killing the game, and shutting the door on the small breeders”. Better Draw has a foal at foot by Vain and is in foal to Mighty Kingdom. Last week a syndicate tried to buy Better Draw. The Tobins turned down an offer of $1.5m.
The only hope for small breeders who seek to “breed the best to the best and hope for the best” is to find old established studmasters who believe there is more to the industry than monopoly and a fast buck.
ANOTHER big talking point was the quick recovery of CROWN JESTER. Last Saturday week he was a late scratching from the Sires’ Produce Stakes because of a temperature. On the Monday he galloped 1000m in 64.5s and two days later won “in a walk” at Randwick. Stories have been spread that on the Saturday morning before being scratched, he galloped over 1000. The Sunday Telegraph suggests that as the reported gallop happened on a race morning, after the stewards had taken control of the meeting, officials, for the good of all concerned, should clear the matter up by conducting an inquiry.
Today on www.brisbaneracing.com.au there’s the first of two days of photos from Eagle Farm last Saturday, plus others of interest. On www.sydneyracing.com.au there’s the story of the Aussie stallion who is a chance of having success in America, whilst on www.melbourneracing.com.au Victorian racing is looked at.