Turf Monthly August 2024 by turfmonthly

turf monthly

August 2024

THIS MONTH

BISCAY

BLUE AND GOLD

HAWAII FIVE OH

CHRISTMAS TREE

Editor’s Letter

August sees the start of a new racing season and it is always an exciting time for Australian racing. It isn’t long before the great races of the Spring take centre stage, and we will see the return of Pride Of Jenni and the imported Via Sistina who may easily have improved since the Autumn. For me, I am always excited to see the return of the two year olds and seeing how they shape up as 3yo’s. Not only this, I also look forward to those 3yo classic winners take on the older horses in the big races. This season it will be the VRC and ATC Derby winner, Riff Rocket that could shape up against the local staying talent. We will also see the emergence no doubt of plenty more imports whether they are here permanently or only visiting for the Cups races. These add an extra dimension to the Spring in particular and no doubt we will see a few emerge that are not yet on the radar. I would also like to acknowledge the recent retirement of Warning who won the 2019 VRC Derby. He might have only won five from forty-seven starts, but he earned almost $2.5 million in prizemoney, a great effort in anyone’s language. While he will never make a Racing Hall of Fame, he will always be remembered as a VRC Derby winner, even if that title does not have the prestige that it once did. Nonetheless, the Derby will always be a race that is mentioned when champions like Phar Lap are discussed, so history will be kind to most of the winners, and sometimes, like the perennial loser in the much maligned Drongo. It all just adds to the remarkable history of the thoroughbred.

CONTENTS 4

Biscay - A Star

Biscay Daughters

Biscay Sons

Blue And Gold

Christmas Tree

Hawaii Five Oh

Maid Of The Lake

COVER PHOTO STARSPANGLEDBANNER Caulfield Guineas winning son of Choisir

Until next month

Ross Prowd

Turf Monthly ABN 64 892 144 940 Phone 0412 712 181

Email editor@turfmonthly.com.au 2 Swan Street PARKSIDE Q 4825

TURF MONTHLY 3

BISCAY

A TRUE SUPERSTAR

ast month we found out that Makarpura was the damsire of Biscay, arguably the most important sire son of the immortal Star Kingdom. Star Kingdom dominated the Australian breeding scene from the late 1950’s until the arrival of Sir Tristram and Danehill who reshaped the local thoroughbred. Biscay was from the fourteenth crop of his sire, who was to have only two more before his passing. This crop had only 22 named foals of which eight or 40% won metropolitan races with three of these winning stakes races.

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rained by the great Angus Armanasco, Biscay commenced his career by breaking an Australian record in his very first start over four furlongs (800m) in the Debutante Stakes at Caulfield. He was to win the Maribyrnong Stakes easing down by eight lengths in his only other start in the Spring. Upon return, he won the Merson Cooper over six furlongs at Caulfield beating Storm Ruler by only three quarters of a length. It was to be the colt’s only win over the distance, and although he may have had some excuses as he suffered an infected heel, he was to finish fourth in both the Golden Slipper and Champagne Stakes. Biscay returned to Melbourne in the Autumn to retain his undefeated record in that state by winning three more races before he was retired by his owner, the legendary breeder, Stanley Wootton. Stakes won: $19,500

1st VRC Maribyrnong Plate, Flemington (5f) (by 8 lengths) VATC Merson Cooper Stakes, Caulfield (6f) VATC Debutant Stakes, Caulfield (4f) (45.8s - Aust record) VRC Moomba Handicap, Flemington (5f) VATC Wednesday Sprint, Caulfield (5f) Patrick Hickey Stakes, Werribee (5f) 4th STC Golden Slipper Stakes, Rosehilll (6f) 4th Champagne Stakes, Randwick (6f)

he pedigree of Biscay is of significance. We know that he is by Star Kingdom out of a Makarpura mare, and most will note that Star Kingdom was a grandson of Hyperion. His dam, Magic Symbol traces to a mare called Conveyor by Pylon who was imported to Australia by Stanley Wootton in 1948. She was mated with another imported stallion, Newtown Wonder by another of Australia’s great breeders in George Ryder. The result was Magic Wonder who won the Kindergarten Stakes when ridden by Neville Sellwood. She was later mated with Makarpura to produce Magic Symbol, the dam of Biscay.

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Hyperion

yperion remains a critical influence in the thoroughbred, and in the case of Biscay, it is that stallion’s third dam, Gondolette that is worthy of extra comment. She was an unfashionably bred type, by Loved One out of the Doncaster mare, Dongola, who was born at the property of Henry Waring of Beenham, near Reading, in 1902. After a racing career that saw her win the Juvenile Plate at Epsom, she was sold for 300 guineas to Colonel William Hall Walker who was later to become Lord Wavertree. She was to reside among his impressive broodmare band at his Tully Stud adjoining The Curragh racetrack in Ireland. Tully Stud, together with all of Hall Walker’s bloodstock was gifted to the Government during World War i and is still known as the National Stud. The act of patriotism saw him obtain his peerage.

ondolette was twice mated with Hall Walker’s home bred stallion, White Eagle by Gallinule. He was a precocious juvenile, winning the Woodcote Stakes by five lengths. In all he was to win four of his five career starts including the National Breeders' Produce Stakes at Sandown, beating the future Oaks and Derby winner Signorinetta and the future 1,000 Guineas winner Rhodora. White Eagle’s daughter, Widow Bird can be found as the fourth dam of Hyperion. With Gondolette, the mating produced Dollabella who had a major impact at stud by producing a good daughter in Myroblla who was to be mated with the Aga Khan’s unbeaten Triple Crown winner, Bahram to produce Big Game who is the sire of Makarpura.

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Gondolette also produced the good horse Let Fly by White Eagle. The mare was to be sold by Hall Walker before Dolabella and Let Fly had raced. She was in foal to Minoru who Hall Walker had bred and leased to King Edward VII who had the pleasure of seeing the colt win the Two Thousand Guineas and Derby while sporting his colours. Gondolette was purchased for 1500 guineas by Lord Derby who had plans to mate the mare with his stallions Swynford or Chaucer. Little did he know that the mare was to produce a filly by Minoru who was to race as Serenissima. While the filly had little success on the track largely due to racing restrictions imposed during World War II. Nonetheless, the filly did win two races as a 3yo, but it was in the breeding barn that Serenissima was to excel. By Chaucer, she produced the remarkable filly Selene who was not nominated for the Classics due to her small size. Selene won 16 of her 22 lifetime starts, including the Cheveley Park Stakes at two and the Park Hill Stakes, at three. She was also to become an outstanding broodmare producing Hyperion who won the Derby and was leading sire on six occasions, the full brother Pharamond II and Sickle, Night Shift, Hunters Moon and All Moonshine who was to produce Mossborough and was later to become the third dam of Sir Tristram. Serenissima was also to go on to produce Tranquil by Swynford. In comparison to Selene, Tranquil stood at 16.3 hands and was the best filly of her generation winning the One Thousand Guineas, St. Leger, Newmarket Oaks, Jockey Club Cup, and Liverpool St. Leger. She also produced Bosworth by Son-In-Law who won the Ascot Gold Cup and was to become a solid sire.

ondolette, at the age of nineteen, was to produce Sansovino by Swynford who won twice as a 2yo, but was to excel at three winning the Derby by six lengths. That was to be the pinnacle of his career as he won only twice in his remaining seven race starts including the Prince of Wales Stakes and Spring Stakes. He was to prove something of a disappointment at stud but is still regularly found in modern pedigrees.

ome may question why we bother to look at this influence in the pedigree of Biscay. However, if you look at the attached six generation display, you will see clearly that one of the features is the presence not only of both Serenissima and Dolabella in his pedigree, but also two lines of White Eagle, a stallion that would usually barely rate even a passing glance. It may also be interesting to reflect on the fact that Star Kingdom was 18yo when Biscay was conceived. Considering that Serenissima herself bred successfully for so long, it could be speculated that the presence of such an ancestor could play a role in the longevity of the stallion.

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BISCAY

DAUGHTERS AT STUD

nlike most stallions that we look at, Biscay’s legacy is more enduring through his sons than his daughters. Of course, there are some notable exceptions, but Biscay had a remarkable 33 sons who followed him to stud. Remarkably, Star Kingdom himself had only 29 sons to go to stud. No doubt there was a huge appetite for the Star Kingdom sire line which had proved somewhat problematic in terms of establishing itself in further generations. To suspect that the Star Kingdom sire line would establish itself as the dominant sire line in Australasia was to ignore the history of sire lines throughout the world and that is a topic that we may one day further explore. We noted that Biscay was perhaps the last great sprinter by Star Kingdom making him an ideal candidate to try and continue the line. He certainly had remarkable success through his two most important sons in Bletchingly and Marscay, although both have failed to ensure the longevity of the sire line locally.

hile we will look at the major sons of Biscay at stud shortly, it is important to acknowledge some of the daughters who have continued his legacy, even if it is starting to significantly diminish in the modern era.

Bounding Away TURF MONTHLY 9

BOUNDING AWAY

great place to start is his champion daughters, and none were better than the famed Bounding Away who was both Australian Horse of the Year and Champion 2yo in the season of 1985/86. Trained by the legendary TJ Smith, Bounding Away was a daughter of the NZ bred Who Can Say by Sovereign Edition. She had won the SAJC Sires Produce Stakes and also produced Glastonbury by Sir Tristram who was to win the 1993 Moonee Valley Cup and 1994 Metropolitan Handicap.

he filly had her first race start on 25 January 1986 winning a 2yo fillies handicap at Randwick over 1000m. She was then taken to Melbourne to win the Blue Diamond Prelude for fillies before winning the Blue Diamond beating Bataan by four lengths in race record time. Smith brought Bounding Away back to Sydney where she duly won the Magic Night before her win in the Golden Slipper where she defeated Just Blooming and Imperial Baron in a close finish and equalling the race record in the meantime. She became the first filly to ever win the Blue Diamond/ Golden Slipper double and was only the third horse to achieve the feat following John’s Hope and Manikato. Bounding Away then tasted defeat for the first time in the Sires Produce, finishing 3.5 lengths behind Diamond Shower, who herself was a granddaughter of Biscay being by Zephyr Zip, a son of Zephyr Bay. With Biscay’s failure in the Slipper over 1200m, Bounding Away was considered a question mark at the distance and started at the relatively generous odds of 11/4 just behind the 9/4 offered about the favourite Imperial Baron who was a close third. On the rain affected ground, Diamond Shower started at 33/1. Bounding Away atoned for that defeat next up in the Champagne Stakes where she beat Myocard and Diamond Shower. Bounding Away drifted in the betting from 7/2 to 6/1 but jockey Mick Dittman rode the filly much more patiently in the Champagne and claimed that he would have won the Sires’ had he ridden her the same way.

he filly was sent for a spell and resumed in the Spring as a 3yo with three straight second placings, in the Group 3 Silver Shadow at Warwick Farm, the Group 2 Ascot Vale at Flemington and the Group 2 Veuve Clicquot at Moonee Valley. Bounding Away returned to Sydney to win the Group 1 Flight Stakes but her campaign ended with an ordinary showing in the 1000 Guineas at Caulfield where she finished sixth. She returned in January to run fourth behind Canny Lass in the William Reid and this was followed by a sixth behind Military Plume and Vo Rogue in the Australian Guineas. Back in Sydney she was second in the Group 2 Surround Stakes before winning the Group 1 Orlando Classic now run as the Coolmore Classic. It was then to the 3yo Autumn Classics and she stepped up to run second behind Ring Joe in the Rosehill Guineas. Bounding Away then was fourth behind Myocard in the AJC Derby before winning the AJC Oaks beating Round The World as the 9/4 favourite. She then was sent North to the Brisbane winter carnival but finished unplaced in three runs in the Qld Oaks, Grand Prix and AJC Derby behind Myocard. That was to be her final race start but she proved to be a difficult breeder. She was to produce only two named foals with one of those being In A Bound who won the 2004 STC Queen Of The Turf Stakes. She was sent to the US where she produced two winners including Calle Flora by Street Sense who has returned to Australia along with Bound Copy by Street Cry. There may still be hope that either of these mares can continue the legacy of the great champion.

TURF MONTHLY 10

MARAUDING

arauding was a son of the next big thing in Australian breeding in Sir Tristram out of the Biscay mare, Biscalowe. He holds a special place in history by being the first overseas bred winner of the Golden Slipper, a race he won in 1987 along with the Todman Slipper Trial and the Penfolds Classic at Newcastle. Marauding was to have only eight career starts, winning three and earning over three quarters of a million dollars in stakes money. The family came to Australia in the early 1950’s through a mare called Silver Fleet by Scottish Union. It continues to have success and one of the most interesting descendants is Sacred Choice by Choisir who we will talk about a little later and is another stallion who traces to a mare by Biscay. Marauding was to go on to become an outstanding sire producing 32 stakes winners. It is noticeable that he produced a wonderful filly in Burst who won the 2yo Triple Crown in 1992. He was to produce a second Golden Slipper winner in 1998 in Prowl who was to also win the Skyline Stakes and Blue Diamond Prelude. Marauding became highly sought after as a broodmare sire with his daughters producing 27 stakes winners including Grand Armee, Earthquake, Melito, Juanmo, Monton and Mearas.

Marauding TURF MONTHLY 11

OUR POETIC PRINCE

n 1987, a promising young 2yo NZ colt ventured to Brisbane for the Winter. He was coming off three straight wins but found the field in the Castlemaine Stakes a little hot, eventually finishing sixth of the seventeen runners that were led home by Flotilla. His name in Australia was Our Poetic Prince and while connections returned home disappointed, they were not discouraged. The gelding was by Yeats out of the Biscay mare, Finisterre and after spelling, he resumed with four straight wins at home before this time heading to Melbourne. His first start was in the Caulfield Guineas and Our Poetic Prince crossed the finishing line first in race record time before being relegated to second behind Marwong on protest with another NZ colt, Kaapstad in third. He then finished second behind Rubiton in the Cox Plate before running fourth to Omnicorp in the VRC Derby and again heading home.

Our Poetic Prince 1988 Cox Plate

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he Autumn saw Our Poetic Prince win the Group 1 Terrace Regency Hotel at WFA before again heading to Brisbane for the Winter Carnival. After finishing seventh in the Rothmans, Our Poetic Prince then finished second to Planet Ruler in the Qld Guineas. He followed that with a second to Cool Report in the Group 2 Tourist Minister’s Cup. His final Winter run came with a fifth in the Group 1 Elders Handicap now the Stradbroke behind Campaign King. Our Poetic Prince again crossed the Tasman and returned in the Spring to win twice in NZ before again coming to Melbourne. He won the Feehan Stakes before running second to Sky Chase in the Caulfield Stakes. His finest moment then came when he won the Cox Plate defeating two other NZ horses in Horlicks and Bonecrusher. The Spring finished for Our Poetic Prince with a fourth in the Mackinnon Stakes behind Empire Rose. Again he resumed with three runs in NZ before his first Autumn start in Melbourne that saw him finish third behind Vo Rogue and Super Impose in the Australian Cup. Our Poetic Prince then travelled to Sydney to win the Group 1 Tancred Stakes beating Top Class and Apollo Run. He then won the Queen Elizabeth beating Dandy Andy and Beau Zam before he returned to NZ. After winning the Terrace Regency Hotel Stakes again, Our Poetic Prince was back in Brisbane, the State that he was to have the least success in all of his visits. Again, his Winter was to be moderate with his best result being a second behind Groucho, himself a grandson of Biscay in the Group 3 Byrne Hart Stakes. Our Poetic Prince was retired to stud where he had moderate success, producing only five stakes winners. His best may have been Bold Bard who won two VRC Bagot Handicaps. Rather surprisingly one of his stakes winners was What A Poet who won the 1994 BATC Doomben Classic. The stallion was sold to Korean interests in 2001.

CHOISIR

hoisir is another of those stand out horses that trace to a daughter of Biscay, this time the mare, Pensive Mood and her daughter, Great Selection by Lunchtime. The stallion is best remembered by many for becoming the first for many years to take on the cream of British racing. In the British Summer of 2003, Choisir won both the Group One Golden Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot in track record time, and the Group Two King’s Stand Stakes. He was a gallant second in the Group One July Cup at Newmarket when obviously at the end of his arduous campaign, but he certainly lost no admirers in defeat. Choisir returned to Australia to be named our International Horse Of The Year.

he colt had also been named Australia’s Champion two-year-old colt the year before with wins in the STC Skyline Stakes, the AJC Breeder’s Plate and the William Inglis 2yo Classic. He was also second in the AJC Sires’ Produce and Pago Pago Stakes, while running third in Golden Slipper and Champagne Stakes. Choisir returned as a three-year-old to capture the Lightning and Linlithgow Stakes’. In total, Choisir had 23 starts for 7 wins and won in excess of the equivalent of AUD$2 million.

t stud, Choisir proved an outstanding success siring 74 individual stakes winners. He shuttled to the UK for almost a decade, and he had good success in both hemispheres. In the UK he helped expand Biscay’s influence through horses like Olympic Glory, The Last Lion and Starspangledbanner who followed in his sire’s footsteps by racing successfully in the UK. Choisir also sired a Bangalore Derby winner in India through the performances of Borsalino (IND) 2009. Among his stakes-winners are Divine Prophet (2016 Caulfield Guineas), Japonisme (2015 Coolmore Stud Stakes), Kushadasi (SA Derby), Sacred Choice (AJC Doncaster and VRC Myer Classic), Snapdancer (Robert Sangster Stakes and Memsie Stakes), and The Mission (Champagne Stakes). He had good success in NZ and surprisingly one of his best sire sons is Proisir who now stands there who was the winner of only one stakes race in the Newcastle Jockey Club Spring Stakes at Group 3 level. Starspangledbanner remains at this stage at least his best son at stud and he is another who shuttled to the UK where he produced State Of Rest who won the 2023 Cox Plate and now is also at stud.

Choisir TURF MONTHLY 14

SCHILLACI

chillaci was one of Australia’s best sprinters who hardly gets the recognition he deserves. He was by Salieri out of the Biscay mare, Biscarina. He won his first race start as a 3yo over 1100m at Kyneton on 22 October 1991 but by his fourth start, the talented grey had won his first Group 1 in the Lightning Stakes. He defeated Umatilla and Wrap Around by 1.5 lengths in the good time of 55.9. It was to be the first of five Lightning Stakes for his young jockey, Damien Oliver. At his next start, Schillaci won the 1100m Oakleigh Plate beating Dark Beau and Dapper’s Hope in a race and track record of 1.02.70. He then won the sprint treble by defeating Storaia and Umatilla in the Newmarket Handicap, making him only the second horse to do so after Placid Arc had achieved the feat in 1987.

he gelding then went to Sydney where he controversially was beaten on protest by Alishan in the Canterbury Stakes. He then added his fourth Group 1 by winning the Galaxy by two lengths from Friend’s Venture and Euclase when carrying 57kg, a huge weight for a 3yo. Schillaci then went to Brisbane where he won the QTC Cup before finishing unplaced with 56.5kg behind Rough Habit in the Stradbroke.As a 4yo, Schillaci was to win three more Group 1 races in the Lightning, Futurity and George Ryder in Sydney as well as run a half-head second to Spanish Mix in the William Reid in what was another track and race record time. Schillaci failed to win as a 5yo, but at six returned to some of his best form by winning the Caulfield Sprint on Melbourne Cup Day and won his final Group 1 in the Futurity Stakes. He was retired after running second behind Rouslan in the 1995 Stradbroke in Brisbane. This time he carried 58kg, giving some 6.5kgs to the winner with a margin of only 0.5 lengths between them. Fittingly, it took a time of 1.20.80 for the 1400m to beat Schillaci, another track and race record. In all, the grey won sixteen of his thirty-six starts and over $2.3 million in prizemoney.

1995 FUTURITY STAKES SCHILLACI TURF MONTHLY 15

BISCAY THE SONS

espite the success that Biscay had at stud through his daughters, it remains the influence of his sons that have seen the greatest influence of the stallion live on. With over 30 sons at stud, there are many who have had major impacts on the Australian thoroughbred. Still, there are two sons of Biscay who stand out in Bletchingly and Marscay. Both we will cover at length in a later edition, but a couple of brief comments on both. Bletchingly of course is the sire of one of our greatest ever horses in Kingston Town, and that alone would have ensured his place in history. In almost every way though he exceeded the performance of his sire, Biscay even to having more sons go to stud. He also sired 61 stakes winners which included the likes of Emancipation, Canny Lad and Canny Lass, Best Western and Mr Tiz to just scratch the surface. Much like Biscay though, he is often found through stallions, and in this edition, we look at one of the new stallions for the coming season in Hawaii Five Oh who traces to a Bletchingly mare.

ooking alphabetically, the first son of Biscay we come to is Biscawong. He was to win three stakes races in the 1979 AJC The Shorts, the 1980 STC Winter Handicap in a race record time, and the 1981 Tatt's NSW Carrington Stakes. At stud, Biscawong was to leave four stakes winners in total. Jonpilo was to win the Listed Carrington Stakes like his sire and was also runner up in the Razor Sharp. In all the gelding won seven of his 32 starts and almost $150,000 in stakes and he was the last stakes winner for the stallion. The first had been Super Swift who won the 1984 AJC Widden Stakes. Another stakes-winner was Our Horizon who won the Meynink Stakes in Brisbane as an early 2yo as well as the BATC Coca Cola Bottlers Classic (later the Champagne Classic and now the Spirit Of Boom) and the Skyline Stakes in Sydney at the same age. Arguably his best runner was Wonga Prince who was also a top line 2yo winning the Newcastle Penfolds Classic and the AJC Sires Produce. He was to win five of his twelve starts and almost $140,000 in prizemoney. Interestingly, his dam, Wonga Lady was by the Star Kingdom son, Planet Kingdom. At stud, Wonga Prince sired Wonga’s Joy who won the 1992 AJC June Stakes.

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BLUE AND GOLD B

lue And Gold was another good performer for Biscay who was to go on to become a good stallion. On the racetrack, the colt won eight of his 22 starts including both the AJC Breeders Plate and the STC Todman Slipper Trial. He was to go on to become an excellent stallion producing nine stakes winners that were to win across much of Australia. Begone was a son of Blue and Gold who won stakes races in both Melbourne and Adelaide. He won the Lighting Stakes, Adelaide Guineas and Da Costa Plate in South Australia, while in Melbourne won the CS Hayes Stakes at Moonee Valley and the Cresswick Stakes at Flemington.

lay Or Pay was a Sydney based galloper that represented Blue And Gold well, winning eight of 35 starts and just shy of half a million dollars in prizemoney. He was a handy 2yo although not racing until March when he was unplaced at Rosehill over 1200m. Play Or Pay was then placed on four straight occasions before winning a NMW event at Warwick Farm when ridden by Kevin Moses. After a fourth at Rosehill over 1500m in a race that saw All Our Mob finish third, he then won two more races in Sydney. After an unplaced run, he had his first start as a 3yo in Gosford winning the Listed Gosford Classic before beating Yachtie to win the

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Peter Pan Stakes Stakes. He was then unplaced in the Gloaming behind Air Seattle and Telesto, and the Hill Stakes won by Muirfield Village from Super Impose. He then went for a well-earned break, returning in the Autumn. The gelding took some time to find form, running unplaced on four occasions before a second behind Golden Sword in the Listed Carbine Stakes at Randwick saw him back on track. Next up, he won the Packer Plate beating Innocent King before heading to Brisbane where he was second behind Cuidado in the Qld Guineas. He was then fifth in the Doomben Classic before a good fourth behind Rough Habit in the Group 1 Doomben Cup. His final start that campaign saw him run third in the Qld Derby behind Air Seattle.

lay Or Pay resumed from a spell to finish sixth behind Chiliad and Klokka in the Shorts, and then ran second to Century Reign in a Welter at Randwick. He then won the Wollongong Cup at Kembla Grange before a third in the Hawkesbury Cup. Play Or Pay was then off the scene for some nine months, returning in August 1994 with three moderate runs. He then led all of the way to win the Group 2 Shannon Stakes beating Star Dancer and Tenor. Next was a good fourth behind Navy Seal in the Epsom before he was taken to Melbourne. He ran well first up to run second to State Taj in the Waterford Crystal Mile with Innocent King in third before breaking down in the Group 1 Nissan Stakes on Melbourne Cup day.

ete’s Choice and Goldorme were two sons of Blue And Gold who had their best performances in Brisbane. Goldorme won the BATC Tourist Ministers Cup in 1986 while Pete’s Choice had earlier won the good Brisbane 2yo race, the JF Meynink Stakes as well as the BATC Coca Cola Bottlers Stakes (now the Spirit Of Boom Classic) and later the Ansett Cup which became the QTC Cup and is now known at the Moreton Cup, a race that had also incidentally been won by

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Schillaci. Arguably the best son of Blue And Gold was the versatile Brian MayfieldSmith trained Colour Page. He was to win five stakes races in three states. His first black type win came in the Rosehill Cup in Sydney in 1985. The following year he was to win the Hill Stakes in Sydney, the Prime Ministers Cup in Queensland, and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes in Melbourne. His final stakes win came in the 1987 Sandown Cup.

lue And Gold’s influence continued through his daughters, and it was one in particular called Georgian Gold that was to endure. Her granddaughter Texarcana by More Than Ready produced Rebel Dane by California Dane. The colt did not start until a 3yo but won his first three starts in Sydney before heading for a spell. He returned as an Autumn 3yo to win the Group 2 Royal Sovereign and running second to Pierro in the Hobartville beaten only a head. A fourth behind Dundeel in the Randwick Guineas over a mile. He was taken back to 1500m against the older horses in the Group 1 George Ryder but was well beaten again by the champion Pierro. The following Spring saw Rebel Dane win the Group 3 Show County and later the Group 1 Rupert Clarke at his first start in Melbourne. In the Autumn he was second to Lankan Rupee in the Group 1 TJ Smith at Randwick, but it was to be the following Spring before he was to win another race in the Group 2 The Shorts at Randwick. Rebel Dane followed that with placings in the Group 2 Premiere Stakes behind Terravista and Group 1 Manikato Stakes behind Chautauqua. Despite placings in the Missile Stakes behind Tycoon Tara and the Warwick Stakes behind Wins, Rebel Dane was to win only one more race in the Group 1 Manikato Stakes at Moonee Valley beating Fell Swoop and Japinosme at the long odds of $61. He was taken to Hong Kong for the HK Sprint finishing eleventh. Rebel Dane had one more campaign in the Autumn and Winter of 2017 but was unplaced in his three runs in the William Reid, TJ Smith and Doomben 10,000. In all, the stallion retired from racing with eight wins from 40 starts earning almost $2.5 million. His stud career got off to a slow start but received a major boost when he produced the star 2yo filly, Fireburn from his second crop. He also produced Subterranean who won the Ken Russell Classic from his first crop. His service fee and numbers increased significantly but the future is uncertain for the stallion as these have yet to hit the track.

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CHRISTMAS TREE

hristmas Tree was one of the most outstanding sons of Biscay and was out of the wonderful mare, Joy And Fun who was a daughter of Denise’s Joy. The colt was unbeaten going into the Golden Slipper, including a win in the Pago Pago Stakes. In the Slipper, he finished fourth behind winner, Marauding after having drawn in barrier twelve and racing three wide for the trip. Christmas Tree was to win three stakes races including the Roman Consul and Red Anchor in Melbourne. At stud, he produced only two stakes winners in Australia before being sent to NZ where he continued to have success. One the most important of Christmas Tree’s stakes winners was Frosty The Snowman, a grey gelding who won the Mitchell Mackenzie Stakes and is noted as being a daughter of Song of Norway making him a half-brother to Scandinavia, a multiple stakes winner and the dam of Magnus and Helsinge who became the dam of All Too Hard and the unbeaten champion Black Caviar. The daughters of Christmas Tree proved to be good broodmares and their descendants continue to play a role in the Australian thoroughbred. Celestial Show by Serheed was a quality WA performer. She had finished second in the WA Oaks and fourth behind Kim Angel in the WA Derby. But after winning five straight races in Perth including the Pinjarra and Bunbury Cups, she was brought over east to campaign. At her second start at Caulfield she won the Naturalism Stakes beating Ancient City. After two moderate runs in the Turnbull Stakes and Caulfield Cup, she was third in the Werribee Cup behind Slavonic before she ran well in the Melbourne Cup finishing seventh behind Brew and Yippyio. She changed stables and remained in Victoria, and the following Spring was to run second in the Naturalism before running third in the Caufield Cup behind Ethereal and Sky Heights before running fourteenth in the Melbourne Cup behind Ethereal in what was to be her last start.

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atnipped was another good filly out of a Christmas Tree mare. She started her career on 6 October 1997 by running second to Tropical Affair in the Maribyrnong Trial. At her next start, she won the Group 2 Maribyrnong Plate beating Prowl and Piccadilly Circus. She then went to Sydney to win the Magic Millions Prelude before heading to the Gold Coast to defeat Spend and Phorous in the 1998 Magic Millions 2yo Classic. She returned to Melbourne but the long campaign had caught up with her seeing her finish poorly in the Blue Diamond and heading to the paddock. She was not to recapture her 2yo form and finished her career after only twelve starts with three wins and over $700,000 in prizemoney. Another interesting daughter of Christmas Tree was Great Verdict who was sent to the US in 2000 in foal to Zabeel. The resultant progeny was named Grey’s Inn and he was to race in South Africa where he won the South African Classic and SA Derby, as well as the Durban Stakes all at Group 1 level. He then travelled to Dubai where he won the Group 3 Dubai City Of Gold Stakes and ran fourth in the Group 1 Sheema Classic. From there he went to Hong Kong to run second behind Vengeance Of Rain in the QEII Cup before coming to Australia. Grey’s Inn had three starts here in the Spring of 2005, commencing with a fourth behind El Segundo in the Group 1 Yalumba Stakes at Caulfield. He then finished tenth behind Makybe Diva in the Cox Plate before his last career start in the Melbourne Cup, finishing seventeenth behind that great mare and On A Jeune. Grey’s Inn was retired to stud in South Africa. The good galloper Posadas by Commands was out of the Christmas Tree mare, Navidad. Fittingly he was to win the 2007 Star Kingdom Stakes.

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Posadas Star Kingdom Stakes

osadas was foaled in 2002 and raced through until July 2010. In all, he was to have 12 wins from 46 starts, earning a total of $628,655 in prizemoney. He did not start until a 3yo, on 7 September 2005 running second in a maiden at Canterbury beaten only 0.2 lengths by the NZ bred Able One who was to go on to race in Hong Kong and win the equivalent of $3.6 million in prizemoney. Posadas was then to win five of his next seven starts before failing in his first start at Group level, behind the grand galloper Mustard in the Concorde Stakes.

e then was placed in three straight Listed races, the Starlight at Rosehill, the Lightning at Randwick and the Lexus at Flemington before returning to the winners list in a Welter at Warwick Farm. He then had the biggest win of his career in the Star Kingdom at Rosehill as pictured above. Posadas followed that with a second to Anwaar in the Hall Mark at Randwick before winning the Pink Ribbon Stakes at Caulfield. Later in his career he was to be placed in the Listed Starlight Stakes at Rosehill, Hall Mark Stakes at Randwick, Heffernan Stakes at Sandown twice and the Maurice McCarten Stakes at Rosehill.

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HAWAII FIVE OH FIRST SEASON STALLION

awaii Five Oh is an interesting addition to the Australian sire’s ranks this year. He may not be the best performed and does not have the profile of some of the freshman crop, but he certainly has some attractions. They start with his racing ownership and he was raced by Gerry Harvey, John Singleton and radio broadcaster, Ray Hadley so this alone should ensure that some reasonable mares have a date with the stallion. Priced at $16500 and standing alongside the quality roster at Vinery Stud in NSW, Hawaii Five Oh should be on the radar for the right breeders.

n the track Hawaii Five Oh started his career for trainer Michael Freedman with two educational Randwick trials in the Autumn of his 2yo season. He retuned to the track with improved form in two trials, and first start was to come on 28 August 2022 winning a 3yo maiden over 1200m at Wyong. The immature colt gave punters who took the $1.50 odds a few scares before coming away in the final stages to win by almost a half-length. Next up it was the Listed Heritage Stakes over 1100m at Randwick. Hawaii Five Oh settled at the rear of the six-horse field but

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finished on strongly to be less than three lengths behind the impressive Economics. He then went to the 1400m Tapp Craig at Randwick, but was never comfortable in the heavy conditions, being pulled up to finish an astonishing official margin of 144.49 lengths from the winner, Opal Ridge who had run second in the Heritage Stakes. The colt had a trial eleven days later, winning over 1200m to make sure that there were no physical issues as he went to the spelling paddock.

awaii Five Oh returned on 4 February in an open class one at Newcastle over 1300m, carrying 61.5kg. Despite starting the $2 favourite, he ran a narrow second behind the promising staying son of Dundeel in Major Beel who was to win the AJC Derby later that Autumn. Hawaii Five Oh was then transferred to the Waterhouse/Bott stable and had his next start over 1400m on the Kensington in a BM72 for the 3yo’s. He ran second behind Watch The Clock who was shortly after sold to Hong Kong. Hawaii Five Oh then went to Hawkesbury to win the Listed Hawkesbury Guineas over 1400m. Starting at $4.40, the colt cruised home to dominate by over three lengths having hit the front around the 200m mark. Connections then took the colt to Brisbane for the Winter carnival and his first start in Brisbane saw him win the Group 3 Fred Best Classic over 1400m at Eagle Farm. Hawaii Five Oh won by 0.75 lengths from Yellow Brick earning a rating of 86. Next up it was an ambitious tilt at the Group 1 Stradbroke over the same course and distance, and Hawaii Five Oh earned a 101 rating by finishing third behind the star gallopers Think About It and Rothfire, having settled just behind the leaders. After a let up, he returned to Sydney and ran sixth behind Private Eye and Overpass in the Group 2 The Shorts over 1100m at Randwick in September. He then ran a slashing second behind Think About It over 1200m at Randwick in the Premiere Stakes failing to catch the winner by only a head having come from last on the turn. The 4yo stallion then had his richest collect by running sixth in the Everest, again coming from towards the rear to be only 2.3 lengths from Think It Over and Wish I Win in the feature event. The quality of his performance saw his rating increase to 110 establishing him among the best of our local gallopers. His last run for the Spring was a fifth behind Japanese visitor Obamburumai in the Golden Eagle, rating 111 when beaten just over a length and a half with Pericles and Golden Mile filling the placings. Hawaii Five Oh returned in the Autumn of 2024 but had only one start when he was eased down in the Star Kingdom Stakes, and he was retired to stud. In total, he won three of his 13 starts, and over $2.1 million in prizemoney.

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awaii Five Oh is a son of I Am Invincible, who has had ten sons at stud prior to this season. Of these, only five have progeny that are older than 2yo’s, and all five have sired at least one stakes winner. Notably, Brazen Beau has a son at stud in Tassort who has also produced a stakes winner from his first crop. While I Am Invincible needs little introduction to Australian breeders, it is worth noting that he is a locally bred son of the stallion, Invincible Spirit out of the Canny Lad mare, Cannarelle. When we talk of racing performances of stallions, again it is significant to note that I Am Invincible was only able to win to Group 3 level. He did run second to Takeover Target in the 2009 Goodwood Handicap in Adelaide and in all retired with five wins from 13 starts and just over $270,000 in prizemoney. Perhaps it is notable that the sons of I Am Invincible who have produced stakes winners to date have all had limited race starts but then again, perhaps that is simply a trend in the modern thoroughbred. Invincible Spirit interestingly is a son of Green Desert who in turn is by Danzig. What we find is that the majority of sons of I Am Invincible who are at stud are from mares who also trace to a Danzig sire line. This includes the likes of Brazen Beau, Overshare and Hellbent who have produced stakes winners. It is only Kobayashi who is out of a Hussonet mare, hence a Mr Prospector sire line, that has produced a stakes winner and does not have a damsire from a Danzig male line. Kobayashi has had his major successes in Queensland, a state that did not have the same level of success with Danehill line stallions as other areas of Australia.

his makes the dam of Hawaii Five Oh critical when we look at his potential future success. We see that his dam is Aloha by Encosta De Lago who sees his sire line trace to Fairy King by Northern Dancer. Encosta De Lago had good success with Danzig line stallions, and Danehill in particular, and it is important that even at this stage we note that the second dam of Hawaii Five Oh is Tennessee Midnight,

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a daughter of arguably the most successful son of Danzig in Danehill. But before we get to those areas of the pedigree, it would be a disservice to not look more closely at Aloha who was a winner of eight races including the Group 1 Coolmore Classic. At her next start, to underline her quality, she ran fourth in the George Ryder beaten only 0.6 lengths by the very talented Rangirangdoo. Aloha was able to win the Listed Lord Stakes at Caulfield over 1700m. Aloha has proved a valuable broodmare and she has produced Libertini also by I Am Invincible, who was a filly who won five of her sixteen starts and almost $2 million in prizemoney. Sadly, she met with a premature death on the track and represents a great loss to the industry. On the track she won four stakes races in the Woodlands Stakes at Scone at Listed level, and the Furious Stakes, Silver Shadow Stakes and Premiere Stakes all at Group 2 level. She was also third in three Group 1 races, behind Funstar and Probabeel in the Coolmore Classic, behind Bivouac and Nature Strip in the VRC Stakes, and behind Masked Crusader and Portland Sky in the William Reid. Aloha also produced a colt called Hualalai by Street Cry who won two of seven starts and went to stud In 2018 but has suffered from both low mare numbers and ordinary fertility. To date he has had only fourteen runners for five winners including Vexatious Dancer who has won three races in South Australia.

ennessee Midnight, the stallion’s second dam, is a daughter of Danehill and a winner of the Listed Toyota Victoria Stakes now the Ottawa Stakes which was its original name and is one of the earliest 2yo races of the season in Melbourne. The filly’s race dates back to the 1930’s and interestingly was won by the great Tranquil Star. Tennessee Midnight was to have only three race starts with her other results being a fourth in the Blue Diamond Prelude and a sixth in the Blue Diamond. While Aloha was Tennessee Midnight’s only stakes winner, she was to produce another seven winners including Altivo who won six races in South Australia and Steel, a three-time winner in NZ. Tennessee Midnight was a daughter of Tennessee Morn by the wonderful stallion in Bletchingly. She was another quality 2yo winning the Listed Maribyrnong Trial for the fillies at her first start. After placings in the Debutante Stakes and Seaview Stakes, she then won the Group 2 Maribyrnong Plate beating Racer’s Edge. Tennessee Morn was to later win the Blue Diamond Prelude but injury saw her miss the Blue Diamond and Golden Slipper. She proved to be a prolific breeding producing sixteen named foals of which ten were to win races with her best likely to have been Malaguerra by Magnus who won twelve races including the Group 1 VRC Darley Classic and BTC Cup.

he female line of Hawaii Five Oh sees his fourth dam, Tennessee Vain by Whiskey Road also being a stakes winner. She won four stakes races in the STC Magic Night Stakes, STC Storm Queen Stakes, VRC Kewney Stakes and VRC The Vanity. She was to produce two other stakes winners apart from Tennessee Morn

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Rainbird wins the Cup

in Tennessee Magic who won the VATC Bounding Away Quality and VRC Neat ‘n Trim Uniforms Stakes, and Tennessee Mist who also won the Bounding Away Quality. The female line is indeed quite remarkable in that it traces to one of the original Colonial mares of the local Stud Book in Maid Of The Lake. It is a female line that sparks additional interest as it includes the remarkable mare, Rainbird by The Buzzard who won five stakes races with her most memorable being her victory in the 1945 Melbourne Cup.

ith such a prestigious family, there have been many aspiring stallions to have gone to stud. One of the most recent from the direct family has been Cool Aza Beel, the top-quality NZ 2yo by Savabeel who went to stud in 2021. Sejardan is another stallion who only went to stud last season from the family. Sooboog hails from the same female line and went to stud in 2017 and has produced two stakes winners in Boogie Dancer and Boognish.

evorant, a son of Lunchtime is another stallion that traces to Rainbird and he was at stud in the 1980’s and produced regular good quality runners. He was only to produce two stakes winners with his best being Targlish who won the Group 1 Galaxy in 1989. His son, Rode Rouge was at stud in Queensland with limited success. Two other stallions who trace to the family are Been There and Vain Rancher who were both regular sources of winners during the 1990’s. More recently, the very good NZ based stallion Tivaci is making a name for himself at stud, and he too sees Rainbird in his female line. Tivaci by High Chaparral was bred by Bart Cummings and won four stakes races including the Group 1 All-Aged Stakes. He has sired four stakes winners to date including the winner of the 2021 Group 1 Flight

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Stakes in Never Been Kissed. The standout sire from the family though is the famed NZ stallion in Centaine. He was a son of Century and had won three stakes races in the Group 3 VATC Autumn Stakes, and the Listed VATC Barton Handicap and MVRC The Herald Vase at distances from 1000m to 1600m. At stud he produced some 58 stakes winners including multiple Group 1 winners like Kinjite, Slight Chance and Foxwood. Centaine went on to become an outstanding broodmare sire producing the likes of VRC Derby winner Amalfi, Toorak Handicap winner, Alamosa, Caulfield Guineas winner, Econsul, Goodwood winner, Glamour Puss, Ascot Vale Stakes winner, Faster Pussycat and NZ based stallion Mongolian Khan who won the 2015 NZ Derby, ATC Derby and Caulfield Cup. Centaine is readily found in a range of pedigrees including the star NZ stallion, Proisir, interestingly a son of Choisir by Danehill tracing to a Biscay mare, and this could be important for the future of Hawaii Five Oh.

his leads us on to the stud future of Hawaii Five Oh. We note that much of the family’s success has come in New Zealand which is something that must be considered. Given that NZ bred mares are readily available in Australia, this is certainly a strategy that might prove successful. With the family of Hawaii Five Oh having good stayers throughout history, it may just be possible that some of his progeny could extend over distance if bred to some of the true NZ staying lines. Mares that carry Zabeel would be high on the list as we see that his pedigree introduces a male line of Sir Ivor to balance the female line of that stallion found in the pedigree of Green Desert. We also see the presence of Nureyev in the pedigree of Zabeel and he is the three-quarter brother of Fairy King, the sire of Encosta De Lago, the damsire of Hawaii Five Oh. This could easily extend to descendants of Zabeel such as Octagonal, Lonhro and Pierro, and we only have to look at the likes of Levendi by Pierro who won the 2018 Australian Derby to see that the presence of both Centaine and Pierro in a pedigree can have success. We must also acknowledge that finding Centaine in a pedigree offers a chance of reinforcing this remarkable female line. In fact, if we were to look at the pedigree of both Proisir and Hawaii Five Oh, we would see many similarities and indeed if we were to look at the successful progeny of Proisir they too could give us a clue as to what mares might achieve the best results with Hawaii Five Oh.

he best daughter of Proisir to date has been Legarto who won six stakes races including the 2023 Australian Guineas. Her pedigree is an almost total outcross although interestingly she is out of a mare by Towkay who was a son of Last Tycoon. Levante by Proisir won eight stakes races in NZ and is out of a daughter of the

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Mill Reef stallion Doyoun. Again, there is relatively little inbreeding apart from the presence of the three-quarter brothers Nureyev and Fairy King. Prowess has won six stakes races including the Group 1 ATC Vinery Stud Stakes and she is out of a mare by Don Eduardo, a son of Zabeel who is closely related to Octagonal. We also see the presence of Nureyev and Fairy King as well as multiple lines of Biscay with relatively little inbreeding in the first six generations. Yonce is a daughter of Proisir who won the MRC Carlyon Cup this year and went through the Inglis Broodmare Sale recently. She is out of a mare by Zabeel with her second dam being by Danehill. Surely there may be clues among those successful racehorses that could give a clue to future matings for Hawaii Five Oh.

he future of Hawaii Five Oh will no doubt lie in local mares, although there is a likelihood that strong Northern Hemisphere lines that represent largely outcross pedigrees may have success. The local mares, especially those in the Hunter tend to be dominated by Danehill line mares that will need to be considered carefully with the stallion. We have seen that sons of I Am Invincible have had success with multiple lines of Danzig, so introducing lines of Danehill should not be detrimental in a lot of cases. Of course, this needs to be done with some caution. Many of the successful sons of I Am Invincible have had success with heavily inbred pedigrees. The family of Hawaii Five Oh would suggest that heavy inbreeding may not be the best strategy so extreme caution should be taken when introducing multiple lines of Danzig in particular.

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ith the stallion standing at Vinery, there will obviously be a chance to have mares by their resident sires visit Hawaii Five Oh. Casino Prince has been a long-time success and there should be a number of his daughters that would suit the newcomer. It is noted that he is by Flying Spur who was closely related to Encosta De Lago. All Too Hard, the son of Casino Prince offers a different prospect and I suggest that the additional line of Green Desert that he brings in should be tried with caution. There would need to be some enticing other factors before this is likely to achieve much success. Star Turn is another of the Vinery stallions who may have suitable daughters. Interestingly his sire line traces to Nureyev who we have already suggested may prove successful. Exceedance is another of the local stallions with some attraction. He is by a son of Danehill in Exceed And Excel and is out of a Thorn Park mare who is another stallion who traces to Nureyev. Thorn Park also sees a daughter of Bletchingly in his pedigree, and this presence could be important as not only do we see Hawaii Five Oh trace to a daughter of Bletchingly, but we also see that stallion appear in his pedigree through a son in Canny Lad.

n terms of history, Hawaii Five Oh holds a prominent place in the Australian thoroughbred. While his racing performance may not place him among the highest profile of new stallions in 2024, there is much to like about his pedigree and heritage. Breeders, and especially those who are prepared to carefully plan their matings, should achieve good success. No doubt it will be difficult for the stallion to compete in terms of sheer numbers and economics of other Freshman sires this season, we expect him to get his share of winners on the track given reasonable opportunity.

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MAID OF THE LAKE

THE ORIGINS OF THE THOROUGHBRED MAID OF THE LAKE Sydney Stock and Station Journal (NSW : 1896 - 1924), Tuesday 7 March 1922, page 7 HORSE TALK (By 'MERRIGANG.') MAID OF THE LAKE. Few men's racing reminiscences — at least men now hale and hearty — are more interesting than those of Mr. P. S. Marshall, an old resident of Maitland. Recently I had a yarn with this old sportsman at the Country Club. The name of Maid of the Lake cropped up. She was a great producer and wonderfully prepotent, but nobody knew anything about her pedigree. According to Mr. Marshall, whose early investigations were keen, nobody knew anything about this great mare's breeding, although yarns were circulated that she came from Scone, with a mob of horses, and was sold at Maitland Saleyards. Others say that she came from another part of the northern district. Mr. Marshall knew the two men who had Maid of the Lake as a foal. They were well-known residents of Maitland. These two men were travelling through Cassilis to Maitland. When they were near the former township a foal, apparently lost, started to follow them. Several times they did their best to drive it back; but the little filly was so persistent that she was still with them when they arrived at Maitland. One of the men put the youngster in a paddock, hoping to hear something about her ownership, but nobody claimed her. Later on, the filly was sold by auction at Campbell's Hill Saleyards and was knocked down to Mr. John Moore, now a veteran trainer at Randwick, for £6. Maid of the Lake, as she was afterwards known, was then a three-year-old. Mr. Moore broke her in, and it was then she attracted the notice of Mr. Sam Barnett. The price asked was £20. Mr. Barnett offered £18 for her, which was refused. The mare was being ridden away, when Mr. Barnett called out: "I'll take her at the twenty; put her in the yard." Sometime after this Mr. George Young, who trained for Dr. Bowker, took a fancy to the filly and succeeded in purchasing her for his patron at £50. Maid of the Lake was an exceptionally big mare, and very handsome. She was ridden in all her races by Mr. Tom Moore, a brother of Mr. John Moore. Maid of the Lake was a great galloper, but she probably was more valuable as a broad mare. In 1870 she threw her first foal (Sir Solomon— a great performer) to Lord of the Hills, an imported son of Touchstone. Her next foal was Black Swan, by Yattenden; then came Lady of the Lake, by the same sire. Black Swan also was a great brood mare, and she was a rare performer as well. At Randwick she won a handicap with 11st. 4lb. on

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her back. At that meeting she won a treble— one race each day. To Goldsbrough, Black Swan produced a colt that did nothing on the turf, because he was drowned as a youngster. Next came The Queen, by The Drummer (imp.). Black Swan's third foal was Master Grand, by Grandmaster (imp.). Then there was another colt, an overgrown fellow that did not turn out much good: after him came that great mare Lady Trenton (by Trenton), and still later a filly by Medallion. She won some races. Lady Trenton threw Lady Lybia to Antaeus. She never won a race, but she produced Lord Nolan (a Melbourne Cup winner) to Positano (imp.). Lady Trenton also threw Strata Florida (by Grafton), and then Lord Cardigan to Positano (imp.). Her next foal was Dividend, by Simmer (imp.). Later Lady Trenton was purchased by the late Mr. Tom Payten for one of the Thompsons, and her next foal, Sunbury, although he brought 1700gns. as a yearling never won a race. Then she produced Lady Capulet (by Positano), the dam of Erasmus, and she also threw Lady Rylstone (by Grafton). The Queen produced Royal Purple to Haut Brion (imp.). Mr. P. S. Marshall says that he is quite satisfied that Maid of the Lake came from Cassilis, and that, although nobody knew her breeding, some people think that she must have been bred by Mr. A. Busby, of Cassilis. Because her pedigree is untraceable Maid of the Lake's progeny would not be eligible for entry in the Australian Stud Book, but as she was such a great producer her family is justly admitted.

Lord Nolan

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