Bits and Bridles

The top lot at the 2024 NZB Standardbred Yearling Sale in Auckland, Queen Lizzy, (Captaintreacherous) took her first step to recouping her $270,000 purchase price when she qualified at the Ashburton trials last week.

Trained by her purchaser Mark Jones, the daughter of multiple Group One winning mare Princess Tiffany led and held on to win by a nose from the Steve and Amanda Telfer trained Mama Crunch (Captain Crunch).

Stonewall Stud paid $11,000 for Mama Crunch at the Christchurch Sale.

Southland owner Brendan Fahy has lost count of the number of horses he has a share in and now has two more qualifiers to keep an eye on.

Rahm, a Captaintreacherous colt out of Spanish Armada qualified at Alexandra Park last month for Tony Herlihy. He ran the 1700 metres in 2-06.3 with the last 800 cut out in an impressive 56.4.

At Ashburton last week Rakstreat, a Captaintreacherous – Raksbet filly qualified for Cran and Chrissie Dalgety running her 1700 metre heat in 2-05.9.

Rakstreat is a half-sister to Raklou.

Progeny of stallion Captain Crunch (Captaintreacherous) have been successful on both sides of the Tasman in the past week.

He sired two winners at Alexandra Park on Friday – Without You and Carrera Hombre, while at the NZ Metropolitan meeting Captain Commodore won.

He’s the sire of Flashpoint which won the first heat of the Alabar Southern Supremacy Stakes at Winton on Friday.

And across the Tasman both Its Maa Time and Captain Stirling won $100,000 APG Classic Three Year Old Finals at Gloucester Park.

It became a close call last season when Southland drivers Nathan Williamson and Craig Ferguson were each closing in on achieving their milestones of earning a million dollars in a season.

Williamson’s win driving Itoje at Addington on the 6th of December in Race Three got him there first, but it was oh so close because Ferguson’s win with We Walk By Faith in the New Zealand Derby later on the card, took him over the million mark as well!

Consequently though, Williamson became first Southland based reinsman to win over one million dollars in stakes in a season.

Southland junior driver Hayden Douglas has relocated to Oamaru and is working for Matty Williamson. Last year in his first season of driving he reined home thirteen winners which earned him the Southland Junior Driver of the Year award at the Southland Harness Racing Awards last Saturday evening.

by Bruce Stewart, for Harnesslink