Steve ponders the best horses to come out of Ballarat
In the lead-up to today’s Ballarat Cup, the bar talk turned to ‘who’s the best horse to come out of Ballarat’.
The decision was, by no means, unanimous but consensus had it that the Noel Kelly-trained Citadel (Alcimedes) might well be entitled to the accolade.
While there were other contenders, it was almost certain – from the outset – that the horse would be one trained by Kelly or by the man under whom Kelly learned his craft, Arthur Smerdon (great uncle of current trainer Robert Smerdon).
Prince Of Penzance (Pentire) was, of course, a reasonable nomination as the 2015 Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m) winner but few of Darren Weir’s horses, including the Cup winner, are exclusively trained at Ballarat. Murray Baker has prepared a good few of his raiders from the gold fields capital, including The Phantom (Noble Bijou) but even he, I fancy, rates below Citadel or the Arthur Smerdon trained Lady Sybil (Count Rendered).
Citadel, who won 14 races from sprints to staying handicaps and a Group One in between, was a three-quarter brother to the champion and dual Cups winner Galilee. Both by Alcimedes from the half-sisters Galston (Balloch) and Khoralee (Khorassan).
In 1973, Citadel won the Duke Of Norfolk Stakes (now LR Andrew Ramsden) at 3200 metres. Then, some 18 months later, he had the speed at 1200 metres to defeat the otherwise unbeaten Bletchingly (Biscay) in the Bobbie Lewis Quality and he conceded 7.5 kilograms to the later successful Widden stallion.
Victory, soon after, was to follow in the Epsom Handicap (Gr 1, 1600m) of that year and Citadel played his part in what was very nearly a massive betting coup.
Citadel won the Epsom, then worth $100,000, despite a painful abscess in his jaw. “It was lucky we could actually get him to the race after the abscess developed on Thursday,” Kelly said at the time.
The left side of Citadel’s jaw ‘blew up like a balloon’ after the race, it was reported that day, and the abscess burst and was drained by a veterinary surgeon. Citadel started at 66-1.
Kelly’s win with Citadel, it was noted, and Epson trainer George Hanlon’s win with Taras Bulba (Oncidium) broke a 66-year drought for Victorians with the Epsom-Derby double.
Kelly also won the Edward Manifold Stakes in Melbourne that day, with Rainburst (Latin Lover). At that time, in the early 1970’s, his stable was also blessed with the top class performers Scotch And Dry (Double Bore) and Frozen Section (Arctic Explorer).
Frozen Section won the Ballarat Cup in 1973. The following year he beat all but Passetreul (Ruantallan), despite being lame two days before the race, in the Metropolitan and thus stable connections were denied a reported $2,000,000 collect on Epsom-Metropolitan doubles takes with Citadel. Frozen Section also won the 1974 Underwood Stakes in nine race wins.
The exciting front-running stayer Scotch And Dry, who won 17 races including the 1973 Underwood Stakes, would also be a worthy Ballarat best nominee. His other victories included the Hotham Handicap (now Lexus Stakes), Herbert Power and Fisher Plate in 1972. He also won a Queen’s Plate, Mornington Cup and Duke Of Norfolk Stakes.
Lady Sybil’s remarkable spring performances of 1960 speak to a different era when three-year-olds might have seven or eight runs in a campaign and continue right through to the Sandown Cup meeting.
Lady Sybil, ridden by Geoff Lane, led all the way to win the Oaks Stakes at 2500 metres after she’d earlier, at 1600 metres, won the Edward Manifold Stakes, Moonee Valley (now Stutt) Stakes and Caulfield Guineas. She rounded off the spring with victory in the Sandown Guineas.
She was beaten into third place in the Thousand Guineas by none other than the champion and 27 times winner Wenona Girl (Wilkes) and Impulsive (Landau), who was later to produce the grand Tommy Woodcock-trained stayer Reckless (Better Boy).
Lady Sybil was sold to America, where her offspring included Brigand, by Noholme, who sired the Australian major races winners Cole Diesel and River Rough.
She was one heck of a filly but I’ll take Citadel – the horse who beat Bletchingly at his own game and who won an Epsom with an abscess!