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DALNAHINE - Bargain Buy

Dalnahine 1918 Cost £100 - Won £7,500(approx.)
Before there were exports to America and when shifting older horses to Australia was in its infancy(the business was mostly the other way around), battlers with good horses often sold out to wealthier owners looking for a short cut to the presentation ceremonies. With few permits and a horrible handicapping system it was the best option for many.

Dalnahine was an example of that but with one remarkable aspect. He was a product of the famous Stevenson and McMath stud in Southland, and helped make the Harold's Rest family famous. But he was an old horse before he really made his mark.

Sold by his breeders to Hec Jarden, Dalnahine went through a virtual 'Who's Who' of New Zealand trainers after losing form in his middle life. Ben Jarden was the first followed by Manvers Edwards, another trainer of champions, and then James Bryce, the greatest trainer of the era. All of them gave Dalnahine the flick. Over the hill, been there done that, was their verdict.

In stepped leviathan Dunedin owner Jim Samson(he once nominated 16 horses for a Wingatui gallops meeting when most leading local trainers were lucky to have 10 in work), and he got Dalnahine for £100. He handed him over to a lesser-known trainer, Jock Henderson of Oamaru, and what followed was rather sensational.

Within six weeks of making his stable debut, Dalnahine had won over £2000 - huge money then when only a few races had a total stake of more than £1000. He went on performing at the highest level for several seasons. He ran in NZ Cups and was something of a sensation at Forbury Park at times. His brother Dalmeny, retained by the breeders, was also a high class performer.

Henderson's secret, if there was one, was never revealed but he was an expert trainer in his own right with a high strike rate before his comparatively early death. His greatest feat however was turning a 9yo 'has been' into one of the best pacers in the country


Credit: David McCarthy writing in Harnessed 2016