CLICK HERE TO GO BACK

The Lawlor family and Lunar Chance

1975 NZ CUP

If Southland stayer Lunar Chance was feeling dehydrated three weeks ago it was nothing to the state he left the huge crowd in at Addington on Tuesday.

In a grandstand finish Lunar Chance held off a brilliant late dab from the desperately unlucky northern contender Final Decision to take the 1975 New Zealand Cup by a rapidly diminishing head. for Gore owner-trainer-driver Keith Lawlor, a farmer, it was justification for turning down a $100,000 offer after winning the New Brighton Cup last season.

By far the most lightly raced horse in the field Lunar Chance was having only his 26th start on Tuesday and has now won 14 races, has been second three times and third five times. His stake earnings, including the $700 trophy attached to the Cup, now stand at $60,160. He looks certain to top the $100,000 mark in the very near future.

Lunar Chance posed Lawlor all sorts of problems after failing in the Ashburton Flying Stakes on October 6 but he picked up condition in the few days before the Cup and won it like the true stayer he is. He lost 40 metres at the start when he galloped off the mark but passing the 1600 metres Lawlor sent him forward to take the lead off Speedy Guest at the 1200 metres. Micron gave him no rest in front when he rushed up to dispute the lead at the 700 metres but soon after turning for home Lunar Chance slipped clear and just held off the brilliant late run from Final Decision.

The northern pacer was desperately unlucky. He went away well but left his feet after 300 metres and was giving the leaders at least 80 metres when he settled down. He was still last at the 800 metres when he followed Micron forward and on the home turn was seven lenghts from Lunar Chance in sixth place. He was closing rapidly on Lunar Chance at the post but just failed by a head.

Last year's winner and favourite Robalan had every chance and though he battled on gamely he was only third a length back. He received a good run on the outside and was carried up to a perfect trail on the outer at the 1200 metres as the lead changed. He looked a big danger on the home turn but the effort told a Lunar Chance went on to win in 4:08.6.

Speedy Guest and Vanadium led in the rest a length and a quarter and a neck back. Speedy Guest enjoyed a good run after leading briefly in the middle stages but Vanadium never really got into the clear from the middle on the outer. Deeside was beaten off sixth, six lengths back.

Credit: Tony Williams writing in the NZ Trotguide

1975 NZ FREE-FOR-ALL

After fighting out the finish of the Cup, Lunar Chance and Final Decision clashed again in the NZ Free-For-All and once again the brilliant northerner had to bow to Lunar Chance. The margin was as close as the Cup's had been but this time the running of the race showed the two horses adopting tactics which were almost a complete reversal of the Cup running.

On Tuesday Lunar Chance had gone to the front at the 1200m with Final Decision, having gone off stride for no apparent reason after 200m, still making up the ground he had lost. The northerner must have gone his last 2400m in close to three minutes and he just failed to catch the stubborn Southland pacer who must be one of the finest stayers we have seen for some time.

In the FFA the boot was rather on the other foot, Final Decision going to the front quickly after a good beginning from the difficult No.1 barrier draw while the wider drawn Lunar Chance settled well back. At the turn it looked Final Decision's race but the Southlander staged a brilliant late run to get the nod by a head. Why Bill caught the eye with a performance as impressive as his Cup run was disappointing for third. Speedy Guest, seemingly always the bridesmaid in the big ones, was fourth.

It has been a great week for Keith Lawlor and Lunar Chance and a victory in top races for amateur trainers and drivers is invariably popular, especially to those who remember the days when trotting relied almost exclusively on the "little man" to keep the sport going at a time when it threatened to loose it's appeal. The Lawlor family are typical of the type of trotting enthusiasts who have played such a large part in the development of the sport. Keith's father and grand-father were both associated with horses for many years in conjunction with farming interests in Gore and perhaps the one regret Keith had on Tuesday was that his father, who died some years ago, could not be present to see the triumph of the horse whose family Lawlor Senior had bred from for many years. Like many Southland horsemen it was his practice to sell horses to northern owners once they had won their way out of the local classes but there seems little danger of Lunar Chance leaving the southern province for some time yet.

The Majestic Chance gelding is the first Southland owned, trained and driven horse to win the Cup for 50 years and appropriately the last one, Winsoon, is an antecedent of this year's winner. It seemed for a time after his impressive visit to Addington in the early spring that Lunar Chance may be robbed of his opportunity to win the Cup by a loss of form brought on by dehydration. But he "came right" at precisely the right time and after a stiff workout last Monday his owner pronounced him back to the best. A photo in a Christchurch newspaper showing Lunar Chance doing his regular galloping work brought some comment and Keith himself quipped on Cup eve, "I don't know whether to run him tomorrow or wait for Riccarton on Wednesday."

His run in the FFA was timed at 2:28.8 - not as fast as Robalan's record breaking effort last year but very quick for 2000m by any standards. Final Decision must wonder what he has to do to win a big one at Addington. His run in the Cup was the most brilliant effort from a horse with an interrupted run since Manaroa in the late sixties. He confirmed that form with his courageous effort on Friday and the third clash between he and Lunar Chance should be worth going some way to see. They are both expected to line up in the Alan Matson.

The FFA lost some of it's "needle" through Robalan breaking hopelessly after 300m to the obvious gloom of his many supporters. That mistake cost him any chance of an unprecedented fourth win in the event while Micron and Tricky Dick took an instant dislike to the mobile and took no serious part.

It was still a memorable race but the week's honours must lie with Lunar Chance.


Credit: David McCarthy writing in NZ Trotguide