Tattersall’s Club meeting at Randwick - September, 1952.
Apologies for the battered old photo but it’s worth a look for no other reason than to observe that crowd.
It’s a Tattersall’s Club meeting at Randwick on Saturday 13th September, 1952.
The infield “Flat” enclosure was enormously popular in those days and greatly enhanced the atmosphere.
The race is the Tramway Hcp (now the Tramway Stakes) and the winner is High Law (Athol Mulley) defeating Oversight (Darby Munro) and French Echo (Neville Sellwood) on the inside.
Can you spot a grey horse on the right of photo in between other runners. That’s a popular galloper of the time called Grey Boots, who in 1950 won both the Doncaster and the Caulfield Cup.
Interestingly High Law came out to win the Epsom at his next start beating Sir Gene and Oversight.
Another feature race on the day was the Chelmsford Stakes won by Delta (Sellwood) who beat Hydrogen and Idlewild. Delta had won the Melbourne Cup about ten months earlier.
Other winners were Red Bob (A.Podmore), Lord Forrest (K.Davis), Thunder God (G.Moore), Davey Jones (N. Sellwood) and Sir Gene (A.Ward).
If you wanted a bet in this exciting racing era you went to the track or found yourself a friendly, but illegal, SP bookie. Live telecasting of racing was many years away and the breathalyser didn’t exist.
Is it any wonder you couldn’t move in the joint!