Zarita Cup hopes dashed

The Cup hopes of Pat Hyland and Zarita were dashed when an untimely viral infection forced the mare to be scratched onMonday morning. 17772 Picture: Meagan Rogers

By Paul Pickering
CRANBOURNE trainer Pat Hyland watched the Melbourne Cup from his living room on Tuesday, just 31 hours after learning that his Cup hope Zarita would be scratched from the big race.
Hyland’s four-year-old mare was withdrawn from the race on Monday morning after a routine veterinary inspection revealed that the she was suffering from a viral infection.
“It was terribly disappointing,” Hyland said.
“When you put so much work in to have her trained up, then it comes to the day before and she’s basically got a cold.
“Then you’ve got to ring the owners and go through the disappointment with them.”
Hyland said the brisk pace of yesterday’s race would have suited Zarita, but he chose not to dwell on the untimely virus.
“When you’ve been in the game as long as we have, you get pretty hardened to these sort of things,” he said.
Zarita was to be Hyland’s second Cup runner as a trainer, after he saddled Irish stayer Nayrizi for the 1991 race.
Hyland will now prepare Zarita for the Australian Cup in March, before setting her for the first Tuesday in November 2009.
After the disappointment of Zarita’s scratching, Cranbourne trainer Robbie Griffiths provided the Cup Day highlight for the locals, scoring with $15 outsider Danzylum in the last race on Tuesday.
Earlier, Cranbourne hoop Craig Williams notched up two seconds and a third from eight rides for the day.
Williams piloted British stayer Varavees in the Cup, finishing 14th – two places behind Cranbourne rival Craig Newitt on Guyno.
Meanwhile, Derby Day provided little joy for the locals.
Williams was the best performer, following up a second placing on Zafaan in the first race with a third on New Zealand gelding Capecover in the Saab Quality.
Williams rode another Kiwi, My Scotsgrey, into seventh in the Victoria Derby, one place behind Rodney Douglas’s hope Larry’s Never Late.
Newitt finished third on Pre Eminence in the same race, while Colin and Cindy Alderson’s three-year-old bay The Tiger faded badly to finish 12th.
Newitt piloted Kiwi mare Princess Coup in the MacKinnon Stakes, but the $4 favourite never made an impression and passed the post ninth.
Wendy Kelly’s proven Group One performer Bon Hoffa had some support at generous odds of $18 in the Salinger Stakes, but the top weight laboured to finish last.