By BARRY STREET
Talk about bitter and sweet.
Trainer Paul O'Sullivan tasted both in large lumps on Saturday when winning the Governor General's Cup but having a well-beaten favourite in the time-honoured Sheriff Handicap at Avondale.
In 1950 the Sheriff was one of only two of 25 races in which the mighty galloper Mainbrace was beaten by an arch rival, The Unicorn.
On Saturday it was Kasman, the raging hot favourite who was declared virtually unbeatable.
But he could only manage to finish an inglorious second last.
Paul O'Sullivan was not at Avondale to see Kasman's army of supporters tearing up tickets.
Instead, he was on a stud inspection tour eyeing up yearlings he could buy at the upcoming National Yearling Sales at Karaka.
But it was still a bitter pill for the top trainer to swallow.
After a throat operation for a wind affliction, Kasman had looked so good winning a premier-quality 1200m at Te Rapa a month ago.
He had also raced bravely from a virtually impossible No 14 barrier position in the group one McDonogh Stakes at Ellerslie on New Year's Day.
But confirmation on Saturday that the brilliant 4-year-old had overcome his breathing problems was far from evident.
Rider Lance O'Sullivan sadly reported that Kasman had sounded like Puffing Billy and at no stage had he "come up on the bit."
No evidence was found that the horse had bled during the race, or that he had suffered any lung damage.
Nevertheless, all the signs were that his career could be nearing a curtain call.
The only solution, perhaps, may be to try him once more with his throat tube, away from town hall class, and in blinkers.
No questions needed to be asked of Beaujolais, the O'Sullivan stable's other favourite on Saturday.
Beaujolais was on a seek-and-find mission in the Governor General's Cup, ridden cold to see whether she had a brighter future as a stayer than as a 1600m specialist.
That question was answered emphatically on Saturday.
The 5-year-old Classic Fame mare went to the line two and three-quarter lengths clear of Hidden Keel after some superb judgment of pace by Lance O'Sullivan.
The O'Sullivans had not been convinced by a second placing in the Thames Cup last week that middle distances were within Beaujolais's range.
"She had Veedub in her sights in the Thames Cup but didn't pick him up and didn't run out the 2000m all the way," Lance O'Sullivan said on Saturday.
"But on a roomier course today she relaxed beautifully and ran out the 2200m right to the line.
"It was a very pleasing race."
Another mare who raised the spirits of her connections with her performance in the Governor General's Cup was the winner of last year's New Zealand Oaks, She's Country.
"It seems that she's coming right at the same stage as she did last season," said trainer Bruce Wallace after She's Country had raced handily and narrowly missed taking third.
"It's been hard to place her since the Oaks because, although she's only won twice, premier-quality races have been out of the question.
"She can't carry 58kg.
"That's why I ran her three times until today at weight-for-age. She needed racing with weight she could manage.
"Now I feel she is back on track for the Wellington Cup."
An ideal final lead-up for the Wellington Cup, Wallace said, would be a 2400m premier-quality handicap, based on number of wins, at Trentham next Monday.
Racing: Beaujolais experiment turns out a cup winner
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