Northerly he's got all the hallmarks of a champion." Sunline, a champion New Zealand mare, had won the Cox Plate for two years running, and the spring clash with Northerly was now widely anticipated. Northerly was spelled for the winter, and started his campaign in Perth, where he won first-up and was defeated second-up with 62 kilograms. He then travelled to Melbourne, where he met Sunline for the first time in the John F Feehan Stakes in mid-September. This time, Damien Oliver took the ride, as Greg Childs was committed to Sunline. The great mare raced clear approaching the home turn,
Ely Racecourse Ely Racecourse Ely Racecourse was a horse racing venue in Cardiff, Wales. The Racecourse opened in 1855, with the first race being held on 30 May. By 1864 racing at Ely was a regular event, the races that year were acclaimed as 'the most brilliant and successful ever held'. In 1895 the first Welsh Grand National was held at the Ely Racecourse. It was watched by over 40,000 people, many of whom did not pay for entry after charging the entry gates and overpowering the stewards. In the early 1900s Attendance figures began to steadily decline and the racecourse never