The small South Australia town of Mindarie lies in the Murray Mallee area of the state betwixt Karoonda and Loxton. The town came into being in 1912, developing as a stop on what was then the Barmera (later Loxton) railway line. Its near neighbour is the small farming town of Halidon, and together the 2 towns stage a race meeting every September, administered by the Mindarie-Halidon Racing Club, where the principal race is the Mindarie-Halidon Cup, also known locally as the ‘Melbourne Cup of the Mallee’. |
The inaugural meeting was held on Saturday 3rd September 1921 when Mr A R Koskins was President of the Racing Club. The meeting opened with a Handicap Steeplechase over 2 miles which went to Wyreema, but the highlight of the meeting was the Mindarie-Halidon Cup over 1 ¼ miles, worth £30 and a trophy, the result being shown below:-
Handicap Steeplechase over 2 miles
1. Wyreema owned by Mr T O’Dea and ridden by C R Power
2. Yanandale owned by Mr C A Paterson and ridden by L Ritchie
3. Tintia owned by Mr P S Rugless and ridden by M Antoney
Mindarie-Halidon Cup (£30) over 1 ¼ miles
1. Scribet owned by Mr Roy Shepherd and ridden by L Howard
2. Anton Mac owned by Mr C A Reichstein and ridden by L Jessop
3. Shooting Iron ridden by J Bott |
Subsequent meetings were held on Saturday 9th September 1922, Saturday 8th September 1923 at the Halidon course when Waiparie won the Cup, and 7th March 1925.
Saturday 8th September 1923
Mindarie-Halidon Cup (£30 and a Cup) over 1 ¼ miles
1. Waiparie owned by Miss D Daenke and ridden by Buckingham
2. Pop Pop owned by Mr G H Lower and ridden by Lower
3. Black Rogue owned by Mr J Werner and ridden by Alford |
More recently the Cup was contested on Sunday 17th September 2017 when the John Hickmott trained Danouli defeated Halayr Rothestar and Final Table to secure the $13,400 first prize. The full result is shown below:-
Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($13,400) over 1800 metres
1. Danouli (3/1) trained by John Hickmott and ridden by Raquel Clark
2. Halayr Rothestar
3. Final Table
9 ran |
Mindarie-Halidon Cup Winners
2008 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($8,630) over 1800 metres was won by Most Handsome (5/1) owned by Trevor Kernick, trained by Dennis O’Leary and ridden by Jason Lyon, beating Token Promise and Two Fuhr One 8 ran
2009 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($10,350) over 1800 metres was won by Most Handsome (9/4) owned by Trevor Kernick, trained by Dennis O’Leary and ridden by Dom Tourneur, beating Amici Forever and Granzig 9 ran
2010 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($6,375) over 1800 metres was won Jutland (9/2) trained by Mick Whittle and ridden by Justin Potter, beating Rangeraja and Inglewood Doc 8 ran
2011 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($10,000) over 1800 metres was won General Mackjosh (7/1) trained by Wayne Walters and ridden by Kate Walters, beating Tasteofenergy and Merlot Now 12 ran
2012 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($10,000) over 1800 metres was won Drafted (Evens) trained by Mark Minervini and ridden by Shayne Cahill, beating Tasteofenergy and Miss Ball 6 ran
2013 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($10,000) over 1800 metres was won Artful Terra (5/2) trained by Richard Jolly and ridden by Jake Toeroek, beating Surefoe and Tasteofenergy 10 ran
2014 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($13,400) over 1800 metres was won Halayr Jet 6/1) trained by Grant Young and ridden by Libby Hopwood, beating Irish High King and Allez Tara 7 ran
2015 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($13,400) over 1800 metres was won Stimulatte (11/4) trained by Gordon Richards and ridden by Grace Willoughby, beating Wicked Tycoon and Daydream Charlie 9 ran
2016 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($13,400) over 1800 metres was won Creance (6/4) trained by John Macmillan and ridden by Jamie Kah, beating Step Dance and Eigelstein 10 ran
2017 The Mindarie-Halidon Cup ($13,400) over 1800 metres was won Danouli (3/1) trained by John Hickmott and ridden by Raquel Clark, beating Halayr Rothestar and Final Table 9 ran |
