1872 Melbourne Cup

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1872 Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
Location Flemington Racecourse
Date7 November 1872
Distance2 miles
Winning horse The Quack
Winning time3:39.00
Final odds5/1
Jockey William Enderson
Trainer John Tait
OwnerJohn Tait
SurfaceTurf
Attendance40,000
←  1871
1873  →

The 1872 Melbourne Cup was a two-mile handicap horse race that took place on Thursday, 7 November 1872. [1]

Contents

This year was the twelfth running of the Melbourne Cup. It was the fourth Melbourne Cup win for owner and trainer John Tait. [2]

The Quack was a half-brother to 1870 Melbourne Cup winner, Nimblefoot. [3]

There would be 22 runners in the race following the withdrawals of the heavily-backed Pyrrhus, as well as Kingfisher, Hamlet and Lady Athole. [4] Dagworth had been supported by many following its win in The Metropolitan in the autumn at Randwick, but the horse had not impressed local judges since arriving in Melbourne. [4] Following its win in the Melbourne Stakes the previous weekend, Contessa started as favourite for the Melbourne Cup looking to be the first mare to win the race. [4]

In warm and dusty conditions whipped up by a hot northerly wind, [5] [6] Valentine, Irish King, and Benjiroo held the early lead, while King of the Ring was well behind the field at the first post. [5] Benjiroo would lead the race down the back straight, but faded before the final turn for the winning post. [3] In its place The Quack took up the running and lead comfortably down the Flemington straight to win by two lengths. [5] The Ace finished second closely followed by Dagworth who had come hard at the finish. [5]

Tasmanian-bred, The Quack had finished second in The Metropolitan behind Dagworth in the autumn, repeating the performance of the previous year's winner The Pearl. To the dismay of the local contingent, the first five runners were all bred outside of Victoria. [5]

Full results

This is the list of placegetters for the 1872 Melbourne Cup. [7] [8] [1] [9] [6] [5]

PlaceHorseAge
Gender		JockeyWeightTrainerOwnerOddsMargin
1 The Quack 6y hWilliam Enderson7 st 10 lb (49.0 kg)John TaitJohn Tait5/12 lengths
2The Ace4y hTom Hales8 st 4 lb (52.6 kg)Mr T.J. Ryan5/1Neck
3Dagworth4y hGeorge Donnelly7 st 12 lb (49.9 kg) Etienne de Mestre Mr. R. Bloomfield13/2
4BarbelleAged mJoe Kean8 st 7 lb (54.0 kg)Edward Lee20/1
5Misty Morn6y hC. Hough7 st 9 lb (48.5 kg)Robert Standish SeviorAustin Saqui33/1
6Benjiroo4y hChalker6 st 4 lb (39.9 kg)Mr C.S. King50/1
7King of the Ring3y cWilliam Wilson6 st 12 lb (43.5 kg) Joe Thompson 13/2
8Early Morn5y h James Wilson Jr 7 st 4 lb (46.3 kg) [a] James Wilson Mr J. Coldham10/1
9Patriarch3y cS. Cracknell6 st 2 lb (39.0 kg) [b] Edward Lee12/1
10Dolphin4y mH. Grubb6 st 4 lb (39.9 kg)William Filgate10/1
11The Count5y hH. Lewis8 st 1 lb (51.3 kg)John TaitJohn Tait20/1
N/aThe BaronAged gMcClelland8 st 2 lb (51.7 kg) [c] Andrew Chirnside100/1
N/aValentineAged gSullivan8 st 1 lb (51.3 kg)Patrick Keighran16/1
N/aIrish King4y hSwales8 st 0 lb (50.8 kg)Mr CassidyMr J.J. Miles16/1
N/aEmblem5y hCorrigan7 st 11 lb (49.4 kg) [d] Mr E. Moran16/1
N/aFlag of France.svg Gironde (FRA)4y mRowe7 st 8 lb (48.1 kg) [e] Andrew Chirnside100/1
N/aBoatmanAged hW. Rees7 st 4 lb (46.3 kg)Robert Standish SeviorMr R. Whitehead20/1
N/aContessa4y mJ. Sherringham7 st 3 lb (45.8 kg)William FilgateWilliam Filgate4/1 fav.
N/aPlanter5y hSamuel Davis6 st 12 lb (43.5 kg) [f] Mr J. Evans50/1
N/aShannon4y mNolan6 st 4 lb (39.9 kg)Andrew Chirnside50/1
N/aAthelstane5y hRobinson5 st 9 lb (35.8 kg) [g] Mr J. McFarland100/1
N/aNovice (late Alfred)Aged gSwannell5 st 11.5 lb (37.0 kg) [h] Mr A. Anderson100/1

Prizemoney

First prize £1090, second prize £50, third prize £20. [1]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Was supposed to carry 7st 1lb
  2. ↑ Was supposed to carry 6st 0lb
  3. ↑ Was supposed to carry 8st 1lb
  4. ↑ Was supposed to carry 7st 9lb
  5. ↑ Was supposed to carry 7st 7lb
  6. ↑ Was supposed to carry 6st 10lb
  7. ↑ Was supposed to carry 5st 7lb
  8. ↑ Was supposed to carry 5st 7lb

References

  1. 1 2 3 "1872 Melbourne Cup MillersGuide". millersguide.identika.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
  2. ↑ Rutledge, Martha (1976). "Tait, John (1813–1888)". Australian Dictionary of Biography . Australian National University . Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  3. 1 2 "The Melbourne Cup - 1872". The Pastoral Times. South Deniliquin, New South Wales. 9 November 1872. p. 3. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "THE VRC Spring Meeting - The Cup Day". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 7 November 1872. p. 7. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "THE VRC Spring Meeting - The Cup Day". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 8 November 1872. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Second (Cup) Day - Thursday, Nov. 7". The Australasian. Melbourne, Victoria. 9 November 1872. p. 11. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
  7. ↑ "1871 to 1880 Melbourne Cup Winners". races com au. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  8. ↑ Cavanough, Maurice (1978). The Melbourne Cup (8 ed.). p. 445. ISBN   0727004859.
  9. ↑ "Melbourne Cup Winners - 1861-1880". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 5 November 2025.


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