THE sales season in Europe drew to a spectacular close as events at Goffs and Tattersalls demonstrated a terrific and unrelenting demand for foals, while the prices for blue chip breeding stock went through the roof. The yearling trade meant that demand for foals was also going to be strong but it still appeared to exceed the expectations of many.

At the Tattersalls December Foal and Mare Sales in Newmarket, the four-day Foal Sale produced a record average and a record-equalling median, while the turnover broke through 30 million guineas for the fifth consecutive year.