LAST year Tony Williams supervised his first sale as the new managing director of Goffs UK, and celebrated with a 58% increase in turnover, a 26% rise in average and a 25% jump in median. A year on he posted returns that were broadly similar in terms of turnover, though the average and median fell by 14% and 20% respectively.

As the hammer fell Wednesday evening on the final lot of 2017 to be traded at Doncaster, Williams said: “It’s pleasing to end on a high note and today’s horses in training session has certainly been a success. Having large drafts from Godolphin and Shadwell bolstered the catalogue and that, in conjunction with horses from leading trainers such as John Gosden who sold the top lot today, gave the sale international appeal and drew a lot of domestic and overseas buyers from around the world to Doncaster. Yesterday’s yearling session followed the current trend but to have an increased median and an improved clearance rate of 76% was a good result.”

The sale topping John Gosden offering from Clarehaven Stables was Joshua Reynolds, and his recent win at Chelmsford brought his tally for the year to three, adding to previous successes at Sandown Park and Newmarket. The Nathaniel three-year-old is a half-brother to dual Group 1 winner Speedy Boarding and Jake Warren and Alex Elliott secured him with their final bid of £160,000.

This was twice the price realised by the second highest-priced lot of the week, the £80,000 paid by Jonjo O’Neill through Stroud Coleman for the star of the Shadwell draft, the winning three-year-old Nadaitak. The Teofilo gelding won over an extended 11 furlongs at Carlisle in July and his third dam Height Of Fashion bred the multiple Group 1 winner and sire Nayef.

Shadwell also sold the winning two-year-old Invincible Spirit filly Mushahadaat for £77,000 to Howson and Houldsworth. Successful over six furlongs at Kempton, the filly’s grandam was the Group 3 Athasi Stakes winner Walayef and she is an own-sister to Haatef. Two other significant sales among the Shadwell draft were Maghfoor and Zumurud.

Maghfoor cost trainer Eric Alston £48,000 and this Haydock maiden winner is a three-year-old son of Cape Cross and his grandam was the champion three-year-old filly and four-time Group 1 winner Mehthaaf. This is also the family of the multiple Group 1 winner Ribchester.

The two-year-old Zebedee gelding Zumurud won on his second start, his first since being gelded, and that victory a week before the sale boosted his prospects and he fell to Marie Austerfield for £33,000.

Fozzy Stack sent the unraced Henrythenavigator filly Aegean Girl to the sale from Thomastown Castle and the half-sister to Group 3 winner Lightning Moon and listed winner Song Of My Heart sold to Prospect Stables for £54,000. Fellow Irish trainer Patrick Prendergast received £34,000 for the winning Big Bad Bob three-year-old gelding Kupa Rover. Successful in a mile maiden at Listowel, he attracted the attention of agent Bobby O’Ryan, no doubt helped by an eye-catching second to Maarek on his most recent start at Navan.

Trainer George Baker will now handle another from the John Gosden draft having paid £40,000 to secure the 2015 Group 3 Horris Hill Stakes winner Crazy Horse, a Sleeping Indian half-brother to the Group 2 winner Richard Pankhurst. The four-year-old gelding hasn’t raced since April.

An interesting addition to the Crawford Brothers yard will be Astre De La Cour, a seven-year-old son of Khalkevi who won on the flat in France and three times over hurdles and once over fences in England. He moves from Robert Walford’s yard to Ireland following his sale for £36,000.

David Barron sent out King’s Pavilion to win four times and the four-year-old son of King’s Best and the champion European juvenile filly Embassy cosy Peter Ward £35,000. The four-year-old Champs Elysees gelding Paris Protocol was a juvenile winner over a mile and leaves Richard Hannon’s yard after he sold for £33,000 to Peter Ward Racing.

A career racing over jumps in America beckons after the sale of Sedgefield hurdle winner Mathayus for £30,000 to Stroud Coleman and The Irish Field’s US columnist Sean Clancy. The four-year-old is a son of Scorpion who has done well in the USA with the multiple Grade 1 winner Scorpiancer.

The best price paid for a yearling on Tuesday was the £20,000 given by Tim Easterby for a colt from the first crop of Mickley Stud’s Heeraat, a son of Dark Angel who has proven to be very popular with this stock in the sales ring. Richard Kent’s farm also sold this yearling, the second produce of his unraced dam.