FEET Of A Dancer (Authorized) carries an FR suffix, but was bred by a very familiar face in Irish racing, Frank McNulty. She gained her fifth, and most important, win over hurdles in the Listed Grabel Mares Hurdle at Punchestown, a race in which she was placed last year.

It is hard to imagine now – and hard for her breeder to probably be reminded – that the six-year-old Feet Of A Dancer was sold at Arqana as a yearling in 2020 for only €1,500, as she now has won more than €80,000 in 14 starts. In addition to her five victories, she has been third five times and fourth twice. Her three runs this year have seen her finish fourth in the Grade 3 Pertemps Hurdle Final at Cheltenham in March, third in the Grade 2 Rathbarry & Glenview Studs Hurdle at Fairyhouse at Easter, and now win a listed race.

Her family suggests that it gets better with age, and are sound horses who take their racing well. Frank McNulty bred and raced Feet Of A Dancer’s dam Leah Claire (Tomba), and she faced the starter on no less than 59 occasions. She won nine times, twice over hurdles, and placed 23 times. She was placed in a couple of listed races, including The Irish Field Loughbrown Stakes at the Curragh, at the age of seven, and was runner-up in a Grade 2 hurdle at Leopardstown.

At stud, Leah Claire is also dam of a full-brother to Feet Of A Dancer, the Olly Murphy-trained Act Of Authority (Authorized). He graduated from winning a point-to-point to scoring five times over hurdles to date, and back in March he was runner-up in the Martin Pipe Hurdle. There is still plenty to come from this family.

Brian Keenan now owns Leah Claire, and at next month’s Goffs December National Hunt Sale he will sell her latest offspring, a colt by Affinisea (Sea The Stars). He is Lot 400.

It’s Only A Game for the Mulryans

RUNNER-UP in a bumper at this year’s Punchestown Festival on his debut, with stablemate Ladbroke Grove (Beaumec De Houelle) in third, It’s Only A Game made amends back again at Punchestown when he won the Jimmy Hayes Memorial INH Flat Race.

This is a race that was won in the past decade by both The Big Getaway and Caldwell Potter.

John Gleeson was on the winner at Punchestown back in May, but this time he was in the saddle on Sean and Bernardine’s four-year-old son of Goliath Du Berlais (Saint Des Saints), trained by Martin Brassil. Ladbroke Grove also carries the Mulryan colours.

Bred in France by Elevage des Vallons and Ian Kellitt, It’s Only A Game sold as a foal at Tattersalls Ireland from Burgage Stud for €68,000 to Michael Fitzpatrick’s JC Bloodstock.

Reoffered from Kilminfoyle House Stud at the Derby Sale last year, the gelding realised a healthy profit, selling for €160,000 to Ger Morrin who signed as Grande Ville Racing after outpointing Gerry Hogan and Paul Nolan. He said: “We were planning to come up and buy a nice horse. We loved the horse, Martin liked the horse, and Paddy Aspell liked the horse. He has a lovely pedigree.

“People think they know more about the sire than I do. A brother-in-law of mine in France says he is very good, and well thought of. This fellow won’t take too long, similar to the one we bought in Goffs [another by the same sire who cost €110,000]. He’s not a fellow that will take forever. They are both bumper, hurdle horses and will go on to be chasers.” The Goffs purchase is Therhythmofthenite and he was fourth on his debut at Punchestown last weekend in a maiden hurdle.

Morrin then provided a take on the market for store horses. “Twenty years ago, I was buying some of the nicer horses in this sale for Cathal Ryan in Swordlestown Stud, and they went on to do well, but a horse like the one I bought today was making €250,000 and up to €300,000. Yet, expenses have been increasing, wages and feed have gone up. It is a tougher business for National hunt breeders, and I feel for them.”

Twice a winner over jumps in France, Marta Kap (Kapgarde), and It’s A Game are two of the first three foals out of Martalette (Martaline). She won a Grade 3 hurdle race at Auteuil and placed a number of times at that level. Her fourth produce is the three-year-old Fontaine L’Abbe (Goliath Du Berlais), and this full-brother to It’s Only A Game also sold for €160,000 at the Derby Sale this year, when the winning bid was signalled by Harold Kirk on behalf of Willie Mullins.

Fil Dor finds his feet in USA

THE only one of Gordon Elliott’s six runners not to win on American Grand National day at Far Hills was the seven-year-old Fil Dor who as fifth behind his stablemate Zanahiyr in the main race of the day, but he came good on Sunday when winning the Grade 1 Colonial Cup at Camden for his new owner Morningstar Stud and trainer Richard Hendriks. The winner earned £72,000.

At Arqana in November 2020, the then two-year-old gelding by Doctor Dino (Muhtathir), related to A Plus Tard (Kapgarde) sold to Joey Logan for €88,000 on behalf of Andy and Gemma Brown of Caldwell Construction Ltd. Fil Dor stayed in France where he was placed on his only start on the flat. Moved to Gordon Elliott, he did well, before being sold at the Brown’s dispersal in February 2024 at Tattersalls Ireland for €620,000.

He returned to Cullentra House Stables but did not reach the heights he had achieved in his previous ownership, when he was one of the best juvenile hurdlers, his biggest win coming in the Grade 2 Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown. He finished second to Vauban in three Grade 1s, including the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham. He also won twice over fences, one of them being his sole win in the Robcour colours.

Fil Dor’s sire commanded a covering fee of €24,000 in France this year, having started in 2010 at €3,000, a fee he stood at for six seasons. Doctor Dino has featured in this column on many occasions, thanks to the exploits of State Man, Sharjah, Jade De Grugy, Sceau Royal, La Bague Au Roi, Dinoblue and Murcia, all Grade 1 National Hunt winners. His four Grade 1 winners on France include the iconic Docteur De Ballon.

Fil Dor was bred by Antonia Devin, wife of the much-missed Henri, and they utilised Doctor Dino to great effect on his female family. A son of the unraced La Turbale (Ange Gabriel), Fil Dor is a full-brother to the listed flat winner Style Icon (Doctor Dino), and this year’s winner over jumps in France, Dino Style (Doctor Dino). They are three of their dam’s four winners, the other being the listed chase winner Le Lude (Turgeon).

La Turbale is a sibling to three winners, notably the Grade 1 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner and runner-up, A Plus Tard (Kapgarde), and including File Au Poteau (Doctor Dino), still winning and with seven victories to his name. They are all sons of the placed Turboka (Kahyasi), a daughter of three-time stakes winner and group-placed Turbotiere (Turgeon).

Among the latter mare’s eight winners were Grade 3 Auteuil chase winner in France, L’Aubonniere (Doctor Dino), a half-sister to the aforementioned Turboka, and the listed Auteuil chase winner Dottore (Doctor Dino).