FIVE days after they breezed at Naas Racecourse, lots catalogued for the inaugural Goffs Classic Breeze Up Sale were put through their paces again, this time at the auction held after racing last Saturday.

This proved to be a satisfactory first edition, and one that led to Henry Beeby stating categorically that “one thing is certain: the Goffs Classic Breeze Up is here to stay and will now be a key part of the annual breeze-up sales calendar.” Vendor feedback was generally positive, though many would like the date and the format to be looked into. Goffs has promised to do this.

The sale-topping Starspangledbanner colt appeared just hours after the sire’s daughter Suzie Songs won the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes at the Curragh. “This is a racehorse if ever I saw one,” Henry Beeby said as Glending Stables’ €29,000 purchase in Book 2 of last year’s Goffs Orby Sale dominated the sale ring.

A bidding duel between Jason Kelly and Goffs’ Joey Cullen raged for Roderick Kavanagh’s offering, victory going to Cullen at €330,000. The colt’s dam is a half-sister to two international Group 1 winners, Sabiango and Silvano.

“He was bought by Ghislain Bozo of Meridian Bloodstock,” explained Cullen. Bozo later said that the colt is likely to remain in Ireland.

The vendor was beaming, and said: “I am thrilled - I would have taken a lot less at the start of the sale. I think the sale has held up very well. In fairness, it was a great effort from Goffs. The format needs a bit of tweaking, but I think there is something here. Why do we need to travel? This sale has a future.”

Katie’s profit

Locally-based Katie Walsh got the sale off to the best possible start with the first lot in the ring, a son of Hello Youmzain. He sold to Mark McStay and Avenue Bloodstock for €185,000, a good return on his yearling price at Arqana in October where he cost €75,000. A half-brother to three winners, the March-born colt is out of an unraced full-sister to Lush Lashes.

McStay said: “He is for an existing client and I believe he will go into training in Newmarket. I’ve been very lucky buying horses from Katie. She recommended this fellow strongly. He had a little setback and that’s why he missed Arqana. He’s a fine individual and would stand out at any breeze-up sale. He did a very good breeze, and in my opinion the very best breeze here. My client had to dig deep.”

Walsh added: “He was brought to Arqana in May and got a setback over there, so we didn’t actually breeze him. It was nice to have the opportunity to come back here. There seems to be a place for the sale. I can only give a positive feeling at this moment in time.”

Cormac Farrell sold a daughter of Sea The Stars, the second foal of Group 3 winner K Club, and it was McStay again who landed the spoils at €160,000. He said: “She is for an existing client and will go into training with Joseph O’Brien.”

Farrell added: “I bought her at the Orby for €75,000 and I was delighted to get her. I’m even more delighted to get her sold to very good connections, and I hope she’s very lucky for them. It’s a nice profit, so I’m delighted to get it done.

“The sale is a good concept, but it needs to be tweaked a little bit. It has a future, perhaps. The drawn-out nature of the whole thing does not suit anybody, I don’t think. For the first edition, it has been very positive and I am sure Goffs will refine it and build on it.”

Willie Browne’s Mocklershill sold a son of Maxfield for €120,000 to online bidder Fergus Galvin. The colt’s half-sister Tonalist’s Shape won the Grade 2 Davona Dale Stakes, while another, Pure Majestic, was a juvenile stakes winner last year.

Galvin, who runs Hunter Valley Farm with fellow Irishman Adrian Regan, was bidding from Churchill Downs.

“I’ve bought him on spec,” he later said. “I only had the pedigree and video to go on, but I liked what I saw from that, and we do a fair bit of work with Willie Browne over here and he recommended him highly. I’m a big fan of Maxfield. He’s made a great start here in the US, and this colt is from a proper dirt family. He’ll go to Brendan Walsh, who trained Maxfield so well.

“I’ve no owner in mind yet. It was a case of ‘buy now and worry later’!”