ALESSANDRO Marconi is a familiar face at Goffs, and he headed to the Goffs Autumn Horses In Training Sale after missing a flight to Keeneland, and proceeded to top the sale when giving €185,000 for Tangapour, star of the annual draft of horses from the Aga Khan Studs.

The three-year-old Tangapour, a son of Wootton Bassett, was trained by Johnny Murtagh and won a mile maiden at Killarney at two, and was runner-up this year in the Group 3 Royal Whip Stakes, with such as Los Angeles behind. A campaign in Dubai over the winter is most likely. The agent said: “Ownership is in the making. I have had good success here in the past. Johnny Murtagh was happy with him and would be happy to keep him. Plans need to be made.”

In 2021, Marconi paid €160,000 for Erzindjan who later ran second in the Group 2 Al Rashidiya Stakes and fourth in the Group 1 Jebel Hatta Stakes. His Wootton Bassett half-brother Esherann also sold on Monday, realising €95,000 to this year’s Gimcrack-winning trainer Declan Carroll. A mile maiden winner at Naas, the Dermot Weld-trained three-year-old added a Curragh handicap in August.

Carroll said: “I watched him racing during the year and have bought some nice horses off Mr Weld in the past. He recommended the colt and I was happy with that. He will be put away for the winter and hopefully go for some nice handicaps on the grass next year.”

Blandford Bloodstock’s Stuart Boman the Saxon Warrior gelding Reyenzi, another from the Aga Khan Studs’ draft, for €70,000. With a rating of 101, the Johnny Murtagh-trained three-year-old passed the post in front in the Group 3 Gallinule Stakes, only to be placed third in the stewards’ room. Boman said: “He was unlucky to be taken down I thought. He is a high-class horse, is very lightly-raced, and we hope to go to the Dubai Carnival with him.”

The Lope De Vega three-year-old gelding Rizal has placed a few times, and is from the family of Reyenzi. He cost agent Billy Jackson-Stops €58,000 on behalf of trainer George Scott. Completing a clean sweep of the top five lots, the Aga Khan Studs’ Vidmiyr sold to Alan O’Keeffe for €48,000. The two-year-old was placed on his most recent starts at Dundalk, and joins trainer Jennie Candlish.

Trainer in form

Eric McNamara is very much a trainer in form, and recently saddled the first two in the Grade 3 Munster National, French Dynamite beating stablemate Weveallbeencaught. Both horses were purchased earlier this year, and McNamara has done very well in the past too with horses from other trainers. Real Steel cost the Limerick trainer £27,000 and won €110,000 when landing the Paddy Power Chase at Leopardstown. The gelding also won the Munster National last year.

McNamara hopes to repeat the feat after spending €43,000 on the seven-year-old Sea Music from Emmet Mullins’ yard. The gelding won a listed chase at this year’s Punchestown Festival. McNamara said: “He is only seven, and I hope that there might be a big day out with him. I will put him away and bring him back for a spring/summer campaign. He is the price of a store horse.”

Not embarrassed

At the sale’s conclusion, Henry Beeby issued his usual clarion call. “We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again, and we’ll keep on saying it. Send us the horses and we will deliver. I am not embarrassed to say that it frustrates us to see so many Irish horses travelling to England last week when we have such an international buying bench in Kildare Paddocks this week.

“The fact is it costs less in terms of travel, entry fee and commission to sell here, so we will keep banging the drum and strive to persuade more Irish horses to enter and reap the dividend of the unique Goffs service. Today’s small catalogue has returned acceptable statistics with a strong clearance rate and a very pleasing leap in median price.”