And breathe.... the domestic store sales season kicked off on Tuesday at Goffs and trade was good, thanks mainly to the point-to-point handlers driving business. However it was British trainers who took home six of the top 10 lots.
The average price of almost €55,000 was up 9% compared to the same session last year and the median (€50,000) rose by 12%. The day's clearance rate of just under 84% was only barely above this day last year, however. A total of 13 horses made six figures, the same number as on last year's opening day.
Four of the top 10 lots were by No Risk At All. Three were by Walk In The Park.
Top price paid on Tuesday was the €190,000 given by Paul and Ellmarie Holden for a three-year-old son of No Risk At All. The French-bred gelding, out of a son of the four-time wining mare Garmerita (by Poliglote), was consigned by Walter Connors. A year ago Connors sold a Doctor Dino half-brother to the top lot for €160,000 here.
The father-and-daughter Holden team famously sourced Jonbon at this sale for €140,000. After he won his point he was sold to J.P. McManus for £570,000 and he has won twice that figure in prize money. Can the Holdens do it again?
“The pressure is on now again!” said Ellmarie Holden. “Jonbon worked out. He cost €140,000 and we were lucky he worked out. If this guy is anything like Jonbon it will be very straightforward. Jonbon was very easy to do anything with, he never had any issues. Derek [O'Connor] will probably break him and we will get him going around September and see how it goes. The second we saw him, we were mad about him. The pressure was on because everyone was in love with him.
“Everything about him stood out – the way he walked, how he looked, and he seems a chilled-out and laidback sort of a horse who will do the job. He has a lovely pedigree, he has everything. He’s a smasher.”
Kirk and Mullins
Agent Harold Kirk was scouting on behalf of Willie Mullins. He gave €175,000 for a three-year-old son of It's Gino consigned by Church Farm Stables. Already named Le Dun, he is out of the unraced Faaa Le Dun (by Martaline), a half-sister to a Grade 1 three-year-old hurdle runner-up in France.
British and Irish racing fans will know It's Gino as the sire of Sir Gino and Lalor.
Kirk said of his purchase: “He was one of the standout horses in the sale, and by a very good sire in France. He is a beautiful individual, a very good mover, and he stood out for me. I knew he would make money, but I didn't think it would be that much.
"He is very athletic, strong and had a very good mind when he was walking around. He is a big horse, but looked like he wouldn't take a lot of time. I just loved him.”
Intriguingly, Kirk added: "You cannot be one-dimensional when buying now. Racing is changing; the ground is getting quicker and the fences are getting smaller. You need a horse now with a lot of speed.”
Kirk and Mullins paid €145,000 for a filly named Altesse Du Luy. Consigned by Peter Nolan, she is another by No Risk At All and is out of a Kapgarde mare who won over jumps in France as a three-year-old.
Kirk said: “She is a gorgeous filly, a big, strapping filly that looks like she'll be a chaser one day. Hopefully she is good, and she is by a very good sire. It is hard to get a filly of that size and substance. Out of a Kapgarde mare - she ticks a lot of boxes. She's got size, like a gelding.” He went on to simply explain why such good money is spent on fillies. “There is a huge programme for them, and it is going to get even better.”
The agent and trainer spent €110,000 on another filly, this one by Zarak and consigned by Baroda Stud. The filly is out of an unraced mare whose own dam won won four races over jumps.
Noting that Zarak now stands at €85,000, Kirk said: "His progeny are winning Group 1 flat races, and I actually think his fillies are as good as his colts. Very, very rarely now are you going to find a Zarak out of a jumping pedigree because he is too good of a stallion. She is gorgeous, and we bought her on spec to try and win the bumper. She looks quick, she has a good pedigree and she is for sale. We were not going to leave her behind and we will hopefully sell her to someone. Interested parties, get in touch!”
Skelton stocking up
Dan Skelton and agent Ryan Mahon were forced to go to €165,000 to secure a son of No Risk At All related to Allaho who was consigned by Tom and Alexandra Whitehead.
Skelton said: "We loved him. He’s obviously by a great sire – we have not actually had many by him, so hopefully he is a big name for us. We just loved him. He checked out well, has a big pedigree and he compared favourably with the other horses we have seen here. He is for Stephen Bough who has about eight horses with us, such as Fortune De Mer (Doyen) and Country Mile (Ocovango). He had a good season last year and has some nice young horses with us. He is a patient man, which is good, and a big supporter.”
Skelton added: "It is a lot of money, but if he wins a point-to-point he’s going to be 400 grand. We take the opinion that we have to make a few ourselves, which we always have done, and if you can up your budget a bit you can up the quality. It is not as simple as that, but it is exciting.
“He will come back to us – we do it all [the preparatory work] at home. We will have him up at the stud farm, break him in and get him going. We will probably do five or six weeks with him. He will come in with all the other three-year-olds at the end of September. We try to get two racecourse gallops into them, one around December and one in March, and if they thrive on the back of that we will get a run into them, and if not then we will wait until the autumn.”
Reflecting on his battle with Willie Mullins for the British trainers' championship, Skelton said: "It was a bit gruelling. I knew after the Grand National that I probably wouldn’t win, but I still wanted to fight for it. The owners, staff and the public wanted us to do what we did, and fight for it. We gave it our best and we absolutely loved it.
“I have to say that the last three weeks' racing was some of the most enjoyable I have ever had. Wherever we went the crowds were brilliant and really supported us."
Agent Ed Bailey and trainer Harry Derham were determined to buy Ballyreddin & Busherstown’s three-year-old son of Crystal Ocean and they had to pay €165,000 for the privilege. Ger Morrin was the underbidder. A €72,000 foal, the gelding is out of a Yeats mare.
Bailey said: “He is a lovely horse, a standout for us in the sale, a lovely walker and well balanced. We saw him about five or six times, and every single time he showed immaculately.
“He comes from a great vendor and is by a sire who looks at the minute that he could be really, really promising. It’s a deep family of top-level horses. He is going to Harry Derham and for an existing owner."
Ger Morrin, who had also been denied for one of the top lots earlier in the day, managed to buy a No Risk At All gelding for €160,000 from Ballincurrig House Stud. The gelding is a full-brother to the Grade 1-placed Kesronrisk and a half-brother to two Grade 2 winners - Grand Sancy (Diamond Boy) and the Willie Mullins-trained bumper winner Fleur Au Fusil (Kapgarde).
Morrin was acting for Sean and Bernadine Mulryan and, with trainer Martin Brassil close by, he said of his purchase: “He has a great pedigree, straight action, and we are big fans of the sire – we tried to buy one earlier on. It is a bit frustrating [to be beaten on earlier lots], but the prices these horses are costing is the same as they were making 25 years ago. The fellows selling them need to be getting this amount, and especially with costs going up all the time."
Megan and Paul Nicholls
Megan and Paul Nicholls bought three horses on the day, the most expensive being a €155,000 son of Walk In The Park from Ballintogher Stud. His dam Lackaneen Leader (Oscar) was a Grade 3 novice hurdle winner. As a foal this fellow made €72,000.
“Dad actually loved him from the moment he came out of his box," said Megan Nicholls. "Dad’s eyes lit up really, he had that bit of class about him. He is really athletic, and we can’t wait to get him back and get going. We knew he would make this sort of money – he is really classy, he had that swagger about him, and he is a Walk In The Park."
Another Walk In The Park to sell well was the half-brother to Supreme Novices' Hurdle winner Labaik, consigned by Niall Bleahen of Liss House.
Aidan and Olly Murphy tried hard to get this one but they were thwarted by Jonjo and A.J. O'Neill, in the company of agent Matt Coleman, who won out at €140,000. The gelding was a €58,000 foal.
Coleman said: “He was our main target of the day. He’s by a sire who is holding all before him, siring the Gold Cup and Grand National winners this year, and he’s a three-parts brother to Labaik, who was obviously infamous but very talented.”
"I think it is fair to say that all of those Walk In The Parks have that Montjeu trait and that’s what makes them good. Montjeu was the same on the flat, they have that bit of spirit, and many of them funnel that into being top-quality racehorses. He is a very athletic horse, loads of strength, loads of quality and he put in an impressive display in the parade ring. He looks like a horse that shouldn’t take too long, and I think we can dream of winning the Defender Bumper.”
Jonjo O'Neill added: “He is for sale at the moment. We are delighted to get him; he’s a really lovely horse and the standout horse for today. He has the breeding on both sides. Walk In The Park is a very talented stallion and the mother can produce a good one, so we are really looking forward to getting home and going from there. He seems racy and has a good stride, walks with purpose, so hopefully he’ll come the right way.”
Liss House later sold a son of No Risk At All to O'Neill Racing for €110,000 and a son of Masked Marvel for €105,000 to agent Gerry Hogan.
The O'Neills came away from Tuesday's session with eight horses, including a Masked Marvel gelding for €135,000, which was bought on behalf of J.P. McManus. He was sold by brothers Derry and Robert White from Rathkeale in Co Limerick, who trade as DAR Bloodstock who bought the horse privately in France.
Henderson and Honeyball
Nicky Henderson will train Brook Lodge Stud’s Walk In The Park half-brother to five winners for €120,000. He was a €38,000 foal. Frank Berry's presence suggested this one might end up racing for J.P. McManus but Henderson did not confirm that.
Anthony Honeyball was another active British buyer. His purchases included a Walk In The Park gelding for €105,000. He trained the dam, Duhallow Gesture, to win a listed bumper.
The late Michael Cullen was remembered through the sale of a Jukebox Jury gelding for €100,00 to Ben Pauling. Michael, who died from motor neurone disease recently, had bought the horse as a foal for €16,000. The consignor Peter Molony was acting on behalf of Michael's wife Ann, who was present to thank the buyers and wish them well.
Part 1 of the Arkle Sale continues on Wednesday. Part 2 is on Thursday.