BOW Creek caught the eye with a smart win for Godolphin in the Group 2 Peter Young Stakes at Caulfield last weekend. He is now the favourite for the Group 1 Australian Cup next Saturday when his progress will be watched very closely in Co Limerick by Bobby and Honora Corridan.

They bred the five-year-old Shamardal horse at their Roundhill Stud in Kilmallock and sold him as a yearling to John Ferguson for 130,000gns. He is out of the Most Welcome mare Beneventa and she was trained by John Dunlop to win seven races, among them the Group 3 Dahlia Stakes and a pair of listed races. She was sold as a filly out of training as a four-year-old for 250,000gns.

That investment was rewarded when her first foal, a filly by Danehill Dancer, sold as a yearling for 380,000gns. Though she failed to win, Miss Khaya has started her second career as a broodmare by producing a winner.

The second foal out of Beneventa was a colt by Shamardal which was never named and then she foaled Dare To Dream. A 50,000gns yearling, he won three times and was group-placed a few times in Australia. A daughter of Nayef followed and this €50,000 yearling buy won a couple of races in Ireland and Germany.

Bow Creek was foal number five and he has now won six races, three of them at Group 2 level. One of these victories was in Ireland when he was trained by Mark Johnston and that was the Solonaway Stakes at Leopardstown. He also captured the Celebration Mile at Goodwood.

Last October Roundhill Stud sold a yearling by Raven’s Pass out of Beneventa to Shadwell Estate for 85,000gns and he has been named Makkaar, while the mare has a yearling filly by the hugely sought-after Dark Angel.