THE excellent promotional work carried out by the Mayo Roscommon Breeders Group in advance of their inaugural ‘The Breeders Select Foal Sale’ certainly paid off in terms of the large crowd which headed to the Mullingar Equestrian Centre last Saturday.

Members of the voluntary group had put a lot of effort into the sale with some giving up spare time and holidays to attend five selection locations throughout the country where the Horse Sport Ireland linear scoring system was used. All foals forward for selection were assessed by a panel which included Jack Doyle, Liz Freeman, Dean Rogan and Joe O’Brien. Whether selected or not, the scores of all foals were sent out to their breeders.

Fifty-five lots were listed in Saturday’s catalogue (three of whom failed to appear) with 22 finding new homes including one who, although sold aboard, will be staying in Ireland. This is to avail of the group’s rearing contract initiative whereby foals can be kept at the Clooncalagy Stud in Co Roscommon where a three-year plan is in place for them.

On the plus side for the sale, which was billed as being ‘for the breeders by the breeder’, it started on time following a compact parade of stallions between the ages of three and eight. On the minus side, the sale catered for eventing, show jumping and Irish Draught foals but mixing them together didn’t work. All 11 Draughts catalogued met their engagement but only three changed hands.

The highest price achieved in the ring was €6,000 which Brendan Doyle gave for Lot 41, a bay Indoctro filly consigned by Co Galway’s Patrick Connolly. CSF Ivana is out of the Ars Vivendi mare CSF Princess Ida, a half-sister to the Picasso Z gelding Paddy’s Dream Z (CSI3*). The pair are out of the Darco mare Prinses, a full-sister to AK Quinten (CSI5*).

Doyle was acting on behalf of a Swedish client, Martin Linell, for whom he also purchased Co Mayo breeder Brian Finan’s Deelside Royale Rocky (Lot 13), having the final say at €5,000. The flashy bay colt by Fast And Furious Second Life Z is out of the 2012 Chacco Blue mare Creevyquinn Sapphire. “Martin has a half-sister to the dam by Cardento which was why he was keen to buy this fellow,” revealed Doyle.

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The top-priced eventing foal was Eamon Kenny’s Olympic Lux colt, Olympic Diamond Lux (Lot 5). The Co Laois-foaled bay is another bound for export, having been purchased for €5,000 by Belgium’s Lieven Tsjoen. However, the new owner is leaving the colt in Ireland under the group’s contract rearing initiative.

“What attracted me to this foal was his pedigree,” said Tsjoen who read about the sale in The Irish Field. The colt is a half-brother to the Dassett gelding Dassett Courage (CCI3*), the Errigal Flight gelding Kennysflight (CSI4*) and the Courage II gelding Courageous (CSI3*), etc. All are out of the Cruising mare Cruseings Girl who comes from the family of Mi Clover Imp Diva, etc.

Sold as a show jumping foal, eventing could be an option for Armagh breeder Carol Armstrong’s colt by Womanizer out of the Cavalier Royale mare Cornascriebe Royale (Lot 25). The grey is a full-brother to Cornascriebe Glenpatrick (CCI1*) who topped the 2016 Goresbridge Go For Gold Sale of event horses when making €160,000.

The foal was purchased for €4,400 by Wexford show jumper Caitriona Redmond who was probably more interested in the fact that his dam is a half-sister to WKD Temptation (CSI2*) and comes from the family of Royal Athlete and MHS Going Global.

Having sold a lot of stock during the year, Marti Rudd and Tomás Doyle of Monbeg Sport Horses have been busy buying foals in recent weeks. Doyle signed for two lots at Mullingar, giving his top price of €4,600 for Lot 52, a Future Trend colt consigned by Clare breeder Michael Murphy. The bay is out of the Harlequin du Carel mare Whos Smart Approach who has two half-brothers eventing in England, as is her 2013 Kings Master gelding, Fintra Zebo.

Among the Northern attendees was Brian McConville (one of the many advertisers in the catalogue) who purchased two lots (42 and 49) but was thwarted in his attempt to buy Michael Callery’s Cavalier Royale colt out of Greenacres Luidam (by Luidam) who was led out unsold at €7,500.