GORESBRIDGE Horse Sales are holding their select sale of three-year-old show jumpers at their Co Kilkenny sales complex on Monday week, October 5th, when 32 lots (up from 21 last year) are due to come under the hammer.

Selectors Ian Fearon, Paddy O’Donnell and Sally Parkyn inspected around 140 horses and long debated their merits before coming down in favour of those lots catalogued, 11 of whom are home-bred including five of the 16 fillies who made the final selection.

Twenty-three individual sires are represented with Button Sitte and Eldorado Van De Zeshoek both featuring three times while Aganix du Seigneur Z, Chacoon Blue, Ermitage Kalone, Sacramento Of The Paddocks and Vivant Van De Heffinck sired two lots apiece.

The front cover of this year’s catalogue depicts two previous sale graduates, both of whom won championships at this year’s Gallagher Dublin Horse Show.

The younger of the pair, Serran De Bun, who landed the Mo Chroi four-year-old national title at the RDS showgrounds in August under Conor McMahon, topped last year’s sale at €46,000. Rosconnell Tango, who won the LHK Insurance international seven and eight-year-old championship in the hands of Niamh McEvoy, was one of the €40,000 joint-top lots in 2022.

A 2019 Irish Sport Horse gelding by Tyson, Rosconnell Tango was consigned to that sale by his breeder, Mairead Lacey, who this year sells his grey Chacoon Blue half-sister Rosconnell Blue (Lot 10). The pair’s dam is the Goodluck VDL mare CSF Sophie who Lacey purchased as a foal at Goresbridge in 2015 and comes from the family of Wodiena Van De Somme (1.50m), Calgary Z (1.60m), etc.

The Dutch Warmblood Serran De Bun (by (Ard) VDL Douglas) was the only colt in last year’s sale to which he was consigned by Tommy Considine and Alan Morgan.

Twelve months on, they are selling Lot 23, an unnamed Contino Quick PS gelding whose dam, Chamitage (by Chacco-Blue), has previously bred the Conthargos mare Conlatage PS (1.40m) and is a half-sister to, among others, the dam of Chacoothargos PS (1.60m) and London Times PS (1.55m). The bay is described as “a real blood, modern sport horse with a huge uphill canter”.

The sole colt in this year’s sale is Trade Horse Ltd’s Kilcorig Agallix (Lot 30), a flashy chesnut son of Aganix Du Seigneur Z. Bred by Catherine Jackson, his dam is the Casall name Gotcha Nema, a half-sister to the dam of D’Artagan (CCI5*) and from the family of the 1.60m performers Clinton I, Clinton II and Clintus.

Trade Horse are also selling the Zangersheide grey Lot 6 (by Ermitage Kalone – Charisma V Schuttershof, by Cancara Z) who was second in the three-year-old fillies loose performance championship at Dublin in August. By the same sire, and another grey filly, is Alan Wheeler’s Emira Van Broekhoven WZ (Lot 5) whose Der Senaat III-sired dam is a full-sister to Love Affair III (1.45m).

Another grey filly in the catalogue is Mark Drea’s home-bred Rathcash Sitte (Lot 31). This tall daughter of Button Sitte is out of the unraced thoroughbred mare Rathcash Rapture who comes from the family of the Great Yorkshire Chase winner Annual Invictus and many other track winners.

Regular vendors

Regular Goresbridge vendors Jason Higgins and MBF Sporthorses are selling one of four grey geldings in the upcoming select sale of three-year-old show jumpers, MBF On Track (Lot 9).

This son of Chacoon Blue, who is bred along the same lines as the 1.60m performers Chacadoena PS and Mr Blue Sky, is described as being “A very talented, blood gelding ...he shows great balance and scope combined with a super technique”.

On their own, MBF Sporthorses are consigning MBF Nirvana D’Inc (Lot 13), a French-bred gelding who is said to be “showing a lot of scope. He is very intelligent, easy to work with ...” The Fayrouz D’Ouilly bay is from the family of Imperio Egipcio Milton (1.60m).

Also double handed at the sale is Liam Kennedy who is selling one of three Eldorado Van De Zeshoek-sired bays, the flashy gelding Everyone’s Dream PM Z (Lot 1), “A true, modern sport horse with the blood and powerful jump that is needed in today’s sport”. His Irish Sport Horse filly AOC Vivant Joe (Lot 22), a bay daughter of Vivant Van De Heffinck (Lot 22), is a three-parts sister to AOC Claris Vivant who was a finalist at both Dublin and the Breeders’ Classic this year.

David Harrison is consigning two home-bred bay fillies by Sacramento Of The Paddocks; Mosstown Cronin (Lot 21) is from the family of AHG Whiterock Cornet Cruise (1.40m) while Mosstown Carasa (Lot 32) is described as having the potential to be a top show jumper or eventer.

Other regular Goresbridge vendors consigning horses to the sale are Richie O’Hara, who is selling GlenbeighVelocity (Lot 7), an ISH geldng by Vigo D’Arsouilles and H&J Sporthorses who sell Lot 8, an unnamed ISH filly by Castlefield Kingston.

Early lots

There are two chesnut Irish Sport Horse geldings, both home-bred, in the 32-strong catalogue for this year’s Goresbridge select sale of three-year-old show jumpers and they are due to come up early, one after another, on Monday, October 5th.

Ralph Morgan’s Nooan Blaze, a 173cms son of Comthago VDL (Lot 3), is out of the Orestus mare Orestus Clover who competed in Lanaken as a five and six-year-old and comes from the family of Castlefield Vegas (1.60m) and Fernhill Aldo (CCI3*). Marie Ennett’s Solsboro Gold Button (Lot 4), who is by Button Sitte, is the first foal of his dam Soloboro Sixpence (by Olympic Lux) who comes from the family of Solsboro Diva (1.40m).

Other home-bred ISH geldings, three of whom are grey, are John Flynn’s ‘Cody’ (Lot 2) who is by Imnotafraid Fortuna out of a Hector Van D’Abdihoeve mare from the family of Heracross (1.60m); Shane Burns’s KNH Clarity (Lot 11) who is by Clarimo out of a VDL Arkansas mare who comes from the family of Cruising By (CCI3*); and Jim Doyle’s Metalbridge Rocket (Lot 18) who, by Button Sitte out of an Olympic Lux mare, “has a good attitude to his work and likes to please”.

Hans Juergen Kuehnle’s Tullibards In My Dreams (Lot 26) bucks the colour trend but is a home-bred ISH gelding. By Tullibards Bennys Legacy out of a Plot Blue mare, he is from the family of the 1.60m performers Rolo Tomasi, MHS Attraction and GCS Athena. A home-bred filly not mentioned elsewhere is Claddagh Equestrian’s Killard Vibrant (Lot 24) who is by Vivant Van De Heffinck out of a Carmargue half-sister to the 1.45m jumpers Condor Niagara, Columbus CR and Cassiland CR.

While the vast majority of the lots catalogue are registered as Irish Sport Horses, Mark O’Sullivan is consigning the Anglo European Studbook-registered Matador (Lot 14), a bay gelding by Eldorado Van De Zeshoek, dam previously of the Darco de Revel gelding L.B. Darcio (1.40m) while Jordan Campbell is selling the Dutch Warmblood gelding Tindur R-E (Lot 15), a brown son of Zinelord VDL out of a Lasino mare from the family of Quito (1.50m).

A Zangersheide-registered filly in the sale is Niall O’Doherty’s Utamara v/h Dingeshof Z (Lot 28), a dark bay by Utamaro D’Ecaussines Z out of a Vigo D’Arsouilles full-sister to Milo V/H Digenshof (1.50m) who is from the family of Diableur (1.60m).

Last week, Ed and Siobhan Donohoe were promoting the sale in Lanaken where Irish show jumpers made such an impact (see page 75).