A three-year-old full-sister to the Grade 3 Greatwood Hurdle winner Olofi proved to be the star attraction among the almost 200 stores traded at the DBS Sale this week.

Offered from Richard and Sally Aston’s Goldford Stud, the French-bred daughter of Slickly will join Jonjo O’Neill following her sale to Ross Doyle for £80,000. The grey comes from the family of the Grade 1 juvenile hurdle winner Don Lino. She was purchased as a foal for €22,000.

The filly was offered on the second day of trade for stores and her price eclipsed the top price of £78,000 paid on Tuesday for a son of the deceased Stowaway. This three-year-old out of a winning Supreme Leader mare was sold from Willie Browne’s Mocklershill Stables to Mags O’Toole for Gordon Elliott.

Paul and Sara Thorman’s Trickledown Stud led the list of vendors when selling 17 lots for £405,000. Topping their draft was a three-year-old son of Robin Des Champs from the family of Dato Star. It took a bid of £72,000, again from Mags O’Toole, to secure him for Noel Meade Racing.

The top-class dual-purpose runner Midnight Legend has enjoyed great success at stud and the Bleahen’s Lakefield Farm sold a son of his for £68,000 to John O’Byrne. This three-year-old is out of the Zaffaran mare Valentines Lady who was placed in a listed bumper at Aintree.

A two-year-old son of Al Namix offered from the Haras de Faydeau in France was put through the ring and led out unsold at £80,000. Subsequently Paul Webber’s bid of £65,000 was good enough to acquire the gelding who is already named Detonate.

FRENCH-BREDS

An increasing number of French-bred stores are being offered at the sales in Ireland and Britain and Trickledown Stud’s three-year-old son of Le Fou and the flat and jumps winner Page D’Histoire sold for £63,000 and was purchased by Ross Doyle, again to join Jonjo O’Neill.

A pair of three-year-old geldings sold for £62,000 each. The first to do so was a son of Oscar out of the six-time winner Bannington Blaze. The gelding is the mare’s fourth progeny and the first three have all run and won. Vere Phillipps sold him to Gerry Hogan Bloodstock for Emma Lavelle.

The next to make £62,000 was the third lot in the ring on Wednesday morning. This was a Robin Des Champs gelding from a once-raced Dr Massini mare sold by Whitebarn Farming in Ireland. Bloodstock agent Aiden Murphy signed the buyer’s docket and revealed the gelding would ultimately join Philip Hobbs

A three-year-old son of Kalanisi, the second foal of an unraced mare by Definite Article, offered from Liss House, made £58,000 and sold to Colin Tizzard. Incorrectly catalogued, he was in fact a full-brother to Krugermac who sold earlier on the same day for £185,000 following his debut second in a Punchestown bumper. The dam of the two lots, Vindonissa, is a half-sister to the Grade 1 winners Thisthatandtother and Carlingford Lough.

Norman Williamson’s Oak Tree Farm sold three lots and their best was a three-year-old son of Stowaway from a well-known Aga Khan family. At £53,000 he was the most expensive of nine purchases made by Highflyer Bloodstock in the stores section.

The only horse offered this week from Ask’s first three-year-old crop sold for £40,000 to Colin Tizzard.

With a larger catalogue the stores section saw a small increase in aggregate but recorded falls in average and median of 8% and 6% respectively. The overall sale turnover grew by 8%, the average by 5% and the median by 9%.

After the sale Henry Beeby commented “We have enjoyed three vibrant days of trade at our flagship Spring Sales which continues to prove itself the most complete NH dispersal sale in the country. Our horses-in-training sold very well with three lots surpassing last year’s top price headed by the £220,000 for Call The Cops.”

He added “The store sale has continued the trend set by the made horses with huge interest from start to finish. Indeed, the sales ring has been packed each day and that has led to a near consolidation of the advances made last year for this section.”