LAST Monday the ITBA Next Generation committee organised a panel discussion to discuss National Hunt bloodstock. The room was filled with bright young talents eager to learn from the very best in the industry. The discussion took place in Tattersalls on the eve of the May Store Sale

The ITBA Next Generation

The ITBA Next Generation has been featured in The Irish Field over the past two months with a profile piece on some of the brightest young talents in the wider racing industry being showcased on a weekly basis. Set up in 2008, the organisation has grown from strength to strength and now plays a pivotal role in nurturing and helping the future talent of the industry. A successful apprenticeship scheme has also been created by the organisation. Aimed at early school leavers and provided a platform to carve out a successful career in the Irish bloodstock and racing industry. Graduates have gone on to successful careers in stud farms, sales companies, and racecourses, both at home and internationally.

The panel

Richard Pugh commenced the evening by expressing how knowledgeable the panel was. “I can’t think of four people in the industry that I have more respect for. The foresight that each member of this panel had for working hard and getting their name out there is very admirable and between them, they have an incredible depth of knowledge.” The panel on the night was absolutely exceptional. Headed up and coordinated by Tattersalls director and race commentator Richard Pugh, the panel included Walter Connors (veterinary surgeon and consignor), Tessa Greatrex (Highflyer Bloodstock), Tom Malone (bloodstock agent) and Aidan Fitzgerald (Cobajay Stables).

The sales

Tessa Greatrex kicked off the discussion on store sales. She explains how she would prepare and approach a store sale such as the May Store Sale at Tattersalls. “Our main thing with a store sale is to look at everything. We do have a ranking system beforehand but we do look at everything because if somebody says to us ‘Have you seen this?’, it means we have. We take out maybe between 30 and 40 stores from these types of sales, so we need to cover everything.” Pugh proceeded to ask Tessa about her tactics i.e what she looks for at a sale like this.

“I think with this sale in particular, you are more looking out for the individual. We are trying to find the best athlete we can, not discounting the pedigree but I’m not really led by a stallion at these types of sales. I would be more inclined to go for the individual.”

In response, Aidan Fitzgerald provided his opinion on the importance of the pedigree. “For me, the dam is massive. I understand what Tessa is saying about the individual as well but the pedigree is massive. If it was all about the individual and not about the pedigree, point-to-pointers would be running on the flat. The pedigree has to matter. I love to see plenty of runners in the dam and, more importantly, form. If a dam has eight runners and one winner, irrespective of how good that winner is, it’s dangerous. The one-horse pages are very dangerous.”

Walter Connors went down another road completely to his two opposite view-holding counterparts on the panel. “For us, a horse being sound is more important than anything. It doesn’t matter how quick they are if you can’t ride them. There might be one very good horse who you can get away with having issues but that’s rare. If they’re not performing, they’re either no good or not sound and one is as bad as the other.”

On the lunge

Pugh brought Tom Malone into the conversation by asking him what sort of information he likes to hear from a seller to give him confidence. Pugh suggested that the seller might give feedback to the potential buyer on, perhaps, how the horse lunges.

But Tom wasn’t having any of Pugh’s suggestions. “They can go on too much, they can go on with a lot of bulls**t. ‘Jaysis, he’s great on the lunge’. Who gives a sh*t, He will have to run three miles over fences and you are going to tell me he is a Grade 1 horse because of his lunge? Stop, please!” Cue a tremendous amount of laughter from the audience.

Malone went on to speak further about the importance of doing homework on the pedigree beforehand. “My whole catalogue will be colour-coded and sorted. Then they get a ranking and every page will be ranked. Anything up to 95 is no good, 95-125 isn’t great either, 125 -140 is very good and 145-plus is excellent. It ensures that I don’t make any wrong quick decisions at the acorn.”

Pugh directed his line of questioning back towards Aidan Fitzgerald. He asked how he would pick out a good horse for a bit of value. “Confidence in yourself is key but more so that the horse is confident.

“We looked at Magical Zoe at the Land Rover Sale last year. Not much pedigree, she was a smallish sort, even for a filly. She was taken out of a stable just as a rug and a bucket fell off a ledge right in front of her, That would frighten most horses but she just stepped straight over it. Incredible bravery and confidence, I love that.”

Pugh then put a similar question to Greatrex, asking her what’s the key thing she cannot forgive even when looking for a bit of value.

“Conformation is key for us, being right in the front legs. I know some trainers will come to you and will say they will accept a little bit of this or that but, as agents, we’re pretty firm on them bring right in the front.”

Point-to-point

Pugh returned to the charismatic Malone to ask him about what he looks for when he is watching a horse run a race in the early stage of his career, particularly point-to-pointers

“The track itself can be a big factor, although I love to see a horse travelling. I just can’t forgive horses coming off the bridle four out. I’ve bought plenty of horses that didn’t win but travelled better than the winner and, by and large, they usually turn out to be the better horse.”

Richard Pugh backed up Malone’s initial point about the Irish point-to-point tracks with a quote from Derek O’Connor. “I remember Derek saying previously that, with Irish point-to-point tracks, some of them are tight, some of them are undulating, and if you see a horse do something special on a track where you wouldn’t expect a horse to be able to do it - for example, if a horse starts to quicken at a certain point of the track and stays going - you could be dealing with something special. That’s a really good sign for spotting a good one on the point-to-point circuit.”

All credit to ITBA Next Generation for organising a most enjoyable and informative event. There was great food and drinks, and there were some laughs but most importantly, every member of the audience would have walked away at the end of the night with at least three or four key tips that they will carry with them as they progress in the industry.