A STUNNING renewal of the Tattersalls October Book 2 Sale fell tantalisingly short of the record turnover achieved 12 months earlier. An increase in the numbers sold, resulting in a clearance rate of 85%, meant that the average and median declined by 3% and 10% respectively, but could not take from what was an extraordinary result in an extraordinary time.

Book 1 of the October Sale had seen a fall of 20% in aggregate, while both the average and median were back by 13%. If vendors and purchasers were heading into last week with similar declines in mind, they were left awestruck by the final returns. When Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony referred to the outcome as a “mighty achievement”, including from a logistical point of view, his sentiments were generally echoed by all who participated.