Goffs National Hunt 2018

TRICKLEDOWN STUD | SALE REPORTS | DICK FRISBY | AGENT ANECDOTES | R OBERT TYNER

Section Head

2018

NH Magazine DAN SKELTON AN UNSTOPPABLE FORCE? COLIN BOWE THE SAMCRO STORY

TEAM GREATREX

HOW TESSA AND WARREN WORK TOGETHER

DAVY RUSSELL

TOP JOCKEY ON HIS PASSION FOR BLOODSTOCK

SELLING STARS

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17/01/2018 17:34

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Foreword

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT MAGAZINE 2018

Welcome

If Croke Park is the home of GAA, Lord’s is the best known cricket square and Wimbledon the most prestigious tennis club in the world, the hill at Cheltenham must be the equivalent for National Hunt racing protagonists.

As an auction house we are actively involved at Aintree and Punchestown with sponsorships and sales, so we view both of those racecourses as cricketers view The Oval and tennis players Flushing Meadows and Roland Garros; they are massively influential and important but have to be mentioned alongside Cheltenham.

So, like so many, we want winners everywhere and anywhere but we simply must be competitive over the four days of the Cheltenham Festival in March. Therefore, the record of the Goffs Land Rover Sale over the last four years is truly astonishing as it has proved the most successful store sale for Cheltenham Festival winners in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017.

Last year the Land Rover was the only store sale to produce Cheltenham Festival winners, led by the Grade 1 heroes, Altior and Willoughby Court.

Our Spring Sale in Doncaster is another that truly punches above its weight as the only major NH sale that combines top class stores with a quality catalogue of horses-in-training and point-to-pointers. Add in our superb Aintree and Punchestown Festival sales, as well as the fast-growing December NH Sale in Ireland and January Sale in Doncaster, and it becomes clear that Goffs is as focused on National Hunt as any. We deliver success on the racecourse and in the sales ring which make us the first choice for increasing numbers of stalwart NH vendors and purchasers.

This magazine delves into some of the characters and stories that have made Goffs and Doncaster such fertile sales arenas for anyone serious about Cheltenham, Punchestown, Aintree, and all the other NH meetings of

note throughout the winter in the UK and Ireland.

Amongst the fascinating articles are interviews with Gold Cup-winning jockeys turned pinhookers extraordinaire Mark Dwyer and Norman Williamson, and another who could well follow in their footsteps, Davy Russell, the latter piece penned by our own Nick Nugent in his inimitable style.

There is a feature on Dan Skelton, a young man in a hurry who is making a big mark in all the right places, plus interviews with Colin Bowe, Robert Tyner and Dick Frisby. These are four masters of their trade in different ways. The articles explain, to an extent, their varied approaches though there are common themes.

We also hear from our experienced and passionate agents about their roles and some of the many successes they have shared with our vendors. There is also a series of quick-fire questions and answers sessions with a number of notable vendors.

In addition we unashamedly trumpet our plethora of winning graduates throughout the last year and relive some excellent sales results at the Land Rover, Spring, Aintree, Punchestown and December NH sales, all of which are truly vying for market-leading status these days.

The overriding theme of every page of this magazine and, indeed, every sale at each of our locations in Ireland and the UK, is of partnership with our clients.

A good sale for a vendor is a good sale for Goffs and a winner bought at our sales is celebrated by us as if we are the owner.

Happy clients mean a happy Goffs so it’s been a happy 12 months.

Henry Beeby Group Chief Executive

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CONTENTS

38 66 Contents GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT MAGAZINE 2018

6

COLIN BOWE Samcro the latest star for the champion point-to-point handler

10

JOHNNY COLLINS Quick-fire round with the man who sold Petit Mouchoir

12

COMPANY NEWS Important updates from Goffs and Goffs UK

14

ROBERT TYNER Trainer has won the last two runnings of the Land Rover Bumper

18 2

DICK FRISBY He found Finian’s Oscar as a foal and he’s been buying plenty more at Goffs

97

22

AINTREE SALE Demand for pointers was intense in Liverpool

38

DAN SKELTON No stopping the rise of this young jumps trainer

24

FRANK MOTHERWAY Yellowford Farm owner is a leading sales consignor

44

KATIE RUDD Getting to know the up-andcoming vendor

27

PUNCHESTOWN SALE Nine lots sold for six figures at the Festival

47

30

STARS OF THE SEASON A glance at some of the big races won by Goffs and Goffs UK graduates in 2017

PETER NOLAN Chatting with the vendor and breeder

57

33

LAND ROVER SALE A clearance rate of 93% on Day 1 was among the highlights of the 2017 sale

DECEMBER NH SALE Foal prices reached new levels at the pre-Christmas sale

60

CATHAL ENNIS Five minutes with the Quill Farm vendor

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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05/01/2018 09:48 16:32 16/01/2018 08/01/2018 09:42

CONTENTS

85

GOFFS AGENTS Catch-up with the representatives of both sales companies

92

TEAM GREATREX At home with Tessa and Warren

97

STALLIONS TO WATCH Will these sires become stars in the future?

70

RICHARD ASTON Insight from the Goldford Stud owner

104

JOHN FLOOD Some views from the Boardsmill Stud manager

73

SPRING SALE Over £12 million spent in four days at Doncaster

106

HORSE POWER Why Land Rover support the thoroughbred sector

78

NORMAN WILLIAMSON & MARK DWYER Former jockeys excelling at consigning

113

ON CAMERA Faces from Goffs events in Dublin, Aintree, Punchestown, Doncaster and Kill

114

BROWN THOMAS Style tips from Brown Thomas personal shopper Katie McGrath

128

TBA AWARDS Round-up of the 2017 Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association’s awards night

62

DAVY RUSSELL Nick Nugent talks to the leading jump jockey about life in and out of the saddle

66

TRICKLEDOWN STUD Paul and Sara Thorman have earned their success through hard work and sound judgement

82

RACHEL O’NEILL A rapid interview with the Whytemount Stud breeder

62

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92 57 GOFFS CO-ORDINATORS: Niamh O’Hehir; Michael Orton EDITOR: Mark Costello ART DIRECTOR: Jane Matthews CONTRIBUTORS: Henry Beeby, Eoghain Ward, Orlaith Cuddihy, Claire Barry, Aisling Crowe, Leo Powell, Donn McClean, Anne Marie Duff, Nick Nugent, Carl Evans, James Thomas, Lissa Oliver, Olivia Hamilton, Sieglinde McGee. COVER IMAGE: Sarah Farnsworth. PHOTOGRAPHY: Healy Racing, Caroline Norris, Sarah Farnsworth, Peter Mooney. PRODUCTION MANAGER: Mary Connaughton ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER: Paul Clemenson GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT MAGAZINE IS PUBLISHED BY ASHVILLE MEDIA GROUP. Unit 55, Park West Road, Park West, D12.

Tel: (01) 432 2200; Fax (01) 672 7100 Email; info@ashville.com. Material printed in this journal is not necessarily endorsed by Ashville Media Group. All rights reserved.

Reproduction by any means in whole or in part without the permission of the publisher is prohibited © 2018.

GOFFS FLAT MAGAZINE WILL BE PUBLISHED IN AUGUST.

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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16/11/2017 09:50 16:01 16/01/2018 17/11/2017 14:59

COLIN BOWE

LEADING POINT-TO-POINT HANDLER COLIN BOWE TELLS EOGHAIN WARD HOW HIS BUSINESS MODEL HAS EVOLVED

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COLIN BOWE

P

Colin Bowe (light blue jacket) leads his string at exercise

oint-to-point racing in Ireland is big business. This multi-million euro industry has grown from the very heart of local communities across the length and breadth of Ireland, and it is now the platform for many significant commercial operators to produce blacktype winners on an almost weekly basis. At the centre of this is Colin Bowe.

Samcro, Madison To Monroe and Getabird, three of the star graduates from the pointing fields in recent seasons, all emerged from Colin’s Milestone Stables in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, and all were then sold on through the Goffs sales rings on both sides of the Irish Sea. The pride is evident in Bowe’s voice when he speaks of Samcro, close to two years after the son of Germany left his yard. The buzz horse within this season’s novice hurdle ranks unsurprisingly remains the apple of his eye.

“You knew quickly that he was something a bit special. His owner, Dougie Taylor, phoned me one day and asked me to call into his place to look at the horse. From the moment he was sent to me he was a very kind horse. You could leave the stable door open and he wouldn’t come out – just a big gentle giant.

“For a horse not used to my hill, it takes a while to adjust, but he just fell straight into the system. It was all so easy for him.”

In the weeks leading up to his introduction to competitive action, the word at the tracks was all about this chesnut gelding, and when he was finally unveiled to the public at Monksgrange point-topoint in April 2016, the hype was certainly justified.

A comfortable defeat of Elegant Escape in atrocious conditions sealed Samcro’s ticket to the inaugural Goffs UK Aintree Sale, held on the opening day of the Grand National fixture, where fierce bidding saw his price rise to £335,000. A job well done.

Monksgrange is Colin’s local track, a meeting run by the Bree Foxhounds, the hunt which he was introduced to by his uncle Jay as an eight-yearold, and its four-year-old maiden holds a special connection to the Bowe family.

“The four-year-old maiden there is run for my grandfather’s cup, the Jim Bowe Cup, so I purposely keep back a nice horse for that day. It’s my local track and it’s been a very lucky place for me.”

Unsurprisingly a repeat bid was launched in 2017 with Madison To Monroe, a horse which he bought in partnership with fellow Wexford-based handler Denis Murphy, with whom he had shared a house over two decades earlier when they both worked for the great Aidan O’Brien.

“I had trained horses for Maria Kavanagh, who is the breeder of Little King Robin, and she also bred

“YOU KNEW QUICKLY THAT SAMCRO WAS SOMETHING A BIT SPECIAL”

Madison To Monroe. He went unsold through the sales, so I bought him from her.

“David and Keith Cogley, who work for me, pretrained him in Dusty Sheehy’s, and the lads loved him. He was a real galloper with a high cruising speed and a superb jumper.”

Like Samcro 12 months earlier, Madison To Monroe was aimed at the Monksgrange fixture to uphold family honour and the Presenting gelding duly delivered with a convincing eight-lengths success in the latest renewal.

It was a case of ‘why change a successful formula’, as the striking looking roan gelding followed the path of Samcro to the Goffs UK Aintree Sale. With Tom Malone paying £300,000 to secure Madison To Monroe for Gold Cup-winning owner Alan Potts, it was a second successive sales-topper on Merseyside for Colin. It is no wonder, therefore, that the handler holds the sale in such high esteem.

“It’s a fabulous sale. It’s a good set-up, the stable yard is very close to the parade ring and easily accessible for trainers so that they can pop in and out to view horses. I cannot speak highly enough of it and it’s been very lucky for me.”

The Goffs sales rings on both sides of the Irish Sea have been lucrative arenas for Colin to offer his stock as, away from the Aintree sale, the Punchestown

Samcro is one of the most exciting young National Hunt horses in training

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COLIN BOWE

“I WANTED A BIT OF THE ACTION FOR MYSELF, SO I DIPPED MY TOE IN AND STARTED GETTING A FEW OF MY OWN”

equivalent has also seen a Milestone inmate steal the headlines. The Walter Connors-owned Getabird was a Largy point-to-point winner on his debut for Colin before fetching €200,000 at the April 2016 Goffs Punchestown Sale. The horse joined WillIe Mullins and was the antepost favourite for the Cheltenham Festival Bumper before injury struck. In January Getabird was promoted to favourite for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham following a brilliant win in the Grade 2 Moscow Flyer Novices’ Hurdle at Punchestown.

It’s all a far cry from Colin’s early foray into the training ranks, a time when he was dependent upon locals sending him horses to train as he could not afford to buy horses of his own. Mares such as Askanna, Our Victoria and Glibbin propelled the then rookie trainer into the spotlight in those early days, thanks to the support of local breeders.

Having established himself, both on the track and between the flags, the desire for more success grew.

“I was training horses for outside owners and there were a good few people making a lot of money out of me. One day, at Horse & Jockey, I ran Viking Rebel and See U Bob and they were both sold for nice money afterwards, but I didn’t own either of them.

“After those successes people were sending me more horses to train because they knew I could get the job done, but also get the horses sold for them. I wanted a bit of the action for myself, so I dipped my toe in and started getting a few of my own.”

That was a pivotal point in Colin’s journey to the top of the sport and has shaped the five-time champion handler’s current business model, which sees him hold a half-share in almost every horse in his yard. He avoids buying horses outright himself, to spread the risk.

8

Managing that risk has become as important as training winners these days. The vast sums which have flooded into the point-to-point market have bolstered the buying power of the bigger handlers and pinhookers, and consequently the risks have multiplied.

“We are buying a much better horse now, so the stakes are higher. That focuses the mind when you are buying new horses.

“At the store sales there are a couple of things you would have your eye on – scope, a bit of bone - they must have a nice bit of bone - and by by a young or proven stallion. If you win a race with a stallion that is not popular you won’t get good money for it. That’s just how it is.

“I have six young horses by Fame And Glory in the yard at the minute and they are beautiful, so it’s a real shame that he died. I’m still a fan of Getaway. He has had some nice results recently and Getabird did the business for me.

“There is so much competition at the sales now, particularly with all the point-to-point lads looking to buy better horses. The stores are averaging €35,000 to €55,000 as a starting cost alone, and I would need one out of every four horses to be selling well to break even.”

No longer are point-to-point handlers operating at the lower end of the market at store sales, looking to use point-to-points as a platform of adding value to that cheap stock before offering them for sale.

They are outbidding their racecourse rivals at the sales, and they are responsible for the incredible injection of quality to point-to-points we have seen in recent years.

Colin Bowe has been front and centre of this evolution and he continues to set the bar high.

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INSIGHT Petit Mouchoir

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

My father worked for a local farmer who kept half a dozen point-to-point horses. I would go there at the weekends, from about the age of five. They would let me sit on the horses after exercise. I got hooked from there.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

My best sale was Petit Mouchoir for €100,000 in the Land Rover Sale. He won the Goffs Land Rover Bumper, three Grade 1 hurdles and his only start to date over fences.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

I like Getaway. They are big, good-moving horses with nice temperaments. He is having plenty of bumper and point-topoint winners and they should have the physique and minds to progress. I also like the late Fame And Glory. I think he really stamped his stock and I would give him a really good chance of making it, despite his limited stock.

10

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

JOHNNY COLLINS VENDOR BROWN ISLAND STABLES

Work hard and never be afraid to make a mistake

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

I don’t like bad-moving horses with no scope. I like size and action, you need these qualities to be able to cut loose at a jump.

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

I don’t think I could say any one person in particular. I have met a lot of different people throughout the years working with horses, both here and the time I spent in the States, who have had some influence on me.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I don’t really have a lot of other interests, but I like spending time with friends and family.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

My biggest ambition is to sell plenty of top-class horses and to make a good living doing so.

Fame And Glory

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Work hard and never be afraid to make a mistake.

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:18

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news

NEWS & WINNERS THE 2017 GOFFS THYESTES CHASE WAS WON BY CHAMPAGNE WEST, TRAINED

BY HENRY DE BROMHEAD FOR OWNER ROGER BROOKHOUSE, AND RIDDEN BY DAVID MULLINS

REAFFIRMS 1 GOFFS SUPPORT FOR THYESTES CHASE

GOFFS will continue to support the €100,000 Thyestes Handicap Chase at Gowran Park until at least 2020.

The Grade A event, due to be staged on Thursday, January 25th in 2018, is well established as one of the most important staying chases in the Irish calendar. Two Aintree Grand National winners this century, Hedgehunter and Numbersixvalverde, have taken the Thyestes prior to achieving Liverpool glory, and two more recent Thyestes winners – On Our Own and Djakadam – have gone close to winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup. “It’s a great fit for us; it’s the start of the year, it’s the start of our sales year,” Henry Beeby said. “We launch the campaign for our Land Rover Sale in January, so it’s the ideal time to be thinking about National Hunt.” The Gowran card also includes the Grade 2 John Mulhern Galmoy Hurdle.

O’CONNOR 2 HAYLEY JOINS THE TEAM

GOFFS appointed Hayley O’Connor to the new role of International Client Relations in November. Hayley spent eight years with Ladbrokes where she held the position of PR and Communications Manager. Her vast experience in racing is matched by impressive bloodstock credentials as a successful owner and breeder, while she has a long association with Goffs as both a vendor and purchaser. As part of a broad remit, Hayley will travel extensively to promote the Goffs name across the globe.

Her National Hunt focus for 2018 will be attracting both new and existing buyers to the Land Rover Sale, working closely with Goffs Marketing Director Joey Cullen.

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Land Rover Sale graduate Hollowgraphic is on course for the €75,000 Grade 2 Goffs Future Stars Bumper at the Dublin Racing Festival TO PLAY ITS 3 GOFFS PART AT DUBLIN

RACING FESTIVAL

GOFFS will sponsor a new €75,000 Grade 2 Bumper on Day 1 of the inaugural Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown in early February. The new two-day meeting has been hailed as one of the most exciting initiatives for Irish jump racing in many years.

The weekend fixture (February 3rd-4th) brings together all the

Goffs Punchestown Sale topper graduate Getabird was promoted to favourite for the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham following his impressive Grade 2 win at Punchestown in January

best races from Leopardstown’s traditional January and February cards. Saturday, February 3rd will see the Irish Champion Hurdle take centre stage and the action will be rounded off by the Goffs Future Stars Flat Race.

The two-mile finale is virtually certain to feature some of the most promising young National Hunt prospects in-training in Ireland. The minimum value for the 15 races scheduled over the two days is €75,000 and the total prize money across the weekend amounts to €1.5 million.

Leopardstown’s Chief Executive Pat Keogh said: “We are very excited about the potential of this Festival: for the racing fan, who will get to see some of the biggest National Hunt races of the year in one weekend. For the Festival fan, the entertainment will include cultural elements that make Dublin one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in Europe. The UK audience is also a key target as we provide them with an experience that showcases the very best that Dublin has to offer in a top-class racing festival.”

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news

GOFFS & GOFFS UK SALES DATES FOR 2018

Jan 23-24 ...................

Feb 6-8 ........................

Apr 9-10 .......................

Apr 12 ...........................

Apr 26 ..........................

May 22-24 ..................

Jun 12-13 .....................

Jun 18 ............................

Aug 7-8 ........................

Aug 28-29 ..................

Aug 30 .........................

Sep 15 ...........................

Sep 18-19 .....................

Oct 2-3 ........................

Oct 4 ............................

Oct 24-26 ..................

Nov 5-7 ........................

Nov 18-25 ...................

Dec 12-13 ....................

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Doncaster January Sale Goffs February Sale Doncaster Breeze-Up Sale Goffs UK Aintree Sale SALE DATES Goffs Punchestown Sale FOR YOUR Doncaster Spring Sale DIARY Goffs Land Rover Sale Goffs QIPCO London Sale Doncaster August Sale Doncaster Premier Yearling Sale Doncaster Silver Yearling Sale Goffs Champions Sale Doncaster September HIT Sale Goffs Orby Yearling Sale Goffs Sportsman’s Yearling Sale Doncaster Autumn HIT & Yearling Sale Goffs Autumn Yearling & HIT Sale Goffs November Sale Goffs December NH Sale

Michael Dale’s contribution to Doncaster Bloodstock Sales was recognised

by Goffs Group CEO Henry Beeby at the TBA Awards. Michael, now retired, joined the DBS Board in 1976.

JAZZ ANOTHER STAR FOR GOFFS UK SPRING SALE 4 MICK FOLLOWING the runaway success of the initiative in 2017, Goffs UK

has confirmed that its Spring Sale at Doncaster will again include a session devoted to select point-to-pointers and form horses. The horses-in-training section of the 2017 Spring Sale saw 29 horses sell for £50,000 or more, up from 17 the previous year. The top price of €210,000 was paid by Gordon Elliott for point-to-point winner Invincible Cave, who has since won his sole racecourse start for Gigginstown House Stud. Other buyers included Roger Brookhouse, Kieran McManus, Tom Malone, Highflyer Bloodstock, David Pipe, Anthony Honeyball, Aiden Murphy, Nigel Twiston-Davies, Stroud Coleman Bloodstock, Alan King, Colin Tizzard, Evan Williams, Tom George, Margaret O’Toole and Oliver Sherwood. Goffs UK’s reputation as a source of quality horses in training was bolstered by a number of notable winners over the Christmas and new year period. The highlight was the victory of Mick Jazz in the Grade 1 Ryanair Hurdle at Leopardstown. Mick Jazz was purchased for only £27,000 at the 2016 August Sale by Aidan O’Ryan and Gordon Elliott. Remarkably, the same buyers also found Cheltenham Festival winner Labaik (£25,000) and Foxbrook Champion Hurdle winner Zanjabeel (£7,500) at the same sale. At Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, the Grade 2 Dipper Novices’ Chase went to Yanworth, who was picked up for a mere £16,000 at the 2013 Spring Sale. Days earlier, the £12,000 Spring Sale purchase Sam Spinner (pictured left) landed the Grade 1 Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot. At Leopardstown’s Christmas Festival, Doncaster Yearling Sale graduate Whiskey Sour (£45,000) won the Grade 1 Future Champions Novice Hurdle. The 2018 Goffs UK Spring Sale takes place on May 22nd to 24th, with the opening day devoted to stores as usual.

Horses for the select session will be accepted up until the time of the sale.

The success of Vision Des Flos in the €100,000 Goffs Land Rover Bumper at the 2017 Punchestown Festival earned a special prize for Carlyn Hyde, who together with husband Tim and Norman Williamson, sold the gelding at Goffs under the Oak Tree Farm banner. The vendor of the Bumper winner gets to keep a brand new Land Rover Discovery Sport. Pictured is Carlyn receiving the keys from Goffs’ Henry Beeby and Eddie Kavanagh of Land Rover.

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Robert Tyner

Derek O’Connor returns on Vision Des Flos

VISION SUCCESS ROBERT TYNER HAS FOUND THE LAST TWO LAND ROVER BUMPER WINNERS. HE AND BROTHERS DEREK AND PAURICK O’CONNOR TELL CLAIRE BARRY ABOUT HOW THEY WORK TOGETHER

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Robert Tyner

KINSALE trainer Robert Tyner is no stranger to either Goffs or Punchestown, having trained the winner of the last two runnings of the €100,000 Goffs Land Rover Bumper in Vision Des Flos and the ill-fated Coeur De Lion.

Coincidentally, both horses were consigned to Goffs by Oak Tree Farm, who twice received the vendor prize of a Land Rover Discovery Sport.

Robert says he would love to win one for himself.

Robert did, however, have the twin satisfaction of not only saddling this year’s winner Vision Des Flos, but also seeing the French-bred four-year-old sold on to Ann and Alan Potts for €270,000 at the Goffs Punchestown Sale held two days after the race.

Now with Colin Tizzard, Vision Des Flos made a bright start to his jumping career by finishing third in the Grade 2 Persian War Novice Hurdle at Chepstow on October 15th and Robert will be keeping everything crossed that lightning really can strike three times in the one place at this year’s sale.

Despite Robert’s location in west Cork, he and point-to-point handler Paurick O’Connor go to all the sales in search of future stars, and the journey for them begins by leafing through the catalogues. Robert explained: “We start with the pedigrees and then go from there. You have to do a bit of elimination and then you might see something that you didn’t have on your list that might catch your eye.”

He and Paurick have been good friends for the past 15 or 16 years, ever since Robert brought a horse belonging to O’Connor’s neighbour back from the sales to Gort, with O’Connor in tow.

Paurick’s brother Derek, the record-breaking point-to-point rider, was only starting his career at that stage and Paurick wasted little time promoting his brother in the hope of getting a few rides from the Tyner stable.

Paurick said: “We go back a long way. Myself and Robert buy all the horses and we look at every horse on our shortlist. Then we go back and look at them again and we can pull a horse out five times before reaching a decision.”

While Coeur De Lion cost €75,000 at the 2015 Land Rover Sale, when bought on behalf of owner Brendan Keogh, Vision Des Flos was picked up for just €25,000, which makes his profit margin look particularly eye-watering!

Paurick recalled: “I pulled him out 14 times at Goffs before my wife Grainne and myself bought him, because €25,000 is a lot of money to spend.”

What, then, of the handsome profit he made?

O’Connor said. “We’ve invested the money into horses, every penny of it, because we have a theory that money is no good unless you use it.”

Robert and Paurick bought five nice types at the 2017 Land Rover Sale who look promising and they are hoping that one or two of them fit the bill further down the line. It is agreed that O’Connor

“YOU MIGHT SEE SOMETHING THAT YOU DIDN’T HAVE ON YOUR LIST THAT MIGHT CATCH YOUR EYE”

Vision Des Flos (right) wins the Goffs Land Rover Bumper.

does the bulk of the breaking and pre-training, while Robert is in charge of the training. “I wouldn’t be good enough to do it,” says Paurick, despite Grainne holding a trainer’s licence.

Both men were struck by how strong the trade for store horses was last summer. Robert commented: “Horses were never dearer than they were last year and it doesn’t look like prices are going to fall back anytime soon.”

Paurick agrees: “Trade is going to get stronger and it’s great because, when that happens, people are making money and the effects are felt right through the industry.” Nevertheless, it’s not just anybody who can spot a horse with the potential to win a valuable sales race, but Robert has a good track record and that fact alone is sure to have him high on many people’s shortlists for the future.

Vision Des Flos carried Grainne’s colours to his neck success under her brother-in-law Derek. The winning rider recalled: “It was a very nice occasion, given my association with Goffs, sourcing horses for them and as an agent with Goffs UK, because it’s a very prestigious race in the calendar.

“With the horse having sold exceptionally well in the sale, it’s a brilliant story. Robert actually had Vision Des Flos schooled over fences and all the groundwork done. He was ready to run in a point-to-point at Dromahane, but the race didn’t divide, so he ran another one who was second.”

However, as Robert pointed out: “If he’d run that day, I might not have run him in the Land Rover.”

So, as O’Connor rightly said: “Everything just fell into place for the horse. We really enjoyed the day but, we lost our mother Jean the previous Christmas, so it had been a rough year for us and we were very emotional.

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Robert Tyner Derek O’Connor and Robert Tyner.

Derek and Paurick embrace after the Land Rover win.

Vision Des Flos was sold for €270,000.

“She was a major part of our lives and that’s where our passion for horses comes from. She was a ground-breaker, riding horses in point-topoints when women were only just being allowed to. She was up against it, but now we’re seeing the benefits of what she fought so hard for, with so many top-class lady riders around.”

Robert remembers that both Vision Des Flos and Coeur De Lion were both “around the same height,” but he described the latter as being “a better put-together, nicer horse who seemed to have more class.” Vision Des Flos, in contrast, struck him as “more of a stayer who would be better over a longer trip.”

Paurick agreed with his assessment, saying: “We didn’t think he was the quickest horse in the world, but he looked as if he would stay galloping.”

The trainer bought Coeur De Lion on behalf of his Kent owner Brendan Keogh, a successful greyhound owner in England, and always liked him, but regrettably the horse is dead, having got injured out in the field the week before he was due to go back into training.

Needless to say, he will be a big loss, but the future is looking bright for Vision Des Flos, a horse Paurick, in particular, will always remember.

He was particularly keen to highlight how well they were treated at Punchestown, commenting: “From the moment we stepped inside the gate, we were treated like kings.

“Grainne only rarely goes racing and our kids Philip and Billie-Jean had never been before. We were just ordinary people who owned a horse

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that was running in the Land Rover bumper but, whether it was Goffs or Punchestown, the way we were looked after was fabulous.

“We were given food vouchers and shown where everything was and this was before the race. We were treated like kings and they made us feel so welcome.

Then, of course, we won the race and the rest is history.”

It was a memorable day, too, for the Tyner family and the best possible showcase for all their hard work and dedication. Robert and his wife Mary travel the length and breadth of the country, clocking up more miles than most in search of the next winnable opportunity. “There’s a lot of time and cost involved.”

The trainer and Paurick get through their share of shoe leather at the sales, too, poring over endless catalogues containing what could be the next jump racing star.

Said Robert: “I wouldn’t be set on any one type, some come to hand the first year, while others might need an extra year and might not run until the following season, but a horse doesn’t qualify for the Land Rover Bumper unless he goes through that sale.

I can find them alright – I’ve proved that I can find them, it’s just finding the money to pay for them that’s the problem!”

“IT HAD BEEN A ROUGH YEAR FOR US AND WE WERE VERY EMOTIONAL”

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frisby family J.J. (left) and Richard Frisby (centre) at Goffs

AISLING CROWE SPOKE TO THE KILKENNY FATHER AND SON TEAM WHO FOUND FINIAN’S OSCAR AT GOFFS

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frisby family Finian’s Oscar was a €24,000 Goffs purchase

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HE multiple Grade 1 winner Finian’s Oscar was discovered at Goffs by Richard and J.J. Frisby at the 2012 December National Hunt Sale.

The foal who grew up to be Finian’s Oscar was among the draft that Frisby and his son J.J. purchased for their Glenwood Stud in Kilkenny that year. Bought for €24,000 the son of Oscar out of the winning pointto-pointer Trinity Alley was bred by cousins Martin and Richard O’Keeffe.

The Champion Chase winner Finian’s Rainbow, a halfbrother to Trinity Alley, was also sold at Goffs - the Land Rover Sale of June 2007 - by the O’Keeffe family. Sold for just €8,000 he retired the winner of 10 of his 19 races, three of them at Grade 1 level and £561,333 in prize money.

By the time Trinity Alley’s Oscar colt foal came up for sale as a foal in December 2012, Finian’s Rainbow was the reigning champion two-mile chaser and added the Grade 1 Melling Chase to his vanquishing of Sizing Europe at Cheltenham.

With that calibre of horse closely related to the foal, he was a natural for the duo, who pinhook National Hunt horses.

“As a foal he had loads of quality about him,” recalls J.J. Frisby. “He was a good-walking foal with plenty of scope and we really liked the pedigree.”

Pedigrees and the identity of the sire are important but when it comes to selecting the youngstock the father and son will invest in, then it is the horse in front of them that the ultimate decision is based upon.

As a foal Finian’s Oscar possessed both the tangible conformation and athletic qualities and the intangible ones which persuaded them to outlay €24,000 on the colt.

“It is the individual first for us, then you look at the sire and pedigree after that, but really it is all based on the individual. The horse could have a fantastic pedigree, be related to plenty of good horses and by a really good sire, but if the horse you are looking at isn’t a good individual, then all the rest doesn’t matter,” explains J.J. Finian’s Oscar obviously possessed that special something and, in the lead up to the store sales in the spring of 2015, the gelding was showing signs of his embryonic talent.

“We knew he was going to be a good horse but you never really know how good they are going to turn out to be until they start running. He went to a good place in Joey Logan’s and that makes a difference.”

His sale after winning his point-to-point last winter for over £280,000 didn’t provoke jealousy in the Frisby family, rather pleasure that customers of theirs had achieved such stunning success.

“It is nice to see a horse that you brought on and sold go on to make plenty of money for the people you sold him to. We were delighted to see a horse we raised from a foal to a three-year-old go on and win two Grade 1 novice hurdles too,” says Frisby of the winner of last season’s Tolworth Hurdle and Mersey Novices’ Hurdle.

The only defeat in his novice hurdling season was

inflicted by Bacardys in a Grade 1 at the Punchestown Festival. Trainer Colin Tizzard switched him to novice chasing at the start of this season but, despite winning twice, the horse is due to revert to hurdles with Cheltenham in mind.

“Finian’s Oscar did extraordinary things last season.

We met Colin at the sales and he thinks the horse is a star in the making. He won his two chases nicely and jumped brilliantly; hopefully he will go on and win more Grade 1 races.”

Finian’s Oscar isn’t the only high-class horse to have spent their formative years at Glenwood Stud. J.J. bought Don’t Touch It as a foal and he beat Petit Mouchoir, Brain Power and Yorkhill in the 2016 two-mile Grade 1 Herald Champion Novice Hurdle.

“IF THE HORSE YOU ARE LOOKING AT ISN’T A GOOD INDIVIDUAL, THEN ALL THE REST DOESN’T MATTER”

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frisby family Consigned by Glenwood Stud to the 2015 Land Rover Sale, Fabulous Saga won Grade 3 and Grade 2 novice hurdles already this season

“YOU DO GO BACK TO SEE IF THERE IS ANYTHING IN THE FAMILY FOR SALE AGAIN IF IT HAS BEEN LUCKY FOR YOU” Seeyouatmidnight, who beat Blaklion in the Grade 2 Dipper Novices’ Chase on New Years’ Day 2016 is another successful Frisby pinhook, as is Oscar Knight, the multiple winning hurdler and chaser for Tom Mullins and J.P. McManus.

Frisby mentions Fabulous Saga as a ‘good young horse’ who could be the next star graduate for the father and son.

The gelding by Saint Des Saints was purchased in France as a two-year-old and has been listed placed in his last two starts over hurdles for Willie Mullins. The five-year-old won a point-to-point at four and has been successful in a bumper and twice over hurdles.

The pair buy around 30 foals and yearlings each year and the vast majority are offered for resale at the stores sales but the odd one or two are sent pointing with Michael Goff and then sold after winning their maiden.

Recently they sold Good Man Jim, a four-year-old gelding by Martaline out of Precious Lucy, for £360,000 after he won his maiden for Goff, after buying him for £14,000 at Goffs UK January Sale in 2014.

“You do go back to see if there is anything in the family for sale again if it has been lucky for you,” adds J.J..

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Good Man Jim’s half-brother by Great Pretender was picked up by J.J. Frisby at the 2015 Goffs UK January Sale for £15,000 and sold on to Warren Greatrex for €80,000 at this year’s Land Rover Sale.

Glenwood Stud is based on the family farm at Kilmacow in Co Kilkenny, near the Waterford border, and it is a family-run affair. J.J. has two brothers and three sisters, all of whom are interested in the equine area of the farm and business, but he is the only one who works full-time alongside his father on the 250 acre farm which is also home to a beef herd of 80 cattle. Horses have always been a part of the farm but thoroughbreds are a relatively recent addition.

“We had half-breds for a long time, breeding and selling them, but around 2000 we switched to thoroughbreds because the profits were much better,” he explains.

Showing and hunting had been part of his youth but now the aim is to get to Cheltenham in March to see Finian’s Oscar hopefully win the Stayers’ Hurdle.

There may not be a crock of gold at the end of every rainbow, but the Frisbys found a golden horse at Goffs.

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18/01/2018 23/11/2017 09:01 11:02

Aintree

POINT THE WAY TO

AINTREE LEO POWELL REVIEWS LAST YEAR’S GOFFS AINTREE SALE WHERE DEMAND FOR IRISH POINT-TO-POINTERS WAS INTENSE

HE

Goffs UK team were very happy with the outcome of the 2017 Aintree Sale, the second edition and held in the winners’ enclosure after the first day of racing at the Randox Health Grand National meeting.

Demand for Irish point-to-pointers was intense and Colin Bowe once again stole the show when the Presenting four-year-old Madison To Monroe, an eight-length winner at Monksgrange, sold for £300,000. The roan gelding sold to Ann and Alan Potts who were at the ringside with Tom Malone.

Leading trainers Paul Nicholls and Nicky Henderson both went home with extra ammunition. Some Man, winner of a four-runner Portrush point-to-point by five lengths, joined Nicholls and the Beat Hollow four-year-old was sold by Donnchadh Doyle for £165,000, a huge increase in valuation on his Goffs Land Rover purchase price of €36,000.

Some Man was purchased for owners Mike Grech and Stuart Parkin, as was Kupatana though she joined Nicky Henderson. The only filly in the catalogue, Kupatana is a four-year-old daughter

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Aintree

AINTREE SALE GRADUATES INCLUDE ● SAMCRO - unbeaten in five starts to-date ● CONSTANTINE BAY - Grade 2 hurdle winner ● BLACK OP ● DE RASHER COUNTER ● BLACKBOW ● KNIGHT IN DUBAI ● GIVE ME A COPPER ● CARTER MCKAY ● DALY TIGER ● SOLIGHOSTER ● CLONDAW NATIVE

FROM TOP: TOP: Nicky Henderson now trains Monksgrange point-to-point winner Kupatana. ABOVE: Just A Par was the first lot offered and was bought by Paul Nicholls for £100,000. BELOW: The sale-topper Madison To Monroe is now trained by Jessica Harrington.

BELOW RIGHT: Donnchadh Doyle (cap) bought Some Man for €36,000 at the Land Rover Sale and resold him at Aintree for £165,000

of Westerner and she was a Monksgrange point-to-point winner on her debut. With no blacktype in the family until the fifth remove, she was purchased at Goresbridge for €1,700 by Aidan Fitzgerald and he traded her for a staggering £120,000.

Tom Lacey won a point-to-point at Maisemore Park with the four-year-old Stowaway gelding Blackbow on his debut. He caught the eye of Harold Kirk who signed for him on behalf of Willie Mullins at £150,000. Blackbow made an impressive winning debut in a Leopardstown bumper over Christmas.

Another Donnchadh Doyle offering, Beneficial’s fouryear-old son Locker Room Talk was runner-up on his point-to-point debut and he cost Gearoid Costelloe £135,000 to join his partner Rebecca Curtis.

Virginia Considine led up winning point-to-pointer Royal Rendezvous, a five-year-old King’s Theatre gelding she owned with Fiona Magee until he sold for £130,000 to David Minton’s Highflyer Bloodstock. Minton was standing with Dr Peter Fitzgerald, the founder of Aintree Grand National sponsor Randox Health who was making a significant re-entry into racehorse ownership after some two decades.

The first lot in the ring was Just A Par and he was offered from the Paul Nicholls yard on behalf of Paul Barber and the executors of Graham Roach. The gelding changed hands for £100,000 but did not change stables. He ran two days later and completed the course in the Grand National, carrying the colours of Richard Thompson, son of Cheveley Park Stud owner Patricia who won the Grand National herself with Party Politics.

Goffs UK managing director Tony Williams spoke after the sale: “To achieve a top price in the £300,000 bracket once again this year is very pleasing as it shows that the Aintree Sale, now in its second year, is the measure of the market for this category. Irish pointers have proven hugely popular but it was particularly pleasing to see UK pointers sell well.”

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INSIGHT

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

I bought my first mare in 1974 to go racing but, due to injury, she never made the track. So I had her covered and my interest in breeding grew from there.

Gradually we have increased the mare numbers.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

I have had many great days selling at Goffs. Selling a King’s Theatre colt foal out of Mrs Dempsey in 2012 (for €55,000) was one of the highlights. At last year’s Goffs November Foal Sale we consigned a filly by Golden Horn for Brian Gleeson’s Brucetown Farms and she made €290,000.

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

For me, first impression is always very important. I like a horse to walk with purpose, be correct, athletic, have size and scope, and good depth of rib. Temperament

24

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

FRANK MOTHERWAY BREEDER & VENDOR YELLOWFORD FARM

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

The late Liam Cashman was my mother’s first cousin. As a young lad I used to visit Rathbarry with my parents. To watch Liam build Rathbarry into the stud it is today was a huge influence on me.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

Spending time with my 11 grandchildren, social dancing and going to the races.

and a good attitude are also very important. I don’t like a horse with small ears and a high tail-setting.

I like a horse to walk with purpose, be correct, athletic, have size and scope, and good depth of rib.

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

To start off with, get some work in a small stud and learn the basics well. The Irish National Stud course is a brilliant education and I would advise anybody keen to stay in the business to apply for a place on this course as it can open many doors.

Liam Cashman

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:28

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18/01/2018 09/10/2017 09:03 09:04

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17/01/2018 15:57

Punchestown

LEO POWELL RECOUNTS THE SUPERB TRADE DONE IN THE PUNCHESTOWN PARADE RING FOR LAST YEAR’S GOFFS PUNCHESTOWN SALE

SUPERB renewal of the Goffs Punchestown Sale warmed the parade ring on a cold evening when this record-breaking edition saw massive increases on 2016’s figures. It was left to the last lot to produce the highlight of the near hour-long trade when the Robert Tynertrained Vision Des Flos was offered. Tom Malone quickly expressed an interest and at €200,000 he appeared to have won the battle to secure the winner of that week’s Goffs Land Rover Bumper. As the hammer was about to fall auctioneer Nick Nugent received a bid of €205,000 from Caroline Tisdall, accompanied by trainer David Pipe. Malone replied quickly, but in a long drawn out affair Tisdall was

Minutestomidnight was sold for €200,000

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Punchestown

enticed to remain in contention for the four-year-old son of Balko, before finally conceding defeat when Malone offered €270,000. The gelding was purchased for the late Ann and Alan Potts. The sale topper was a €25,000 purchase at the Goffs Land Rover Sale.

Another winner that week at Punchestown was the six-year-old Vinnie Roe mare Minutestomidnight who was sold by her trainer Jonathan Sweeney. Winner of her only point-to-point start, she won a Wexford bumper by a dozen lengths before following up in the Grade 3 Weatherbys General Stud Book EBF Mares Flat Race. She sold to owner David Dunsdon for €200,000, having been bought at the Goffs Land Rover Sale for just €5,500.

Gold Cup-winning trainer Jessica Harrington secured the best of Colin Bowe’s four-horse draft, Not Many Left, for €150,000, in the process out-bidding her great friend Nicky Henderson. A winner of his maiden point-to-point a week before the sale, the four-year-old son of Oscar cost Bowe €32,000 at Goffs. Michael Buckley stood beside Nicky Henderson as he bid €140,000 to secure Burrows Edge, runner-up to the aforementioned Not Many Left at Largy the week before. He was sold by Warren Ewing and Barry Geraghty.

The Robin Des Champs four-year-old The Butcher Said finished second for trainer Emmet Mullins at Punchestown two days before the sale and was snapped up for €135,000 privately by David Minton, the most expensive of his three purchases. The agent made a second six-figure purchase

FROM TOP: Vision Des Flos topped the sale. CENTRE: David Minton and Nicky Henderson.

BOTTOM: Jessica and Kate Harrington

“THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT THE CATALOGUE WAS THE MEASURE OF ANY”

TOP LEFT: Colin Tizzard and Tom Malone. TOP RIGHT: Robert Tyner and Harold Kirk. LEFT: Andrew Nolan, Henry Beeby and Nick Nugent

28

when giving €100,000 for Colin Bowe’s Newtide, a four-year-old son of Getaway who was runner-up on his debut in a point-to-point.

Another significant sale by Bowe’s Milestone Stables was Senor Lombardy, a four-year-old Milan gelding who won a 14-runner maiden point-topoint the Sunday before the sale at Ballysteen. This €34,000 store purchase last year became a €125,000 Tom Malone acquisition and has won a bumper and novice hurdle since.

The first lot to six figures was Tom Keating’s Golden Lariat five-year-old Timber House. The point-topoint winner fell to a winning €100,000 bid from Peter Molony of Rathmore Stud. Roger Brookhouse paid the same amount for Liam Burke’s Net De Treve, and this four-year-old son of Network was runner-up in a point-to-point on his sole outing. He joined Tom George to continue his career.

Goffs Group Chief Executive Henry Beeby summed up the evening’s business: “There is no doubt that this year’s catalogue was the measure of any, with over half the catalogue having produced their form within the last week. That led to a superb trade, a record number of six-figure transactions and huge gains in every statistic, headed by an impressive 88% clearance rate.

“The original Festival sale has proved to be an outstanding success once again and clearly demonstrates that our Punchestown and Aintree Festival Sales are both credible sale venues for the best.”

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18/01/2018 17/01/2018 09:59 11:06

INSIGHT

Holywell

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

I was born into the industry; we always had horses about.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

In my first year consigning I sold both Grade 1 winner Holywell and Paddy Power Chase winner Johns Spirit at the Land Rover Sale.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

I would have to say Arcadio first, as I have handled him since he arrived in Arctic Tack.

With a strike-rate of 34%, he’s having a great run. I’m also a big fan of Mount Nelson.

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

I just love an athlete, I will always look at a horse walk from the side first and, if he looks like an athlete, we will then worry

30

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

PETER NOLAN VENDOR & BREEDER PETER NOLAN BLOODSTOCK

an excellent teacher and he taught me loads. He showed me how important it was to put the right horse in the right sale.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I’m a massive hurling fan. I follow my local and county team.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

I’d love to breed a champion twomiler.

about conformation. I don’t like horses back of their knee or toeing in.

Joe Foley taught me how important it was to put the right horse in the right sale

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Work hard, work with the best people, and listen.

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

There are two. My Dad was a great judge and I miss his influence on my career. Joe Foley, for whom I worked, was

Johns Spirit

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:30

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16/01/2018 24/11/2017 10:55 11:59

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16/01/2018 31/10/2017 10:01 13:52

LAND ROVER SALE

Etat Des Flos, a gelding by Balko, topped the Land Rover Sale at €175,000 and is in training with Philip Hobbs

SOARING STORES

LEO POWELL LOOKS BACK TO A SUPERB EDITION OF THE GOFFS LAND ROVER SALE, WHERE LESS HORSES MEANT MORE MONEY IN THE POCKETS OF SOME VERY HAPPY VENDORS

T

HE Goffs Land Rover Sale has witnessed explosive growth in recent years, spurred on by a number of factors. The sale has proven to be a fertile source of top-class winners, while vendors have supported it with an increasingly better quality of horse.

Two years ago the Goffs team revamped the sale’s format, with Part 1 limited in numbers in an effort to attract an even better standard of offering. In 2017 they tightened numbers up considerably in this section, cataloguing some 100 less lots.

Even so, the aggregate was not far short of the previous year’s total, while the day 1 clearance rate was a remarkable 93%. The average on the first day grew by 26% to a record v43,302, almost four times the figure recorded ND ROVER DAY ONE: as recently as 2009. Ironically, it was in Part 2 ● AVERAGE €43,302 of the sale that the week’s top lot emerged, and ● CLEARANCE RATE 93% this was the third highest price achieved in the ● 10 LOTS €100,000+ history of the Goffs Land Rover Sale.

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LAND ROVER SALE CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: Colin Tizzard inspects a potential purchase. BELOW: Paul Nicholls.

BOTTOM: Tom Malone

Bloodstock agent Aiden Murphy paid €175,000 for a three-year-old son of Balko consigned by Walter Connors’ Sluggara Farm in Co Waterford and the gelding’s value was boosted by the timely success of his half-brother Vision Des Flos in the 2017 Goffs Land Rover Bumper, after which he was sold for €270,000 at the Goffs Punchestown Sale.

The sale topper, named Etat Des Flos, is now in training with Philip Hobbs.

Melbourne Cup winning trainer Joseph O’Brien was stockpiling for his Piltown stable and he secured a trio of six-figure lots, notably a €160,000 threeyear-old son of Getaway offered from Johnny Collins’ Brown Island Stables. This was one of the week’s best pinhooking successes, the son of an own-sister to Grade 3 winner On The Other Hand being purchased as a foal for €16,000.

Tom Malone was underbidder on the Getaway gelding and he occupied the same role when he and O’Brien once again went head-to-head for a threeyear-old son of Network, part of the draft from Norman and Janet Williamson’s Oak Tree Farm.

Secured just a year earlier for €67,000, the gelding (already named Easywork D’Olivate) was purchased

by O’Brien for €150,000. He has a lot to live up to as the vendors have sold the last two winners of the Goffs Land Rover Bumper.

O’Brien’s spending spree was rounded off by a €100,000 three-year-old gelding from the first crop of the now deceased Fame And Glory. The relation to the smart Grade 2 chase winner Frisco Depot was

DAI WALTERS SOURCED OSCAR WHISKY FROM THIS SALE AND MADE A SERIES OF NOTABLE PURCHASES 34

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS Leo Powell picks out some key statistics from the 2017 Land Rover Sale SUCCESS breeds success and, with four Cheltenham Festival winners in 2017 being graduates of the Goffs Land Rover Sale, this fact was not lost on potential buyers. The two-day sale saw the largest ever presence of British trainers on the ground at Killdare Paddocks, with more than 20 licence holders there signing for lots, in addition to the many others who purchased through agents. All of the top Irish trainers bought and the trade was bolstered by the point-to-point men and women who were extremely active, thanks to the ongoing buoyancy of the market for Irish winners between the flags. Last season Altior was a flagbearer for the Goffs Land Rover Sale, the Grade 1 winner eventually sealing the trainers’ championship in Britain for Nicky Henderson. Willoughby Court was another Cheltenham Grade 1 winner to start his road to success in the sale ring at Goffs. While the top lots at the sale generate the most headlines, vendors can only have been delighted with the progress made in Part 2 of the sale last year. The session produced an unprecedented six-figure lot in the overall sale topper, but the number of horses selling for €40,000 or more grew from four in 2016 to 12 a year on.

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LAND ROVER SALE CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: Dai Walters and Nicky Henderson were looking for another Oscar Whisky at Goffs. BELOW: Mouse Morris and John Berry.

BOTTOM: Sarah and Joseph O’Brien

JOSEPH O’BRIEN BOUGHT A TRIO OF SIX-FIGURE LOTS consigned by Peter Molony’s Rathmore Stud, having fetched €28,000 as a foal.

Although he missed out on the two highest priced lots in Part 1, Malone would not be deterred in his pursuit of a three-year-old son of Kapgarde from Busherstown who made €125,000. Malone opened the bidding at €100,000 for the son of the useful French jumper Hillflower and quickly dealt with the challenge of Nicky Henderson. The gelding has joined Paul Nicholls for owner Colm Donlon.

The Lakefield Farm draft is one of the most anticipated at the store sales each year, and this time John Bleahen’s highlight was another threeyear-old son of Getaway out of the winning Old Vic mare Saintly Lady. Costing just €14,000 as a foal, his value soared to €120,000, at which figure he fell to the bid of Mouse Morris.

Gordon Elliott was another trainer who was busy buying for his Co Meath base and two of his acquisitions were in the six-figure territory. A three-year-old Robin Des Champs half-brother to the 2017 Cheltenham Festival winner Tully East (a Goffs Land Rover Sale graduate) was the more expensive of the pair, the Walshtown Stables offering realising €115,000. Earlier in the Elliott paid €100,000 for Sladoo Farm’s threeyear-old Getaway half-brother to Miracle In Medinah, a bumper winner from his stables for

WHAT THEY SAID “The sale was strong all the way through. As ever you had to have what everyone is looking for, but it’s encouraging to see trade following on from what we saw at the [Goffs UK] Spring Sale.”

Norman Williamson, Oak Tree Farm “It was very strong, there’s no doubt about it. The quality was good and the demand was there for horses, so when you put those two together you are going to have a good sale.”

Tom Malone, bloodstock agent.

“I would say it was strong and healthy trade and everybody was there. The overall standard was good and we saw a continuation of the trends at the [Goffs UK] Spring Sale.”

David Minton, Highflyer Bloodstock.

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LAND ROVER SALE

“BLOWN AWAY BY SALE’S STRENGTH AND DEPTH” HENRY BEEBY WAS DELIGHTED AT THE 2017 LAND ROVER SALE RETURNS

Turnover at the Land Rover Sale grew again in 2017 despite offering 100 fewer horses

THE CLEARANCE RATE WAS A REMARKABLE 93% J.P. McManus. Prominent owner Dai Walters, and the man who developed Ffos Las racecourse, sourced the Grade 1 winner Oscar Whisky from this sale a decade ago and he made a series of notable purchases. His spending was headed by a €110,000 three-year-old son of Oscar out of an own-sister to his own top-class Whisper, a dual winner of the Grade 1 Liverpool Hurdle. Nicky Henderson was set to take charge of the Goldford Stud offering, sold on behalf of Lady Jane Grosvenor.

Bobby O’Ryan was another purchaser to hit the €100,000 mark when he secured a three-year-old son of Presenting out of a winning daughter of the Grade 1-placed Hannigan’s Leader, offered by the Cashman’s Rathbarry Stud. The agent confirmed that the gelding would remain in Ireland to race.

DAY 1 AVERAGE PRICE AT THE LAND ROVER SALE 2010-1017

50k €43,302

40k

€37,336

30k

€26,632 €20,016

20k

€14,108 €12,435

10k

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€36,502

€34,220

“WITH four more winners at Cheltenham 2017 than any other store sale, and what we thought was a catalogue of real quality spread over the two days, we were quietly hopeful of a good trade, especially after enjoying such vibrancy at Goffs UK in May. However, even we were blown away by the strength and depth of the sale that returned strong growth in every area. The Part 1 average and median both rose to record levels, up by over a quarter and a third respectively, all backed up by a simply amazing clearance rate of 93%. Part 2 trade also proved extremely strong with records again, and it was especially noteworthy that the gap between the average and median was relatively little - which points to a very level trade throughout. That impression was totally endorsed by the clearance rate of 88% over the two days which was driven by a near frenzied trade from start to finish and at all levels, not least at the top with 10 lots breaking the six-figure barrier, another record for the Land Rover Sale.

That the turnover grew despite offering 100 less lots is further testament to the vibrancy of the market. We are extremely grateful to our vendors who provide us with catalogues of rising quality each year and, indeed, this is a sale that now regularly competes for the very best, a fact that is then vindicated by the many successes of Land Rover graduates at the highest level year after year. Clearly these results are not lost on potential purchasers and we were delighted to welcome so many visitors over the two days, including some major first time attendees from the UK who responded so positively to the entreaties of the Goffs team and our friends at Irish Thoroughbred Marketing.”

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dan skelton

BORN WINNER A

DAN SKELTON ALMOST MISSED HIS VOCATION BUT HE TELLS DONN MCCLEAN HE IS FULLY FOCUSED ON TRAINING WINNERS NOW

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dan skelton

D

AN Skelton woke up on the morning of November 20th with 99 National Hunt winners on the board in Britain for the season. He had two runners at Leicester that afternoon: Pokora Du Lys was well beaten in the two-mile handicap hurdle, but Destrier went out two hours later and, ridden

by Dan’s brother Harry (aren’t they all?), stayed on strongly to land the novices’ hurdle.

That was a century. A hundred winners for the 2017/18 season.

It wasn’t the first time that Dan Skelton had broken through the 100-winner barrier in a season. Actually, he had done it twice before, but never as early as this, never in November. Two years ago, he just about got there, got to 104 by the time the curtain came down.

Last season, he got there in early April, with just a couple of weeks to spare, and reached 118 by the time the season ended.

This year, he had 100 winners on the board before they turned on the Christmas lights in Birmingham.

God knows how many he will have by the end of the term.

To put it into context, on the day that Skelton had his 100th winner of the season, also at Leicester, an hour and a half before Destrier won, Paul Nicholls had his 61st. At the time, Jonjo O’Neill had 47 winners on the board for the season, Nicky Henderson had 43, Donald McCain also had 43, Nigel Twiston-Davies had 35. Skelton was clear. And he had also amassed more prize money than any other trainer.

Nick, Harry and Dan Skelton on the gallops

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dan skelton Superb Story was an impressive winner of the County Hurdle at Cheltenham

“I LEARNED FROM PAUL AND CLIFFORD, AND I LEARNED FROM RUBY” And now, sitting at the table in the kitchen at Lodge Hill, a list of entries to his right, a bowl of porridge in front of him (is that the secret?), Dan Skelton is in pensive mood.

“It’s been great,” he says thoughtfully. “We made a great start to the season and the horses have been running superbly well. We don’t set targets, we just aim to have as many winners as we can have.”

It has always been about horses for Skelton. You can’t be Nick Skelton’s son and not have it all about horses. Nick Skelton? Show jumper, one of the best that Britain has ever produced, won just about every major prize in the sport, including, famously, Olympic gold in Rio in 2016 at the age of 58 on Big Star.

“We had this extraordinary pony,” says Dan. “Oxo. We all learned to ride on Oxo.” When he says we all, he means himself and his brother Harry. And his dad.

“There’s Oxo there,” he says, pointing to an old picture on the wall, with a boy on his back who can’t be any more than six or seven years old.

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“That’s dad on Oxo.” Oxo was born the year that Nick Skelton was born and lived to be 39. Extraordinary is right. You wonder did he also win the Grand National in 1959. He would have been two years old. Probably not.

“We always had ponies growing up,” says Skelton.

“My mum and dad split up when Harry and I were young. We lived with mum and we moved quite a lot, moving house, moving school. It was a bit difficult, we had good fun but we didn’t have a lot of settled time. We always had ponies though, and we always went to the shows with dad, and mum would always make sure that we took our ponies jumping.”

As the lads got older, their riding improved, they got better ponies and their riding improved. One begot the other.

“Harry was a better rider than me!” admits Dan. “He had better ponies. I think if he had stuck with show jumping, he would have made it, he would have been successful. Maybe not at dad’s level, but he definitely would have made it. I might have made it, but it would have been more through determination than skill.”

Dan left school when he was 17 and decided to give show jumping a go. He remembers going to a show

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dan skelton Dan, Nick & Harry

Paul Nicholls and Dan

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dan skelton

very soon afterwards, the second or third show that he went to after leaving school – disaster.

“I knocked everything down, won nothing. I got a rude awakening that day. And I went home thinking, this is going to be a very long road if this is the road I go down.”

Dan went back to his education, went to university to study design, but horses remained as a big part of his life. A friend of his, Tom Ellis, had point-topointers, so he used to go down there early in the mornings before university to ride the pointers.

He got his own pointer, Mick The Cutaway, rode him in his first point-to-point at Barbury Castle, and won. John Hales, who owned Arko III, one of Nick Skelton’s best show jumpers, said that he would give Dan a horse, an ex-National Hunt horse, who could run in points. And Dan thought, ‘I’d better go and see what this racing business is all about.’

He was still at university at the time, but he went down to Paul Nicholls’ for a week, after which the trainer texted Dan’s dad and told him that, if ever Dan

HARRY AND I SAID TO EACH OTHER BEFORE THE RACE, JUST KEEP HIM OUT OF TROUBLE AND HE’LL WIN. THAT WAS A GREAT DAY.”

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wanted a job, he would find something for him to do.

While show jumping was his gateway, Dan was getting more and more interested in racing at the time. He joined Cheltenham’s 16-24 club when he was 16, and rarely missed a meeting. He loved the week that he spent at Paul Nicholls’, riding out or mucking out or doing whatever needed to be done, and he decided that he would take him up on his offer of a job.

“Paul created this role for me, pupil assistant. But I was hardly there a month when Paul’s assistant trainer Bobby McNally decided to leave to go back riding. I remember Paul ringing me and asking me to come and see him. I was thinking, well at least I lasted a month.”

The conversation went something like this: PFN: “Bobby’s leaving. You’d better do it.”

DS: “Are you sure? You know that I actually know next to f*** all about racing.”

PFN: “Horses are horses. You know horses. Clifford and I will help you.”

That was in 2005. Thisthatandtother won the inaugural running of the Daily Telegraph Trophy (the modern day Ryanair) at the Cheltenham Festival that year, Azertyuiop won the Game Spirit Chase and Paul Nicholls was just beaten by Martin Pipe to the trainers’ championship. The following season, however, 2005/06, with Skelton as his assistant, Nicholls won his first title.

“I just learned as I went,” says Dan. “I learned from Paul and Clifford, and I learned from Ruby. Paul and Ruby were always brilliant at planning. Both of them. Ruby would get off a horse in November and say, he’ll win the

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dan skelton North Hill Harvey was a Grade 2 novice chase winner at Cheltenham in November

Racing Post Chase. That’s the race for him. And Paul plans meticulously. Clifford is very shrewd, he’s quiet, but he’s great, and he keeps his horses in the best of form.”

They were brilliant years. They had some success, they had some horses. Neptune Collonges and Master Minded and Big Buck’s and Twist Magic and Denman and Kauto Star. Where do you stop? They had a stable full of superstars and success was constant. Even so, Dan always had a hankering that, one day, he would try to go it alone.

“Dad bought this place, and I said to him, what, are you going to make the hill higher? You wouldn’t get mice fit on that hill.”

Things change, horses change, training methodologies change.

“Horses are not as tough as they used to be,” says Skelton. “The bulk of work that those top horses in Paul’s did, Kauto Star, Denman, Master Minded, Twist Magic, horses couldn’t do it now. Maybe everybody caught up.

Pipe revolutionised it, Nicholls took it to the next level, and everybody has caught up now. Maybe that exceptionally fit element will only get you so far now. Maybe now you have to find different tweaks, different ways for different horses. Nowadays, we get horses who we can’t train on the hill. I never remember having a horse in those days that wouldn’t train on the hill at Ditcheat.”

It was just after Christmas, in early 2013, that Dan went to Paul Nicholls and said, look, I think I need to give this a go myself. The conversation went something like this: DS: “Look, I think I need to give this a go myself.”

PFN: “Right, no problem.”

DS: “I’ll stay until the end of the season.”

PFN: “Okay, good.”

“Paul wasn’t really surprised,” recalls Dan. “I remember driving to Wincanton with him one day, and asking him

“YOU’LL BE A TRAINER, HE TOLD ME. YOU CAN TRAIN. STRAIGHT UP. HE KNEW THAT I WAS GOING TO DO IT PROBABLY BEFORE I KNEW IT.”

what he thought I should do in the future. You’ll be a trainer, he told me. You can train. Straight up.

He knew that I was going to do it probably before I knew it.”

His aim was to have runners from the start, and winners. Mister Grez won a handicap chase at Ffos Las on 13th October 2013, and he was off. It all happened very quickly.

“I have to be honest, I didn’t find it difficult to get owners. I obviously had the experience, and dad had just won the Olympic medal, and we put in this gallop that they had at the Olympics, raised off the ground, and we had lots of interest. Lots of people wanted to have horses with us.”

He loves having runners, he tells you, he loves having winners. When you have plenty of runners, it makes it easier to get over the disappointment of a loss, because you know that the next runner, the next winner, is probably not far away. When you have had over 400 runners this season so far, more runners than any other trainer in Britain, and you can still operate at a strike rate of 24%, it is reasonable to expect that the next winner is not far away.

Some winners are more special than others though.

Willow’s Saviour’s win in the Ladbroke Hurdle at Ascot in December 2013, just a few months after he had taken out a licence. Blue Heron’s win in the Kingwell Hurdle. Ch’Tibello’s win in the Scottish Champion Hurdle. Superb Story’s win in the County Hurdle, his first Cheltenham Festival win.

“We kept Superb Story for the race, and it worked.

We tried to do the same thing last season with North Hill Harvey, but it didn’t work. North Hill Harvey needs to run more often. But with Superb Story, it worked perfectly. Harry and I said to each other before the race, just keep him out of trouble and he’ll win. That was a great day. Dad was there, Grace was there, everyone was there.”

It’s a family affair too. Dad Nick is a great buyer of a horse, Goffs feature high on his radar, and he is always on hand if Dan has a problem, if there is an issue on which he needs an opinion. Dan’s wife Grace is a big help and, of course, Harry keeps on kicking them home.

“It probably took Harry a little while to adapt from show jumping. But he is riding great now, and he has great opinions on horses. The owners always want to know what Harry thinks.”

This year, no great ambitions, no major targets.

Same as usual then. Just keep having runners, keep having winners, and if he has the horses to win one or two of the big races, then go and win them too.

He doesn’t think that he can be champion trainer this year, but, you never know, one day it might happen. If and when it does, the conversation will probably go something like this: PFN: “Well done.”

DS: “Thanks.”

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INSIGHT his eldest crop have just turned two.

Jukebox Jury looks like an exciting recruit for Burgage, he was a good tough racehorse and his son Farclas made a very promising Irish debut at Leopardstown over Christmas.

Farclas (left) is a son of Jukebox Jury

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse?

I’ll forgive most things in moderation except their walk.

Although not a physical, their attitude and character count a lot for me.

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

I was very lucky to grow up surrounded by horses of all descriptions and was given a homebred filly when I was 12 or so, but ended up pony clubbing then eventing her rather than selling or racing as she didn’t grow enough. My first real purchase was a Cadoudal foal I bought with Bertrand Le Metayer in France. We only made a few francs on him and that was at the second time of asking, but we both learnt a lot from the experience.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

A filly that I bought for a new owner back in the old Doncaster complex. The vendor subsequently decided they wanted to buy her back but my new owner was very reluctant to part with her. A bidding war ensued until he eventually sold her back to them. He was then able to have a few more horses with me and this really helped to get me going early on.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

Getaway probably doesn’t count as ‘young’ now but they look like proper chasing types that will do well with time. I’ve seen some nice Masked Marvels in France,

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FIVE MINUTES WITH…

KATIE RUDD VENDOR BUSHERSTOWN HOUSE

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Nothing concentrates the mind like spending your own money! Get some good advice and get involved even if just by taking a leg to start with.

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

Francois Doumen’s was a baptism of fire when I first went there, but as a horseman, he was second to none. He was never afraid to try something different and he was forever thinking ‘outside the box’, plus his attention to detail was extraordinary.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

Hunting and languages, plus an annual skiing trip.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

Hailing from near Cheltenham it would have to be to breed or pinhook a Cheltenham Gold Cup winner!

Masked Marvel

I’ll forgive most things in moderation, except their walk. Attitude and character count a lot for me.

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18/01/2018 17:59

FUISSÉ

FIRST SEASON IN IRELAND 2018

Sire: GREEN TUNE Dam: FUNNY FEERIE

Bay 2006, 16.3 hh (1.70m)

A Gr.1 Winning Miler Won seven races from 2 to 4 years, €842,115, and placed 6 times, all but one of his starts.

Won Gr.1 Prix du Moulin, 1600m, Longchamp, beating Gr.1 Winners and successful sires LOPE DE VEGA, PACO BOY, RIO DE LA PLATA, SIYOUNI, etc.

''Produced a smart turn of foot... a classy colt...'' Racing Post Also WON two Group 3 and two Listed Races

Sire of: HIGH ALPHA – BLACK MAX – DUCE CAPITAINE FREGATE -LADY COMMANDMENT DELICE DE HOULEY -PORTOBELLO Also sire of debutant winning 4yo pointer PETERBOROUGH for Monbeg Stables Over half of his winners win again

IDEAL CROSS FOR SADLER'S WELLS AND DANZIG LINE MARES

LUCARNO

THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT

Sire: DYNAFORMER Dam: VIGNETTE

Bay 2004, 16.3 hh (1.70m)

Champion 3 yo stayer in England Winner of 5 races, £573,879 at 3 and 4 years, 8-14f) incl.

Racehouse of 2007: 121

“Travels strongly... is not short of speed...’’

Racehourses of 2008: 121

“Big, strong, close-coupled colt... very smart performer” Recent Gr.1 St Leger winners include successful sires MILAN, SIXTIES ICON, SCORPION, etc.

Sire of; IDEAL OUTCROSS FOR SADLER'S WELLS LINE MARES

MONBEG WORLDWIDE – LADY OF LAMANVER- MR KIT CAT G FOR GINGER – LAMANVER ODYSSEY - SUMMER STORM – GLOBAL DREAM – POWDER HOUND – PERSIAN DELIGHTGORVINO DAME DE COMPAGNIE – BOTE DIVIN – ROYCANO – POLITICAL QUIZ

STOCK HAVE MADE £70,000, £65,000, £60.000 IN 2017

LONGFORD HOUSE STUD, TEMPLEMORE, CO TIPPERARY, IRELAND Contact: June lewis tel: +353 (0) 89 4802 181 email: longfordbloodstock@gmail.com

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Home is the place where memories are made.

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We understand that when making your Will, you’ll want to care for those closest to you first, but once you have, any contribution to Focus Ireland can make such a big difference. Please contact Pauline Costello in Focus Ireland, in complete confidence, on 01 881 5900. Thank you.

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GOFFS GRADUATES

STARS OF THE SEASON

WHAT A SEASON IT WAS FOR GRADUATES OF THE VARIOUS GOFFS AND GOFFS UK NATIONAL HUNT SALES. ANNE MARIE DUFF PICKS OUT SOME OF THE LATEST JUMPING STARS SOURCED AT GOFFS SALES

WILLOUGHBY COURT SALE Goffs Land Rover Sale 2014 CONSIGNED Pine Tree Stud PURCHASED Highflyer Bloodstock (€48,000) OWNER Paul & Clare Rooney TRAINER Ben Pauling This imposing gelding gamely made all to win the Grade 1 Neptune Investments Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. It was his third win in a row. This season he made a successful debut over fences and he is expected to take high rank among this season’s novices.

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GOFFS GRADUATES

ALTIOR SALE Goffs Land Rover Sale 2013 CONSIGNED Kilmoney Cottage Stud PURCHASED Highflyer Bloodstock (€60,000) OWNER Mrs Patricia Pugh TRAINER Nicky Henderson One of the most exciting chasers of recent years, winner of his five chases by an average of 22 lengths and yet to be tested over obstacles.

Altior is unbeaten in 12 runs over hurdles and fences for trainer Nicky Henderson. His four Grade 1 wins to-date include the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and Arkle Chase at the Cheltenham Festival. He was rated the top twomile novice chaser on 170 in the 2016-’17 AngloIrish ratings.

THE WORLDS END SALE Goffs Land Rover Sale 2014 CONSIGNED Jerome Sheehan/Silverbirch Stables PURCHASED Monbeg Stables (€20,000) OWNER McNeill Family TRAINER Tom George A talented young hurdler and the winner of four of his six races over hurdles, including the Grade 1 Sefton Novices Hurdle at Aintree. He looks likely to take a big hand in staying hurdles this season, with the Grade 1 Stayers’ Hurdle his likely target.

UN TEMPS POUR TOUT SALE Goffs UK Hennessy Sales CONSIGNOR Selwood Bloodstock (Agent) PURCHASER David Pipe (£450,000) OWNER Professor Caroline Tisdall & Bryan Drew TRAINER David Pipe Winner of the Grade 3 Ultima Handicap Chase at the Cheltenham Festival two years in a row, he also won over hurdles at Aintree earlier in the season and, of course, he is a former French Champion Hurdle winner for David Pipe.

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GOFFS GRADUATES

PETIT MOUCHOIR SALE Goffs Land Rover Sale 2014 CONSIGNOR Brown Island Stables PURCHASER Harold Kirk/Willie Mullins (€100,000) OWNER Gigginstown House Stud TRAINER Henry de Bromhead What an impressive CV this young horse has already accumulated. He won a point-to-point, the Goffs Land Rover Bumper and last season he was a dual Grade 1 hurdle winner at Leopardstown. Petit Mouchoir made an impressive winning debut over fences this autumn and, sidelined for the winter months, looks sure to add to his haul later this season.

BALLYANDY SALE Goffs UK December Sale 2011 CONSIGNOR Overbury Stud PURCHASER Highflyer Bloodstock (£16,000) OWNER Options O Syndicate TRAINER Nigel Twiston-Davies A former Cheltenham Festival Bumper winner, he kept top company in all his races last season and notched up his biggest win when he justified favouritism in the very valuable Betfair Hurdle.

He’s gone on to make a winning debut over fences this season and is a leading contender for the top novice chases.

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GOFFS GRADUATES

TEA FOR TWO SALE Goffs UK Doncaster Spring Stores Sale 2012 CONSIGNOR Trickledown Stud PURCHASER Mrs J. Williams (£24,000) OWNER Mrs Jane Williams & Len Jakeman TRAINER Nick Williams A consistent chaser at the top level, he won his second Grade 1 when battling on to beat Cue Card in the Betway Bowl Chase at Aintree to follow up an Exeter graduation chase win earlier in the season.

SUPASUNDAE SALE Goffs UK November Sale 2013 CONSIGNOR Earl I. Mack from Lodge Farm Stud FR PURCHASER Ivy Lea Farm (£5,000 private sale) OWNER Ann & Alan Potts Ltd TRAINER Jessica Harrington Winner of Coral Cup at the Cheltenham Festival and second in the Grade 1 Stayers’ Hurdle at Aintree.

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NEW SEVEN-FURLONG STRAIGHT FOR CORK RACECOURSE EXCITING TIMES AS PLANS FOR NEW TRACK AT MALLOW COME TO FRUITION Work has commenced on a new straight seven-furlong track at Cork Racecourse in Mallow. Groundwork began in July 2017 on extending the current six-furlong sprint track, which when complete will make it one of only two straight sevenfurlong facilities in the country.

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed TD, welcomed the development, stating: “I am delighted to hear that Cork Racecourse is developing the potential of this wonderful local amenity by availing of funding for a new sprint track through HRI’s Racetrack Improvements Scheme.”

Chairman of Cork Racecourse, Mallow, Tom Gaffney, commented: “The investment in the track, extending the sprint track to seven-furlongs, displays the ambition of Cork Racecourse. The extensive work on the current straight reflects the objective of the board members to provide the optimum ground for racing. The work now

being carried out follows consultation and input from trainers and jockeys. We are also delighted to announce a full National Hunt card on Easter Monday 2018.”

Brian Kavanagh, CEO of Horse Racing Ireland, said: “Horse Racing Ireland is very happy to support the investment in Cork under our Racetrack Improvements Scheme, and this hugely positive development for Cork Racecourse shows a vibrant, active board

at Mallow always keen to improve. In many ways the new straight seven-furlong track is a potential game-changer for the venue, and an important investment in the future of Cork Racecourse.”

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GOFFS GRADUATES

LABAIK SALE Goffs UK August Sale 2016 CONSIGNOR Shadwell Estate Co Ltd PURCHASER Aidan O’Ryan/Gordon Elliott (£25,000) OWNER Aidan J. O’Ryan TRAINER Gordon Elliott Labaik won his maiden hurdle and a Grade 3 novice hurdle at Navan before returning to his best form when an impressive winner of the Grade 1 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham. He was rated the top novice hurdler of the season.

YANWORTH SALE Goffs UK Doncaster Spring Stores Sale 2013 CONSIGNOR Wood Farm Stud PURCHASER Highflyer/Alan King (£16,000) OWNER J.P. McManus TRAINER Alan King Yanworth was one of the best hurdlers of last season. His two Grade 1 wins included the Stayers Hurdle at Aintree and he even started favourite for the Champion Hurdle. He’s made a good start to his chasing career too, winning the Grade 2 Dipper Novices’ Chase at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day.

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GOFFS GRADUATES

CLOUDY DREAM SALE Goff UK Doncaster Spring Stores Sale 2013 CONSIGNOR Mocklershill Stables PURCHASER Highflyer Bloodstock (£16,000) OWNER Trevor Hemmings TRAINER Malcolm Jefferson Among the top novice chasers last season, Cloudy Dream won his first outing over fences and followed that with second placings to high class rivals in Grade 1s at Cheltenham and Aintree before gaining a Grade 2 victory in the Future Champions Novice at Ayr.

TIGER ROLL SALE Goffs UK Doncaster August 2013 CONSIGNOR Darley PURCHASER Nigel Hawke (£10,000) OWNER Gigginstown House Stud TRAINER Gordon Elliott This former Triumph Hurdle winner has been a marvellous moneyspinner. Last season alone he landed the valuable Munster National at Limerick and went on to run out a ready winner of the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival.

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FINIAN’S OSCAR SALE Goffs December NH Sale 2012 CONSIGNED Richard & Martin O’Keeffe PURCHASER Richard Frisby (€24,000) OWNER Ann & Alan Potts Ltd TRAINER Colin Tizzard Finian’s Oscar hit the headlines last season for winning a Grade 1 hurdle at Sandown just 77 days after winning his point-to-point. He won another Grade 1 at Aintree and was arguably unlucky not to bag a third at Punchestown. His novice chasing campaign got off to a great start in October/ November 2017 with two impressive wins and he looks a live Cheltenham challenger again.

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17/01/2018 15/01/2018 16:09 12:46

December Sale

This colt foal by Walk In The Park out of Glens Melody sold for €72,000

CONFIDENCE

IN THE FUTURE THE GOFFS DECEMBER NATIONAL HUNT SALE CONTINUES TO GO FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH, WRITES LEO POWELL

A SECOND six-figure transaction in as many years and a substantially improved level of demand for foals played their part in the Goffs December National Hunt Sale concluding with another improved set of results. A turnover of €4.3 million was an 18% improvement on the previous year’s tally, while the average of €12,162 also grew. The clearance rate progressed by six percentage points. A total of 27 foals made at least €30,000 as against 16 who managed it the year before. An excellent year for the National Hunt market at Goffs drew their sales season to a close and there is every reason to believe that progress can continue into 2018. For the second year in succession a talented Gigginstown House Stud-owned mare led the way as Tocororo fetched €100,000. The daughter of Teofilo was sold in foal to Walk In The Park, while her appeal was further heightened by a Grade 3 victory over fences. The five-year-old was bought by Kieran Mariga who paid €130,000 for Petite Parisienne at this sale a year earlier.

VALUABLE COLT FOAL The standout foal was a son of Walk In The Park and the dual Grade 1 and Cheltenham Festival heroine Glens Melody who fetched €72,000.

He was offered by Ballincurrig House Stud on behalf of Fiona McStay and was bought over the phone by Goffs auctioneer George Stanners for a client of Yorkshire-based trainer Philip Kirby. The colt’s grandam Glens Music has produced five blacktype performers from as many runners. Glens Melody is the best of that quintet.

Nenagh-based Grange Hill Stud offered some quality foals from the immediate family of their dual Grade 1 Aintree Hurdle winner Oscar Whisky. Foremost was a €50,000 son of Getaway and trainer Martin Lynch signed for him, reporting that his purchase would return for sale as a three-year-old. Grange Hill offered a Presenting colt out of an ownsister to Oscar Whisky and he cost Dromoland Farm €40,000.

Presenting passed away last autumn but the multiple champion sire will be making his presence felt for some time. His nine foals averaged just over €24,000 and the pick was a €50,000 colt snapped up by Moanmore Stables’ Peter Vaughan. The John Hayes-consigned colt is out of a three-time winner who numbers unbeaten Grade 1 winner Feathard Lady (dam of Augusta Kate) among her siblings.

Leading pinhooker Dick Frisby was busy as he accumulated stock for future sales and he signed for four of the top 10 lots. Frisby headed

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December Sale Tocororo, in foal to Walk In The Park, was bought for €100,000 by Kieran Mariga

ABOVE: Aidan Aherne with his Milan filly foal out of Bobbing Back.

Consigned by Quill Farm, she was purchased by Gerry Hogan Bloodstock on behalf of Swanbridge Bloodstock for €46,000

his spending when giving €50,000 for Ballincurrig House Stud’s Walk In The Park half-brother to smart chaser King’s Odyssey.

He followed this by going to €47,000 to secure a son of Getaway offered by Limekiln Stud. This colt is out of the Grade 2-placed hurdler Celtic Cailin.

Other notable purchases by the Glenwood Stud man included a €39,000 Flemensfirth colt, while he spent the same on a Leading Light half-brother to a pair of blacktype performers.

expensive was a €46,000 Milan half-sister to the Aintree Grand National winner Many Clouds. Quill Farm offered her on behalf of Aidan Aherne and she is also a half-sister to the dual Grade 1 winner The Tullow Tank. Gerry Hogan, acting for Swanbridge Bloodstock, signed for the filly.

Just a few minutes later a daughter Sholokhov cost Stephen Kemble €41,000. She is the first produce of the Grade 2 winner Burn And Turn and from the family of Space Trucker.

Progeny of Flemensfirth are among the most sought after in the sales ring and he was responsible for five foals who made at least €30,000. This quintet were headed by a €44,000 colt whom Brendan Bashford bought on behalf of Norman Williamson.

Ian Ferguson forked out €40,000 for a son of his consigned by Ballincurrig House Stud for Cathal Ennis. The colt is out of a winning half-sister to the Grand National winner Ballabriggs.

Agent Kevin Ross secured a number of good foals for resale.

They featured a €37,000 son of Getaway from the Ballincurrig House draft, purchased on behalf of Chris Jones’ Killeen Glebe.

Ross matched this price for a Shantou colt, while he gave €30,000 for a colt from the first Irish crop of Conduit.

Henry Beeby summed up the trade: “The December National Hunt Sale is one of the many success stories for Goffs in recent years and has grown by a staggering 700% in this decade alone, clearly demonstrating that it sits at the top table for the category.

“Indeed, Goffs is increasingly becoming the first choice for so many NH breeders and consignors as our ‘Serious about National Hunt’ mantra has resonated with the industry, so much so that our Land Rover, Punchestown and December Sales now genuinely contend for market leading status in their category as increasing numbers appreciate our unique customer-focussed approach.

“The two day sale welcomed a huge crowd of buyers from home and increased numbers from the UK, leading to a vibrant trade topped by only the second ever six-figure National Hunt mare and the beautifully bred colt foal at €72,000, himself the third highest priced National Hunt foal we have sold.

“Of course the catalogue is dominated by NH foals and the category has made more serious ground with advances in clearance, average and median, while probably the most telling statistic is that the number of foals to make €25,000 or over leapt from 26 last year (in what was a good trade in its own right) to 44 over the two days.”

MANY CLOUDS It was encouraging to see that the highest priced foals included several well-bred fillies and the most

DECEMBER SALE IN BRIEF

% 700 growth in turnover in this decade

44

foals sold for €25,000 or more

Broodmare sells for

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Thoroughbred Owner Breeder Nov 2017_Layout 1 10/10/2017 13:30 Page 1

Monsieur Bond

(IRE)

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Winners of Group 1, Prix de L'Abbaye, Move In Time & Gilt Edge Girl Ladies Are Forever, winner of Group 3 races Hoof It, winner of over £369,000 Gilt Edge Girl sold for 550,000 Euros Sire of Winners of over 450 races and over £5.5m Prizemoney

Sire of – MOVE IN TIME LADIES ARE FOREVER HOOF IT GILT EDGE GIRL BOND’S GIRL RENE MATHIS CHOOKIE ROYALE ALFRED HUTCHINSON DUNGANNON FELIX LEITER MY NAME IS BOND SOIE D’LEAU MONTALBANO EXPENSIVE DATE MAGNETISM BONSON FRED RAZZMATAZZ SNEAK PREVIEW

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16/01/2018 12/10/2017 10:07 09:30

INSIGHT them, to be honest! I am no expert but obviously a correct, scopey individual with a good walk is a big help.

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Be willing to put in the hours and you will get your rewards. It’s a tough but great game!

Identity Thief

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

My father brought a filly foal home from the sales when I was 11 and that was the beginning of the end!

Her daughter, Lemon Cello, is still breeding with us.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

Our foals got champion colt and filly in their show classes at the 2013 Goffs December NH Sale.

They sold for €30,000 and €25,000 respectively that year. It was my first year selling through Michael Moore and the Ballincurrig House stud team – that has proved a good decision as they do an excellent job in sales preparation.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

Getaway and Soldier Of Fortune.

Getaway is a fine, big horse getting talented racehorses. I love how tough Soldier Of Fortune’s stock seem to be – they seem to find plenty for pressure. There are lots of other promising young NH stallions – the likes of Court Cave, Mount Nelson, Champs Elysses, Doyen, Shirocco, Yeats, Sholokhov and Mahler, to name but a few.

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

CATHAL ENNIS BREEDER & VENDOR QUILL FARM

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

Too many to name them all here to be honest. I would have to say my mother and father – Carmel and Stephen Ennis. Without their hard work and sacrifices I would have nothing – I owe them everything.

I should give a shout-out to trainer Peter Fahey too. When I needed it most he delivered for us. My vet, Michael O’Donoghue from Mullingar, has also played a key role in the business. Finally, my cousin Michael Ennis manages the farm and has been central to any success achieved.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I am a massive sports fan in general but my biggest passion is gaelic football. I still (try to) play for my local club Ballinagore in Westmeath.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

To stay in the game and breed winners! Grade 1 winner Identity Thief is the best I have bred to-date.

Be willing to put in the hours and you will get your rewards. It’s a tough but great game!

Soldier Of Fortune

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

I am more used to trying to sell

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DAVY RUSSELL

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DAVY RUSSELL

THE

THE GIGGINSTOWN JOB CHANGED MY MINDSET ABOUT RACE RIDING. MICHAEL LIKES YOU TO JUMP OFF, GET CLOSE UP AND RIDE THEM LIKE GOOD HORSES

TEA SHOCK GOFFS’ DIRECTOR NICK NUGENT HEARS ALL ABOUT DAVY RUSSELL’S PLANS FOR LIFE AFTER RACING If people, rather than wine, were defined by a vintage, 1979 would be a noteworthy one in Ireland with the birth of several of the nation’s greatest sportsmen. Rugby players Brian O’Driscoll and Paul O’Connell, hurling legend Henry Shefflin and soccer players Damien Duff and Richard Dunne have all now retired, yet three Gold Cup winning riders from the same crop - Davy Russell, Ruby Walsh and Barry Geraghty - still remain at the top of their game. They must also be the first active jump jockeys in history to share their year of birth with the Taoiseach, as they do with Leo Varadkar.

Although any 38-year-old is ‘on the back nine’ of a riding career, Davy Russell’s skills have never been held in higher regard on both sides of the Irish Sea. While he has experienced the fallout from a couple of incidents that were unequivocally imprudent, the maturity of his reaction to another ‘off the ball’ moment helped raise Russell’s standing among ordinary racegoers - that well-documented cup of tea with Michael O’Leary which ended his contract as Gigginstown’s retained rider.

The recent Christmas and New Year period provided a fruitful few days for Russell with winners on every racing day, and Grade 1 victories on Apple’s Jade and Mick Jazz. The former was due to be ridden by Jack Kennedy and the latter was not expected to score in a race that featured Faugheen, but such are the vagaries of jump racing.

Russell starts 2018 with a commanding lead in the jockeys’ championship but the side-lining with injury of his nearest rival Ruby Walsh is a stark reminder of the perils that must be overcome if he is to win his third crown.

Since 2006 he has not missed riding a winner at the Cheltenham Festival, with 18 successes for 11 different trainers. All but two have been trained in Ireland and include the 2014 Gold Cup winner Lord Windermere.

Over that period he has also laid the foundations for a secondary career in the breeding, rearing and trading of young horses. It all started in May 2003 at Doncaster, with the purchase for 3,000gns of a three-year-old by Germany.

“He got loose in the parade ring, which kept his price down!”

Unlike most of his contemporaries, Russell is not from a traditional racing background. “My father was a mechanic by trade but was raised on a farm in Conna, across from Jimmy Mangan. His first mares were

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DAVY RUSSELL Multiple Grade 1 winner Solwhit was a key horse in Davy’s career

often part-payment for a car – it was through a sale of a Renault 21 that he acquired a mare called Lochadoo. He bred Grade 1 winner Colonel Braxton from her and that is how my interest started – following horses that had been bred at home.

“My parents bought a farm on the edge of Youghal which I now have.

It was a great childhood, to live on a farm but also in a town. It was only a mile to walk to school, not that I was that interested. I loved English, Irish and History but hated everything else.”

As a teenager there were spells with various trainers including Jim Bolger, with whom Russell still co-hosts an annual hurling match which has raised hundreds of thousands of euro for the Irish Cancer Society.

Bolger’s self-discipline shines in many of his star graduates and, in common with Aidan O’Brien and A.P. McCoy, Russell is a non-drinker.

During a summer job with Henrietta Knight he met Gerry Hogan and Jim Culloty, both of whom would play a part in his career. To be champion point-to-point rider in Ireland in the 1990s it helped to ride for Pat Doyle and it was Hogan who convinced Pat to give Davy a chance.

In 1999 he shared the novice rider award with Simon McGonagle, now Gordon Elliott’s right-hand man, before becoming overall champion in 2001. He shared the championship the following year with John Thomas McNamara.

Two of his earliest Cheltenham winners were for Ferdy Murphy, with whom Russell had previously been based.

BEING A JOCKEY IS LIKE BEING PETER PAN - YOU CAN BEHAVE LIKE A YOUNGSTER WHILE YOU’RE THERE, BUT LIFE ON THE OUTSIDE IS NOT AS SIMPLE 64

“Adrian Maguire got a fall and Tom O’Mahony from Youghal recommended me to Ferdy. I was there for about two years, but the pull of home was too great and I returned to Ireland and moved into Paul Carberry’s house.”

There followed spells riding for Michael O’Brien and Edward O’Grady, for whom he won the 2004 Bula Hurdle on Back In Front at Cheltenham. He then began to ride for Charles Byrnes and it would seem that the horse in his career for which he holds the most affection is Solwhit who would be the topclass performer that every jockey needs to take him to the next stage of his career.

“I remember the first time I rode him in 2008; I broke my wrist in Fairyhouse when five ahead of Ruby in the championship. It was still hurting too much at Punchestown so I told my agent Frosty Kelly that I was too sore to ride one for Charles Byrnes. Frosty came back and said, When Charles says he wants you, he wants you … and you’ll only need one arm to ride this one anyway.”

Solwhit’s career coincided with that of another Charles Byrnes horse, Weapon’s Amnesty, whose five wins included successive victories at the Cheltenham Festival and defeat of subsequent Gold Cup winner Long Run in the RSA. He was perhaps the classiest of the many winners ridden during his term as the retained rider for Gigginstown House.

“One day Michael O’Leary rang me out of the blue. We arranged to meet at the Airport Hotel one day when I was going to Downpatrick. I knew who Michael was, but had no inkling of the powerful force that Gigginstown House Stud would become.

War Of Attrition was injured at that point and,

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DAVY RUSSELL

although he had some nice horses, my first reaction was actually concern that I would lose the ride on Solwhit. Once Michael assured me that I could continue to ride him, all was good. So while everybody talks about the job ending over a cup of tea, that was actually the way it started too.

“The Gigginstown job changed my mindset about race riding.

Michael likes you to jump off, get close up and ride them like good horses. They either have it or they don’t, in his opinion, and he wants to know. I guess I didn’t understand his thinking at the time because I hadn’t had the experience of riding that many high-quality horses, day in, day out.”

Russell may not have ‘the job’ with Gigginstown these days but he is delighted to have the work. Their tighter pool of trainers seem to have a more active role in the jockey bookings which allows him to ride as well for three other leading owners in Chris Jones, Dai Walters and Philip Reynolds (for whom Russell has ridden two Festival winners).

The choice rides in Gordon Elliott’s stable appear to be shared between Russell and Jack Kennedy. Davy rode his first racecourse winner in May 1999, when Kennedy was less than a month old, but Davy is surprisingly benevolent towards his young rival.

“Some years ago my good friend Peter Vaughan asked me to find a ride in a pony race for his son. I asked Patrick Kennedy for help, as his young brother Jack was getting plenty of winners, and a ride was organised at a meeting in Co Meath.

“I travelled up with the Vaughans only to discover that the animal was withdrawn. However, Jack Kennedy then gave up one of his rides, admittedly one with very little chance. It was of little consequence to Jack Kennedy but of huge consequence to the Vaughans and me, and I have not forgotten that. As a result I am delighted to see him doing so well. I also think that he is the best young jockey that I have seen. I fear no rival but there are some that you definitely have greater respect for than others. It’s a hard bracket to get into but he’s one of them.”

Davy recognises some of the contemporary challenges facing younger jockeys. While the temptations of cigarettes and alcohol have been ever-present, drugs and social media bring an added menace and mental health is a serious issue for jockeys. Russell has unswerving respect for Dr Adrian McGoldrick, who looks after the weighroom warriors.

“He has been a very good friend to us jockeys, our health and welfare and has also had to handle the pressure and stress himself caused by accidents such as those to John Thomas and Robbie Mac.” As a senior member of the weighing room, Russell is aware of its cocooning effect and the implications for the future.

“Being a jockey is like being Peter Pan - you can behave like a youngster while you’re there, but life on the outside is not simple if you are not prepared to grow up the moment you stop doing it.”

In preparation for his own growing up Russell’s Whitebarn Stud is building a band of broodmares and will have 18 foaling this year, 75% of which are National Hunt. Stallion choices are largely influenced by his riding experiences and most mares are covered close to home in Cork or Waterford.

He aspires to the sale ring success of other Gold Cup-winning jockeys Mark Dwyer and Norman Williamson. Dwyer topped the Land Rover Sale a few years ago and Williamson has sold the winners of the last two Land Rover Bumpers, ironically with French-bred horses. Russell himself sold French Crusader, a son of Kapgarde, for €70,000 at the 2016 Land Rover Sale. The gelding was a comfortable winner on his debut in November in a Huntingdon bumper.

As a breeder he has some constructive thoughts on the subject of the fillies’ market.

“The programme has improved but I’d like to see fillies racing earlier, with a stronger three and fouryear-old programme of bumpers and hurdles from the autumn. It would give clearer focus to a filly’s career and stop a lot of them just standing in a field until they can be covered.”

Busy people tend to get more done and Russell is juggling the present and his future, his work and his family. In addition to the broodmares he is also building a band of children. Wife Edelle is due a third child in April, a sibling for Lily and her brother Finn.

Davy is also father to 14-year-old Jaimee, who is a keen student of bloodstock pedigrees and his pleasure in this shared interest is palpable.

It is often said that top jump jockeys are ‘half cracked’. That may be so but, in Davy’s case, the other half would appear to be very measured indeed.

He looks a good bet to make his second career as distinguished as the first one.

Lily, Davy, Finn and Edelle Russell at Leopardstown

Davy aboard future Grade 1 winner Beef Or Salmon in a Clonmel point-to-point in 2001

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Trickledown Stud

TRICKLEDOWN

ECONOMICS CARL EVANS VISITED PAUL AND SARA THORMAN, THE HARD-WORKING CONSIGNORS WHO SOLD TEA FOR TWO

acing celebrities who answer the question, ‘Name four ideal dinner party guests’ are missing a trick by not including Paul Thorman.

Sage, dry, good fun, observational and loaded with interesting anecdotes – all told in a captivating and rather droll style with suitable imagery – Thorman is never dull. A walk around the paddocks while observing horses at his home, Trickledown Stud in Hampshire, is to enjoy a few hours with one of the sharpest minds in the business, one who is not averse to self-deprecation.

For example, there was Thorman’s reaction to the 2007 classic successes of Cockney Rebel, who he bought as a foal then sold for a profit at Goffs UK’s Premier Sale. After he had won the 2000 Guineas and Irish 2000 Guineas, Thorman said: “Yes, and if we hadn’t sold him at Doncaster I’d have probably taken him home, cut him, turned him away, then sent him to Bill Turner with the instruction, ‘Try to win a novices’ hurdle’.”

While Thorman makes a perfect front man for Trickledown Stud’s consigning operation he is the first to acknowledge the crucial role taken by his wife, Sara, who

has had the hands-on job of preparing foals, yearlings and stores for market. Yet the couple are embracing a few changes.

The stables they have rented for many years are now subject to a housing planning application, although permission has been granted for two barns with some interior stables on one of their paddocks, and their construction would enable the Thormans to remain in situ.

They are not averse to these new doors opening, and they became grandparents for the first time last year, with little Arwen putting a warming glow around a tight family unit, while bringing some fresh perspective on life.

Standing in the yard, Sara says: “There is another aspect to life now. I love all this, but it’s not quite the beall and end-all, which it was. I look at Emma [her daughter] and see a lovely young mum, and think ‘I must have done something right, even though I wasn’t aware of it at the time’. When Emma was born we were setting up the business, and she had to sit in her pushchair in the yard while the work went on.”

Watching the graft from that buggy gave Emma a fascinating insight to the work of consignors, and she is now a doctor.

“I’D HAVE PROBABLY TAKEN [COCKNEY REBEL] HOME, CUT HIM, TURNED HIM AWAY, THEN SENT HIM TO BILL TURNER WITH THE INSTRUCTION, ‘TRY TO WIN A NOVICES’ HURDLE’.”

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GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:49

Paul Thorman

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17/01/2018 16:49

Trickledown Stud

Despite changes to her parents’ lives, their association with the sales rings at Goffs and Goffs UK is not going to end soon – they and the name Trickledown are too good for that, and while some graft is being sub-contracted to friends in the trade, their advice on where, when and how to sell, and the reserve a horse should take to the ring, is a priceless asset to many.

They own a number of mares, some bought to help the nascent stallion careers of Hellvelyn and Coach House in which they are shareholders, and so there is plenty of potential equine talent to nurture.

Looking at the short-term future, Paul says: “On the consigning side there may well be some contraction in the numbers we offer. Part of the appeal for some people was having Sara and her staff doing the prepping, but I had to ask myself, do we need to sell 68 foals, or 20 at the Spring Store Sale?”

The last-named event, run by Goffs UK at Doncaster, has been a busy and fertile ground for Trickledown, which has been the leading consignor by aggregate in three of the past five years, and runner-up when not top. The pick of the many successful stores they consigned at the event is dual Grade 1 winner Tea For Two, who was knocked down to Jane Williams, the wife of trainer Nick, for £24,000 in May 2012.

How did Trickledown forge its association with the event? “It has always been the number one sale in Britain to take a three-year-old store, although we used to take four-year-olds,” says Paul. “We will take a horse to the Land Rover Sale if we think it fits, but the economics say go to Doncaster.

“We had a client who used to bulk-buy from Tom Costello in Ireland, so we went to see a group that had arrived, consigned several at Doncaster for them, sold one for a very good profit and realised it was a business, not just a hobby. Jumps stores are the same as flat yearlings, but two years older. You are still dealing with fashion, although I feel the jump boys are more discerning about conformation, because you need that to stay sound. The page is less important, although if you have a Kayf Tara . . . well, long may he live.”

Trickledown’s beginnings were necessarily small scale after the couple elected to go it alone – Paul had spent 10 years as stud groom at Whitsbury Manor Stud, and met Sara at the sales while she worked for James Delahooke. Of their first venture together, Paul says: “I went to a foal sale and bought the last lot

“THE JUMP BOYS ARE MORE DISCERNING ABOUT CONFORMATION, BECAUSE YOU NEED THAT TO STAY SOUND. THE PAGE IS LESS IMPORTANT.”

68

into the ring for four grand, did a marvellous job of prepping it – all we did was give it ringworm – then took it to Doncaster for a sale in January and got nine grand for it. To us that was like a 100 grand sale today.

“The following year we went to the sales thinking we were all professional, couldn’t get a bid in and I said to Sara, ‘Let’s go home’. She said, ‘The final lot was lucky last year, let’s wait for it’. An Efisio colt came in – we hadn’t looked at it until then – walked well, looked pretty straight, and we bought it for five grand.

I said, ‘I’ll go to the office to pay, you go down to find out what we didn’t see’. She came back looking white, and I discovered we hadn’t looked up – the colt had a broken ear that sat out at right angles. We later sold him on at the money we paid for him, which was a huge amount of luck.”

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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18/01/2018 17:33

Trickledown Stud

Sara Thorman

Thorman’s Thoughts

SOME RANDOM OBSERVATIONS FROM PAUL

SOME SHREWD JUDGES

DREAM THAT NEVER DIES

“Blarney Holland [Grove Stud] and Willie Browne [Mocklershill] have a better idea than most about what the market wants; Gilly Richardson and Henry Candy are phenomenal judges of a racehorse –they will buy a five-grand horse because they see something you and I don’t – and Paul Shanahan [Coolmore] appears to be the most incredible judge. They [Coolmore] have bought nine horses off us over the years, and all won blacktype. Among store buyers, Aiden Murphy picks up a lot of winners – he was one of the first to land on stores

by Kayf Tara.”

“With any horse you buy you need to have a dream – you have to kid yourself you will get it right once.”

A NOTE TO ONESELF “There is nothing attractive in standing in a field tearing up £50 notes, which is what you are doing with bad horses, particularly with bad mares.”

GET IN EARLY “We’ve never been short of jumps stallions in Britain.

Our biggest problem is we don’t have enough decent jump mares. If Kayf Tara had not been supported by Irish breeders we might not have heard of him, or, as in the case of Midnight Legend, not realised how good he was until he was nearly dead.”

PLENTY OF STAMINA

MAKING THE CUT “For a consignor the biggest buzz is having a nice horse, and one that people want.

Any consignor can sell the gorgeous horse, it’s selling the not-so gorgeous ones that takes skill, but if you tried too hard to sell a horse that is horrible you would soon lose what little reputation you have.

A consignor’s job is headlining a horse that they feel might miss the cut.”

“It annoys me when people say ‘there are no distance stallions’. You can use a Derby winner for five grand!

There is plenty of choice among serious sires with stamina at that price, yet you will have to pay eight grand for a Listed or Group 3 winner who is a sprinter.

There is no reason why Pour Moi can’t get decent flat horses, although he is now referred to as a jumps stallion.”

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018 69

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17/01/2018 16:50

INSIGHT

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

It’s mostly foals we buy.

Conformation and athleticism determine whether you buy or not. Pedigree determines the price. I’m not a fan of bright chesnuts, even though I notice Alan King wins with a lot of them – he must love them!

Riverside Theatre

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Reputations are hard to win and very easy to lose. Be mindful of that in whatever you do.

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

Probably from the late 1970s.

I grew up on a horse’s back, competing in all of the major disciplines during my formative years. Bloodstock was a natural progression. My father was a vet, as was his father. My mother’s father bred and raced pointers – it was in the genes.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

We bred Riverside Theatre and sold him as a foal to Jeremy Mactaggart at Doncaster.

Jeremy reared him in the Borders and sent him back to us to consign as a three-yearold at the Spring Sale. Highflyer bought him for a partnership headed by the actor Jimmy Nesbitt, and Nicky Henderson trained him to win 11 races including three Grade 1s. The horse left a profit for everyone at every stage.

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

RICHARD ASTON BREEDER & VENDOR GOLDFORD STUD

Richard Aston

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

Getaway is making a name for himself. It was a pity for British breeders to lose Champs Elysees and Mount Nelson to Ireland, but we are still quite well served with stallions, both young and old. Blue Bresil is one to watch.

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xxxxxx

Reputations are hard to win and very easy to lose. Be mindful of that in whatever you do.

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

My wife, Sally. She has a great understanding of everything to do with a horse, from conformation through to wellbeing. She has great instinct.

Sally excels in all aspects of horse management.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I’m chairman of Bangor-on-Dee Races and on the board of the Chester Race Company. That takes up a lot of my time and I am passionate about it. Outside of racing, I wish I had more time to go skiing.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

To get out in one piece.

Sally and Richard Aston

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:52

MOCKLERSHILL EUROPE’S PREMIER BREEZE UP CONSIGNOR

‘SPECIOSA’ The only classic winner to be sold at the breeze- up sales.

Mocklershill have been selling Breeze Up horses in Doncaster since 1977, Doncaster and Mockershill have a unique record in that they are the only partnership to have sold a classic winner in SPECIOSA, winner of the English 1,000 guineas.

Contact Willie Browne: 087 634 7271 Email: grangebarry@mocklershill.ie | Email: williebrowne@ mocklershill.ie | www.mocklershill.ie 243524_2L_Mocklershill_JM_GOFFS.indd 1

01/11/2017 13:45

Knockhouse Stud Notnowcato

Chesnut, 2002, 16.11/2hh

by Inchinor ex Rambling Rose by Cadeaux Genereux

Winners incl.

• Redkirk Warrior • Long Dog, • Cornet Obolensky, • Old Guard • Thanksfortellingme • Chil The Kite • Miss Cato • Ruby Rambler • Not Never • Raving Bonkers (4yo NHF, Oct 2017), • Doesyourdogbite • Notnowsam • Notnow Seamus

At the sales

Notnowcato’s stock were in demand at the Sales with Tom Malone going to €33,000 at Tattersalls August Sale for a 3YO filly, with yearling’s sold for up to €20,000. Foals making up to €25,000 at Tattersalls November National Hunt Sale.

Also standing

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One of Ireland’s longest established Equine Veterinary Practices Specialist Medicine & Surgical Services Prepurchase examinations for all International Markets In attendance at all Major Thoroughbred Sales

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05/01/2018 11:28

18/01/2018 09:24

Spring Sale

DEMAND FOR STORES AT DONCASTER IN MAY SET THE TONE FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR, REPORTS LEO POWELL

TONY Williams, in his first full year as Goffs UK managing director, had every reason to be thrilled with the set of figures produced at a scintillating 2017 renewal of the Goffs UK Spring Store Sale. The new record aggregate for a time threatened to break through the £6 million mark, and the trade set a positive tone that carried through National Hunt sales later in the year.

Reflecting on the sale, which took place in the wake of an Aintree Grade 1 double for Spring Sale graduates Tea For Two and Yanworth, Williams said: “Following huge growth last year, we are truly thrilled with the sale which has scaled new heights.

For 55 years the Doncaster Spring Sale has been a consistent source of quality and the results today further underline its status as the UK’s leading NH sale.

“Every year we welcome all of the National Hunt fraternity and, with major owners and trainers onsite at Doncaster, the market enjoyed great depth which saw the figures grow to record levels, all driven by a superb 89% clearance rate. The atmosphere both in the ring and around the complex has been electric from start to finish – there really is no sale like Doncaster in May – as befits it’s ‘end of season finale’ billing.”

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Spring Sale

TWENTY-SIX HORSES SOLD FOR £50,000 OR MORE, TWICE THE NUMBER IN 2016 Three British based consignors topped the vendor list by aggregate, while an Irish-based vendor supplied one of the pair of top-priced lots.

Niall Bleahen’s Liss House sold a first-crop, threeyear-old son of the ill-fated Fame And Glory for £100,000 to Gordon Elliott and Eddie O’Leary. He had been purchased as a foal for €21,500.

The price was matched when Richard Hobson’s RH Bloodstock’s French-bred three-year-old son of Diamond Boy was knocked down to Mags O’Toole, acting for Mouse Morris.

Twenty-six horses sold for £50,000 or more, twice the number in 2016, and the now-deceased stallion Jeremy was responsible for three of them. Leading the trio was Oak Tree Farm’s half-brother to On Fiddlers Green and he found favour with Kieran McManus at £95,000. Norman Williamson paid €24,000 for him as a foal. Later in the day Williamson sold a son of Oscar for £70,000 to Martin Keating Bloodstock.

Walter Connors’ Sluggara Farm brought two lots to the sale and both sold well. Best of the pair, and the

74

most expensive of eight purchases by Colin Tizzard at £90,000, was the three-year-old Robin Des Champs gelding out of Jay Lo, a Grade 3-placed hurdler. He had been purchased as a foal for €23,000 and will run for Brocade Racing.

Pleasure Palace Racing’s Jeremy Hinds’ bid of £85,000 secured one of the early highlights, Brown Island Stables’ three-year-old Coastal Path gelding, the half-brother to this year’s Grade 2 Aintree bumper winner Dame Rose. Now named El Hageb Rose, he is in training with Gary Moore.

Richard and Sally Aston’s Goldford Stud topped the list of consignors with 18 lots selling for £669,500. One-third of their draft sold for £50,000 or more and included a son of Midnight Legend from the family of Viking Flagship and Flagship Uberalles. He was sold on behalf of John and Liz Lucas’ Swanbridge Bloodstock and bought for £82,000 by Simon Clarke, whose principal trainer is Tom George.

Minutes later Goldford sold the first of a pair from their consignment to realise £78,000 each. This was a Kayf Tara full-brother to Special Tiara and there was little surprise when it was revealed that the successful bidder was Henry de Bromhead. That price was matched by a son of Malinas out of the bumper and hurdle winner Valleyofthedolls who sold to Highflyer Bloodstock. They bought a host of horses on the day in their own name and with a range of trainers.

Walk In The Park had a single representative in the sale, Moanmore Stables’ French-bred son of a winner over jumps. A good-looking son of one of the most in-demand sires was enough to entice a winning bid of £75,000 from Noel Meade.

The gelding was followed into the ring by another from Peter Vaughan’s draft. This was a son of Martaline from the family of Grade 1 performers Questarabad and Lacdoudal. Kieran McManus acquired him for £72,000.

COMPARATIVE FIGURES FOR THE STORE SALE Year Cat Off Sold % sold

Aggregate

Average

Median

2015

270

238

198

83%

£3,858,850

£19,489

£14,750

2016

260

222

183

82%

£4,280,500

£23,391

£20,000

2017

257

235

209

89%

£5,951,500

£28,476

£23,000

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Spring Sale

INVINCIBLE IMPRESSIVE IRISH POINT-TO-POINTERS MADE STRONG PRICES AT THE HORSES IN TRAINING SECTION OF THE GOFFS UK SPRING SALE TWO days of horses-in-training pushed the turnover for Spring Sale week at Goffs UK past £12 million, leaving an ebullient Tony Williams to comment: “It’s wonderful to see the Spring Sale continue to grow and develop.

“The Spring Sale is the world’s largest National Hunt end-ofseason dispersal sale, and its enduring appeal meant it welcomed the who’s who of the National Hunt world to Doncaster.

“We have been very well supported by the leading NH owners and trainers, as well as the leading point-to-point consignors, and as a result we have seen real growth at every level of the market, a great result for the sale and for those who entrusted their horses to us.

“These results, in conjunction with our horses-in-training sales enjoying four Cheltenham Festival winners in March, made the first half of 2017 a highly successful one.”

The clearance rate was a healthy 86%, showing demand across the board, while the fact that 29 sold for £50,000 or more compared to 17 last year tells its own story.

A supplementary entry provided the highlight, Donnchadh Doyle’s Court Cave four-year-old Invincible Cave, an impressive seven-length winner of a point-to-point a fortnight earlier, leading the way. Gordon Elliott paid £210,000 for him, a fine reward for Doyle who paid £15,000 for him at the previous year’s Spring Sale. The gelding was an impressive winner of his bumper in the colours of Gigginstown House last November.

Kieran McManus made a single purchase on the day when he gave £140,000 for Wilson Dennison’s Fleminport, a son of Flemensfirth out of a point-to-point winning half-sister to the smart Tumbling

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Spring Sale

BELOW: David Pipe signs for a Spring Sale purchase. BENEATH: Summerville Boy won a Grade 1 race in January

Dice and from the family of Remittance Man. He is now in training with Jonjo O’Neill.

Sam Curling and Richard Downes had a great turn with their Killarney bumper winner Summerville Boy. Bought for €4,000 as a three-year-old he was sold to Roger Brookhouse for £130,000. Put in training with Tom George, Summerville Boy more than justified his price when he won the Grade 1 Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown in January.

Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrows sold 15 lots and the most significant of these was the Grade 2 winning chaser Vaniteux, who was also placed in the Grade 1 Supreme Novices’ Hurdle. He changed stables after David Pipe, alongside owner Bryan Drew, paid £125,000 for the eight-year-old son of Voix Du Nord.

The husband and wife team of Tessa (Highflyer Bloodstock) and Warren Greatrex went to £115,000 to acquire Article Fifty, a four-year-old son of Doyen who won a two and a half-mile point-topoint from Philip Rowley’s Poplar Cottage Stables. This was a fine reward for Rowley’s €22,000 investment at the Goffs Land Rover Sale, while the new owners were no doubt delighted with the gelding’s debut bumper win in November.

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The four-year-old Cape Blanco gelding Settie Hill won a bumper on his debut last April at Market Rasen and was sold through Mark Dwyer’s Oaks Farm Stables to David Minton for £110,000. He is now with Nicky Henderson to race in the colours of Michael Buckley and Lord Vestey.

The best price for a mare of £100,000 was paid by Anthony Honeyball for the Damian Murphy-trained Duhallow Gesture. The five-year-old daughter of King’s Theatre won a point-to-point in April and followed up at Tipperary in a bumper. She made a winning debut for new connections just after Christmas when landing a listed bumper at Huntingdon and is being aimed at the spring festivals.

Two horses with significant updates were acquired by Anthony Bromley of Highflyer Bloodstock to race for leading owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede from Nicky Henderson’s yard. A 40-length win in a point-to-point meant that the Westerner five-year-old Indian Hawk cost Bromley £110,000 and he has since won easily over hurdles for his new owners. A little earlier the agent’s bid of £100,000 acquired The Bottom Bar, a five-year-old son of Stowaway offered from Paul Webber’s Cropredy Lawn.

TOP LOTS AT THE HORSES IN TRAINING SALE Name Age Sex Sire Vendor

Purchaser

Price

Invincible Cave

4

G

Court Cave

Monbeg Stables (Donnchadh Doyle)

Gordon Elliott

£210,000

Fleminport

4

G

Flemensfirth

Loughanmore Farms (Colin McKeever)

Kieran McManus

£140,000

Summerville Boy

5

G

Sandmason

Skehanagh Stables (Sam Curling)

Roger Brookhouse

£130,000

Vaniteux

8

G

Voix Du Nord

Seven Barrows (Nicky Henderson)

David Pipe

£125,000

Article Fifty

4

G

Doyen

Poplar Cottage Stables (Philip Rowley)

Highflyer BS/ Warren Greatrex

£115,000

Settie Hill

4

G

Cape Blanco

Oaks Farm Stables

Highflyer Bloodstock

£110,000

Indian Hawk

5

G

Westerner

Ivy Lea Farm (Nicky Tinkler)

Highflyer Bloodstock

£110,000

Duhallow Gesture 5

F

King’s Theatre

Ferndale Stables, Ireland (Damian Murphy)

Anthony Honeyball

£100,000

The Bottom Bar

G

Stowaway

Cropredy Lawn (Paul Webber)

Highflyer Bloodstock

£100,000

5

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 16:53

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16/01/2018 10/10/2017 10:16 10:23

quot

STORE SELLERS

THE

CONSUMMATE

CONSIGNORS LISSA OLIVER TALKS TO TWO RETIRED GOLD CUP-WINNING JOCKEYS ABOUT HOW THEY HAVE SUCCESSFULLY ESTABLISHED THEMSELVES IN THE BLOODSTOCK WORLD

It isn’t often that someone who has made such a success of a first career can follow up with equal renown in a second career, but if we’re going to find an example anywhere then it will be within the bloodstock world, where star racehorses become legendary sires and top jockeys swell the ranks of leading trainers. Two such men are the consignors, Mark Dwyer and Norman Williamson, who have successfully stepped out of the saddle and into the sales ring.

MARK DWYER, OAKS FARM STABLES Mark is still remembered for his Cheltenham successes on Forgive ’N Forget, Jodami, and Flakey Dove, even though he retired from the saddle in 1996, but already the seeds of a fresh career had been sown. Back in the earliest days of his career he had ridden for Willie Browne and it was natural that a small involvement with the Mocklershill operation led to consigning horses in his own right when the time came.

“Willie’s a shrewd judge of horses and I’ve learnt everything I know from him,” Mark says, his Oaks Farm Stables near Malton in Yorkshire a fine advert for that knowledge. “It made sense to work together and join forces.”

He and Willie have a few National Hunt horses between them that all go to Oaks Farm. “I’d have around 20 National Hunt horses here on the farm and 60 flat horses. Those purchased in Ireland stay there, while the UK purchases go to Oaks Farm. Roger Marley and Ronnie O’Leary also buy with me and we run a few in bumper point-to-points, to sell on.”

He currently has six or seven foals, plus yearlings and two-year-olds, who will eventually be sold as three-year-olds at the store sales. With a view to racing a couple and selling them on, he and Marley and O’Leary will also

78

have an eye out for horses to purchase at sales such as the Goffs Land Rover and December National Hunt Sales.

“When we’re selling, I stand at the door,” Mark says.

“You’re either buying or you’re selling, but you can’t do both.”

Selling is Mark’s forte, but the racecourse is his ultimate focus. “It isn’t all about the sales day,” he says.

“You have to look after them and make sure their minds are good for what’s ahead of them, after the sale. I like to have a good bit left in them, for the trainer to work with. It’s a fine line between having them looking at their best on sales day, but knowing they have a career ahead of them.

“We want them to go on and be good racehorses so that buyers will come back to us. It’s all about credibility, you have to be honest with people. If you’re genuine, people will trust you and will deal with you.”

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17/01/2018 16:55

STORE SELLERS

Mark Dwyer in conversation with trainer Ben Pauling at Doncaster

“YOU HAVE TO LOOK AFTER THEM AND MAKE SURE THEIR MINDS ARE GOOD FOR WHAT’S AHEAD OF THEM” GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018 79

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STORE SELLERS Norman Williamson (pictured right) with children Josh and Carla. Norman returned to the saddle for a charity race at Punchestown in 2017 which he won

When it comes to prepping, Mark takes each horse individually. “They’re all different and some need more time than others. We’re looking now at the three-year-olds who’ll be sold in the spring. The majority have a 10-week prep, others might need 12 to 14 weeks. As yearlings, we fetch them in and do a bit of lunging, so they’ve done some work. They’re still young and immature and you can only do so much.”

It may be a gentle approach with the horses, but for Mark himself there is no taking it slowly. His is a year-round business and he’s on the go straight after the short Christmas break. “I’m flying out to America in the morning,” he tells us, in early November. “I’ll be looking at foals. Then I’ll be back for the Goffs Foal Sale and finish up in Newmarket.

I’ll be living from a suitcase for the next month, then we’ll have the horses back in after Christmas and will be getting them ready.”

He’s a great believer in allowing them to simply be horses and in giving them as much turn out time as possible. “We like to get them out all the time, at least for an hour or two on a daily basis when they’re being prepped; it makes them easier to deal with. It’s a bit of a risk when they’re so full of themselves, but it does them good.”

The team at Oaks Farm is vital. “I’m very handson, so when I’m away I need to have people who are capable of doing the same things I can. My daughter is here and I have another girl who has been with us for many years. It’s important to have stability with staff and know-how, but we’ll spend a lot of time teaching new staff, too. If they’re keen enough, they soon pick it up.”

By the time of the sale anything up to three years’ planning has gone into it.

“If we have something by a flat sire with plenty of stamina in the pedigree and a big, good-looking horse then our focus is on the Land Rover Sale. It’s a sale that has come on leaps and bounds in the past few years. I would say there are probably more fouryear-old winners coming out of the Land Rover Sale than elsewhere.”

“I WOULD SAY THERE ARE PROBABLY MORE FOURYEAR-OLD WINNERS COMING OUT OF THE LAND ROVER SALE THAN ELSEWHERE” 80

NORMAN WILLIAMSON, OAK TREE FARM Another Cheltenham hero is Norman Williamson, who retired from the saddle in 2003 following 30 Grade 1 wins as a jockey, taking over Oak Tree Farm in Athboy with his wife Janet.

“I first started with store horses while I was still riding, I had a few horses with Mark Dwyer to begin with and when I packed up riding I just got more involved. When you’re involved in jump racing you never leave it.

“Buying National Hunt horses as foals, it was a bit of a wait. I started with three or four and every year gradually built up, to 15-18 now. Not having the numbers to start with, we were just really lucky and it’s working well.

“I learned a lot from the people I hung around with while I was riding, especially my father-in-law Timmy Hyde, and Eddie O’Leary. I suppose what we’re all looking for is a nice horse with a fashionable sire and a nice pedigree.”

Norman has been lucky with those he has bought, “Maybe it’s a bit small or not right on the day and people have walked past it. You can buy cheaply and it might make money two years later. I’ve probably walked past loads that have made money later for someone else.”

It isn’t all down to luck, though, and judgement counts for a lot. “I’ll forgive a lot of things, there’s a lot of time for them to develop and come right, although things can go wrong, too,” he acknowledges. “But they have to have good movement, in a National Hunt horse that’s very important. They’re going to be galloping over long distances and jumping.

“I wouldn’t forgive any horse back at the knee and the most important thing I’m looking for is athleticism and a bit of size, especially when you’re selling to the point-to-point buyers and pinhookers; they like a good sized horse.”

Norman has done more selling with Goffs than buying and has been very lucky in that respect. Oscar Whisky went on to be a multiple Grade 1 winner and he sold the winners of the last two Goffs Land Rover Bumpers in Vision Des Flos and Couer De Lion, not to mention Three Musketeers and Noble Endeavour. “Out of the small numbers I’ve had, the good horses have all sold at Goffs,” he says. “It’s very important for anyone selling horses to have winners.

“When buying foals, pedigree-wise I’ll have a sale in mind. With the Land Rover Sale people bought horses to win the Land Rover Bumper, but now it’s

Norman Williamson

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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STORE SELLERS

“HIGH-PRICED SALE TOPPERS IN THE PAST DECADE HAVE PROVEN THAT IF YOU HAVE GOOD STOCK THEN THE ELITE BUYERS WILL TURN UP.”

about more than that and is far more competitive.

You need a top horse to get in. We tend to aim our better horses there.”

The horses at Oak Tree Farm are left out all the time, but come in for prep in February. “Some horses don’t really do well over the winter, so they’ll come in earlier.

We’ll give them a long prep and plenty of work, a big fat store horse is no good to anyone. Having them in better condition helps down the line; they don’t fall apart when the buyer gets them home and breaks them in. We do a bit with them before they go and they’re driven,” Norman explains.

It’s a hands on business and a close knit operation, with a good team helping Norman and Janet, and he sees no reason to expand any further. “Having said that, we will have a few more in the next few years, it’s just the way it’s worked out. We’ve 18 stores to sell next year, it’s been a natural progression, but we’re happy with the size of the business and just want to keep the quality going.”

Norman also works well in partnership with Edmund Ryan of Weir View Stud. “We bought some foals together

and still do. He has been in the business all his life and set me on the straight and narrow. He’s a great believer in allowing them to simply be horses and to allow them as much turn out time as possible.”

As well as the good fortune already enjoyed there, Norman has another good reason for his affinity with Goffs. “Nick Nugent is a neighbour and from day one he’d come and inspect our store horses. I’d tell him what I’d like to send and he says yes or no. He knows I send him the type of horse that suits the sale and I appreciate where he’s coming from, he’s easy to work with.”

Norman is also appreciative of the breeders who work so hard to get their foals to the sales. “With National Hunt breeders, they have to wait four or five years and the margins are so tight, every penny they get they deserve.

I’m disappointed that fillies are not in more demand, with all the bonus races. It will get better, and has to keep going, with mares’ races at Cheltenham, Punchestown and Aintree, plus there’s the residual value of a well-bred filly. We don’t sell many fillies but I wouldn’t be afraid to have a few more.”

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INSIGHT

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

My father has taught me everything I know.

Rachel, Ronnie and John O’Neill

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I hold a degree in classical music, which is a million miles away from my current lifestyle! Piano is my focus instrument and I used to compete in my younger days before I became so busy with the horses.

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

I guess I was born into it. My father Ronald O’Neill always had stallions and my interest stemmed from there.

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

My biggest ambition is to get a Grade 1 winner. As I probably won’t get the chance to own one, then the closest I can hope for is to produce a horse through the point-to-point scene that then goes on to win a Grade 1, or to breed a horse that wins a Grade 1.

FIVE MINUTES WITH…

RACHEL O’NEILL

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

The best Goffs UK purchase has to be Camlann. I bought him for only £800. To-date he has won five races and well over €60,000 in prize money.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

My father’s stallion, Valirann. He has thrown some lovely, straight and correct foals. Secondly, Doyen, who isn’t a young stallion but I like his progeny.

BREEDER, VENDOR & PURCHASER

Rachel with partner John ‘Shark’ Hanlon

Camlann

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

A good walk and a good front leg are essential physical characteristics.

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

It’s a tough game. Be prepared to work hard!

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17/01/2018 09:05 18/01/2018 09:29

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17/01/2018 16:16

Goffs Agents

TALES FROM

THE ROAD THE NATIONAL HUNT AGENTS FROM GOFFS AND GOFFS UK TELL OLIVIA HAMILTON ABOUT THE LENGTHS TO WHICH THEY GO TO SOURCE HORSES

GERRY HOGAN When I was about three weeks into looking at horses for my first-ever Land Rover Sale, I spoke to a retired bank manager in Co Cork and booked a visit to see his filly at around 5pm on a Monday evening. I had already been to seven other farms around West Cork that day and was working back towards home. This was to be my last visit. When we met, he asked if he could travel with me, so he jumped into my car and I drove with him giving directions.

After 20 minutes I asked how much further it was to get to the horse. ‘Not long’, he said but one whole hour later we had gone through the borders of Cork, Tipperary, Limerick and up the Ballyhoura mountains. At this point I did feel like this retired gentleman might not have as much to do in his day as I had in mine. We eventually got to where the filly was; it was getting dark and had started to rain heavily and we also then had to catch her. From what I could see, she was nice and I told him she would get a place in the sale. He was delighted but then told me that he only owned half of her and the chances were she would be kept for breeding but he liked to keep his options open.

He then asked me could I drop him home! The following year I had to see the filly’s full-brother and I made sure that I met man and horse at the farm where the latter resided.

Peter Molony

PETER MOLONY Gerry Hogan signs the docket on another Goffs purchase for Emma Lavelle

FOR about four years now, I have been sourcing stores for the Land Rover Sale and foals for the December National Hunt Sale. Tombstone and Brelade, two good novice chasers this season, are among the better ones I found for the Land Rover. I’ve also concentrated on selling my own stores [Rathmore Stud] at the Land Rover in recent years. They include the high-class Jenkins and Rapid Escape. My Goffs’ inspections are mainly in the UK or France. One day in England I had a wasted six-hour round trip to see a 15hh filly who was definitely unsuitable for a National Hunt Sale. But overall I love this part of the job – meeting people, seeing different farms, it’s very interesting. Last year I was in France for Goffs and realised, on landing at Beauvais Airport, I had forgotten my credit card. It took me four hours to find a driver and it cost me a fortune.

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Goffs Agents DEREK O’CONNOR I’ll tell you about one horse I was instrumental in finding an owner for which is a bit of a fairytale with a happy ending and which meant a lot to me. I rode a Presenting gelding to win at Loughanmore in October 2011 for Wilson Dennison, Ted Veale coming in second. I really liked him. The horse eventually went on to run for Gigginstown but he never really realised his potential and the gelding was put up for sale at a Gigginstown dispersal at the Goffs UK horses-in-training sale in September 2016. I told Graham McKeever (point-to-point handler) that I really liked this horse and had won a point on him and would try to source an owner for him. We had an owner whose budget was only approximately £6,000 and eventually he was sold for £9,500 at that Goffs sale. I was urging the potential owners on to buy, I knew they would have some fun with this horse. And that was the case. That horse was Balnaslow and the new owner was Mrs Peggy Hagan. Balnaslow went on to be placed in a string of points around the country and Liam Quinlan won on him at Borris House in December 2016. His form went up a level last season when I was fortunate enough to ride him in a series of hunter chases. We finished second in Down Royal, fifth in the Foxhunter at Cheltenham, second at Aintree, won the big hunter chase at the Punchestown Festival and ended the season finishing second at Stratford in June. He gave us all a fabulous time and was a great credit to Graham. Peggy had marvellous fun with her horse before she sadly passed away. Balnaslow was a fairytale horse bought for small money. It’s easy to identify a horse that will go for huge money but for me this is the horse who has given me most pleasure to be involved with.

The 2017 Punchestown Festival success for Balnaslow (above) marked a special day for owner Peggy Hagan (above, seated) and Goffs UK agent and jockey Derek O’Connor (above, right)

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Ros Easom

ROS EASOM When I first started inspecting horses for Goffs it was very different from today - the Land Rover Sale was four days and we were looking for quantity as well as quality.

In times gone by, when there wasn’t the same competition for sales places, we were perhaps a little more lax in our inspections and evaluations of the horses. The majority of the farmers and breeders were not as professional or educated in the preparation as is the case today. One was often expected to view the prospective ‘sales topper’ loose, in 20 acres of mud. One such incident occurred a few years ago; my sister arrived unexpectedly when I had my day’s visits all organised. She came with me. Said sister (while not suggesting that she’s straightlaced) only visited Ireland occasionally and wouldn’t be used to the craic, humour or downright eccentricity that we regularly encounter from the Irish farmer-breeder!

After three or four straightforward, uneventful visits and without getting lost the directions that one is sometimes given leave a lot to be desired - we arrived in a lovely old yard full of empty stables. We agreed to accompany our vendor in his jeep.

Having slithered across numerous muddy fields, we eventually found half a dozen assorted horses. A couple of these were quite acceptable conformation-wise and their pedigrees matched up; it was however not easy to see how they moved! On returning to the jeep, we discovered it had sunk up to the axels. Unperturbed our host told us to wait there, while he set off to find help! He finally reappeared, what seemed like hours later, on an ancient tractor and with a tow rope which, needless to say, broke. So, with my sister at the wheel and me pushing, we slid back to civilisation. She couldn’t believe the carryon but, as I told her, it’s all in a day’s work. I’d like to report that one of the horses topped the sale – but I’m afraid not!

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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09/10/2017 09:19 18/01/2018 10:02

Goffs Agents Swansea Mile

Caroline Kenneally

CAROLINE KENNEALLY In our industry it’s all about ‘tomorrow’, ‘the dream’, ‘the big one’. If I had to pick a horse from the points last season it would be Ravenhill Road. He won his point at Broughshane for the Crawford brothers by 15 lengths, was sold at the Goffs UK Spring Sale for £100,000, won his bumper by 14 lengths and then won his maiden hurdle by 23 lengths. What next? The dream is alive! That’s the buzz keeping us all going. Swansea Mile gave us a thrill last year. A Killarney novice hurdle winner for Ted Walsh, he was subsequently sold at Goffs UK and went on to win a Grade 1 in Saratoga. I bred Bless The Wings and later saw him being sold at Goffs UK and going on to fulfil his owners’ dreams by winning over £270,000 in prize money. Having an involvement with this calibre of horses is a privilege. I have the pleasure of working with an energetic and dedicated team which makes life easy when we all have the same goal.

Neil O’Donnell

NEIL O’DONNELL ONE of the best horses I sourced for Goffs UK was when I enticed Kilavullen-based Tom Barry to send Teaforthree to the May 2010 Spring Sale soon after the gelding finished third in the point-to-point bumper at Cork that Easter. Teaforthree was astutely bought by Gearoid Costelloe for £20,000. The horse developed into an outstanding performer for Gearoid and Rebecca Curtis, winning the 2012 renewal of the National Hunt Chase at the Cheltenham Festival with the late J.T. McNamara.

He also finished third to Auroras Encore in the following year’s Aintree Grand National. In total, Teaforthree amassed over £198,000 in earnings. That May sale was memorable for a couple of other reasons. Many flights were grounded due to the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud. Thankfully John O’Byrne offered me a lift via car and ferry. Among the vendors was a small Co Wexford trainer who, on my encouragement, was selling his recent point-to-point winner Rudemeister. The horse went on to win two races for his new connections and the Wexford trainer, Sean Doyle of Monbeg Stables, is now arguably the single biggest purchaser of store horses in these islands.

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Goffs Agents

MICHAEL MOORE I joined the Goffs UK team in 2015 but my family’s relationship with Goffs goes back much further. Through our Ballincurrig House Stud in Co Cork, we have been consigning horses to all the National Hunt sales for many years and we have had some very rewarding days. When Henry Beeby asked me to come on board the Goffs UK team I was delighted. Our first objective was to get the Aintree Sale up and running. I specialise in point-topoints as I have a lot of contacts in that sphere. Without doubt the best horse I have sourced so far for Goffs UK is Samcro. Colin Bowe trained him to win at Monksgrange in Co Wexford, a fixture which was only scheduled at the last-minute to compensate for a series of cancelled meetings in what had been a very wet spring. I’ll be forever grateful to the Bree Hunt for getting the authorities to sanction that fixture. Colin was good enough to send Samcro to the Aintree Sale a week later. He fetched £335,000 and the rest is history. It’s fantastic to see the horse doing so well for Gigginstown and other sale graduates such as Carter McKay, Black Ops and Presenting Copper have shone too.

God’s Own

JIM ROSSITER I’ve been over 30 years at the sales game and it’s changed a lot in that time. The National Hunt scene was very small with the small farmer-breeder more or less the norm then. I’ve stuck at it and I do all of the south-east area, Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny. Gerry (Hogan) does Cork and Kerry and Ros (Easom) is around the Limerick/Tipperary area. I live down here and that’s how my ‘area’ evolved. I used to have a trainer’s licence and trained some good graded Jim Rossiter horses; we had 30/40 winners on track and in points. My job is year round though I’m not on the road the whole year. The busiest time is JanuaryMarch prepping for the Land Rover Sale. People ring me or I go back to the same people yearly inspecting. It can be hard to turn someone’s horse down but guys have got so much more professional. Now they know where to go, and with which animal, to sell. A big part of my job earlier was to try and get people to come back to Goffs. Some of the horses which passed through me for sale include Ball D’Arc, Finian’s Oscar, Newmill, God’s Own and Holywell.

Kevin Ross

KEVIN ROSS I have a couple of stories from doing visits. Joe Magee was always good fun to visit. He would close off the yard, he’d bring each horse out and walk them up but, to trot, he would call his dog Toby to chase them up and down the yard! It was different but effective.

Another day I went to see a yearling in Strabane and, after I’d seen the yearling, Derek Maxwell said ‘You’ll have to come and see something’. It was a litter of pups, one of which I bought from him and brought home in the boot of the car. Half way home I thought I’d better ring Anna and let her know of the new arrival. When she heard the noise in the car she said ‘Well, you can f******g look after it yourself!’

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Team Greatrex

Warren and Tessa at home. RIGHT: Gavin Sheehan celebrates aboard Cole Harden, the 2015 Stayers’ Hurdle winner trained

by Warren

Perfect MATCH

HIGHLY RESPECTED B LOODSTOCK AGENT TESSA GREATREX AND HER HUSB AND, THE LEADING NATIONAL HUNT TRAINER WARREN, HAVE SOURCED COUNTLESS WINNERS FROM GOFFS. THE HIGHFLY ING COUPLE TELL THE RACING POST’ S JAMES THOMAS AB OUT THEIR UNIQ UE RELATIONSHIP.

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n the modern National Hunt landscape the name Greatrex sits firmly front and centre.

With a rapidly growing list of big winners on her CV, the profile of Highflyer Bloodstock agent Tessa Greatrex continues to go from strength to strength. Her husband Warren, meanwhile, has been responsible for overseeing the racing careers of a number of Tessa’s notable purchases, such as Cole Harden and the up-and-coming Western Ryder, and is now established as one of the finest training talents around.

It is plain to see that the couple are to the forefront of the future of the winter game. Like so many other successful pairings from the annals of racing history, they first met during a Doncaster sale.

“It was at the old Doncaster Bloodstock Sales complex that we first met, so Donny really is quite important in our lives,” says Tessa ever so slightly bashfully.

“Warren had come up with Oliver Sherwood, who he was assistant to at the time, and I had just started helping out Highflyer. Oliver invited me and a couple of others for dinner and asked if his assistant could come along as he didn’t really know anyone else. We ummed and ahhed over it but, basically, he came along anyway!”

And it was not only during dinner on that May evening back in 2004 that Warren made a big impression. Tessa was at the Doncaster complex working alongside the Highflyer Bloodstock team of David Minton, known to many simply as ‘Minty’, and Anthony Bromley as they oversaw the annual dispersal of the Million In Mind syndicate’s horses.

The undoubted highlight of that year’s draft was Garde Champetre, who in the fullness of time became known as a master of the cross-country scene, but went through the ring just weeks after he had defeated Monet’s Garden to land a Grade 2 novices’ hurdle at Aintree.

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Team Greatrex Tessa signs for another purchase at Goffs UK

A packed auditorium watched the five-year-old as the likes of Howard Johnson, Paul Webber and Paul Nicholls drove the price into record-breaking territory. A hush descended on the assembled crowd.

But before auctioneer Michael White could bring his gavel down at the £530,000 mark to the bid of Timmy Hyde, Warren unexpectedly made his presence felt.

“Garde Champetre was in the ring and the bids just kept going up and up,” Tessa recalls. “At that point Warren’s phone started ringing, and as he was dashing down the steps to take the call he tripped and launched his mobile into the air. There was that awful moment as everyone could see his phone was going to smash and then the whole place fell silent as Warren had to scramble around picking up the bits! Minty turned to me and said ‘that’s him!’

It is apparent from his response that Warren has heard this incident recalled countless times, though few could argue with his riposte.

“She obviously thought the way I fell down those steps was very athletic,” he says, with tongue firmly in cheek.

Fortunately for Tessa her journey within the bloodstock world got off on a much surer footing.

After spells working in the States, Goldford Stud and with the BBA, at the suggestion of Minton, Tessa took up the position of pupil assistant to Nicky Henderson.

“I was at Seven Barrows for two years and absolutely loved every minute,” she says. “Nicky was very good to me and would bring me along if they were going to the horses in training sales. And Minty has always been such a good teacher when it comes to what to look for in a store; his record absolutely speaks for itself. It’s difficult to learn the ropes as an agent so I was very lucky that I was always encouraged by such successful people.”

There may not have been a full-time role among the Highflyer ranks when Tessa left Seven Barrows but, having witnessed other agents making use of her skills, an agreement was quickly reached that saw her join the team on a more formal basis, a move that laid the foundations for the steep upward trajectory her career is now on.

“When I left Nicky’s I didn’t want to train. I just wanted to carry on working at the sales and Minty and Ant would ring and ask me to help them out and it’s just evolved from there. That’s what really enabled me to get my own clients.

“They are brilliant to work with,” she adds of her Highflyer colleagues. “Minty’s passion is the young stock and Ant is the form guru, and I’m really lucky that I get to work with both of them.”

Despite being married to one of the leading trainers in the land, Tessa’s roster of clients extends far beyond her husband and the owners whose 80 or so horses populate the historic Uplands stables in Lambourn, which he has operated from since 2012.

Maintaining an equilibrium between looking after the interests of her other half and those of her other

94

clients may look a tough task but, in a results-driven business, Tessa’s record leaves no doubt that she is doing right by all concerned.

In a relatively short space of time she has amassed an impressive number of big race winners for a range of other trainers, such as Ben Pauling’s Grade 1-winning novice hurdlers Willoughby Court (€48,000 at the Goffs Land Rover Sale) and Barters Hill, Oliver Sherwood’s Grade 2 winners Deputy Dan and Puffin Billy, and Charlie Longsdon’s West Yorkshire Hurdle winner Kilcooley.

“I don’t know how that balances but it just does somehow,” she says when asked about juggling the interests of her husband and her outside clients.

“Sometimes I think Warren gets a raw deal as I spend a lot of time making sure I’m doing the right thing by the other guys, because I don’t want them thinking I’m favouring Warren.

“When we were starting out it was a bit harder as, for example, Warren and Charlie were probably looking for the same horse and that was difficult.

But now we’ve got to a level where it’s much easier to manage.”

Warren is also pragmatic about Tessa’s impact on the training careers of his peers, and, with more than a pinch of modesty, is quick to point out that the success he has enjoyed owes much to his wife’s judgement.

TOP: Willoughby Court was a €48,000 Goffs Land Rover Sale purchase by Tessa. Above: Don’t drop that phone, Warren!

“MINTY’S PASSION IS THE YOUNG STOCK AND ANT IS THE FORM GURU, AND I’M REALLY LUCKY THAT I GET TO WORK WITH BOTH OF THEM”

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Tam Greatrex

“I wouldn’t be one for getting jealous about Tessa buying other people horses,” he says. “Other people like different horses to me and we all have different budgets, so it seems to work. When I see the likes of Willoughby Court, which she bought at the Land Rover Sale, I’m just proud of her for having found another Grade 1 winner.

“She’s proved it time and time again that she buys very nice horses, whether it’s for me or for other people. If I didn’t have her my career might well be nothing as she’s pretty much bought all the good ones.”

Given that Tessa and Warren also manage to balance the demands of their respective careers alongside raising a young family, with Evie (seven), Nell (five) and the three-year-old Nancy joined by Warren’s twin sons, hugely promising riders Tom and Ed, the practicalities of their working relationship suddenly doesn’t seem such a challenge.

And, naturally, a few of the very nice ones Tessa has purchased now form part of the team that will shape the fortunes of Warren’s season. Intense demand during the 2017 National Hunt sales has not made life easy for those looking to restock, but nevertheless the couple exude a quiet confidence about the squad they have assembled at Uplands.

“We’ve invested and bought more stores this year and have the most horses we’ve had in yet - they look an exciting team,” Warren says.

“I WOULDN’T BE ONE FOR GETTING JEALOUS ABOUT TESSA BUYING OTHER PEOPLE HORSES” The first name both Tessa and Warren offer up when asked for horses they are looking forward to is Article Fifty, a winner of a Chaddesley Corbett maiden who they picked up for £115,000 at the Goffs UK Spring HIT and Point-to-Point Sale. Within a week of our conversation in November, the son of Doyen won a bumper at Uttoxeter impressively.

“Article Fifty is right up there, he’s very nice,” says Warren. “Another horse that came from the Spring Sale that I like, possibly for a bit further down the line, is Don Des Fosses. He won a point-to-point but could be a bit of a slow burner. I like him a lot and I’m amazed he won a point as he’s still very green. There will be a bumper horse that won’t be seen out until the spring too called Emitom. He’s by Gold Well and came from the May Sale and could be a horse to watch out for in the future too.”

The unique story of Tessa and Warren Greatrex may have begun with a pang of embarrassment in the Doncaster sales ring, but the 13 years since have thrown up much for the couple to be proud of. And with professional profiles that are both burgeoning and intertwined, the next chapter they write looks well worth paying attention to.

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STALLIONS Multiple champion sire Presenting died in August, 2017. Who will replace him?

WHO ARE THE FUTURE DR SIEGLINDE MCGEE TOURS SOME OF IRELAND’ S TOP STUD FARMS AND ATTEMPTS TO IDENTIFY THE NEX T WAVE OF LEADING NATIONAL HUNT STALLIONS

KINGS RING?

OF THE

The reputation of flat stallions can be built and lost in a short period of time, but with their National Hunt brethren it can take much longer, sometimes even more than a decade before their true worth is known. In my early years of studying pedigrees and covering the sales it was stallions such as Deep Run, Strong Gale, Orchestra, The Parson, Over The River, Callernish, Kings Ride and Le Bavard who dominated on the track and in the ring. The next wave included standouts such as Accordion, Old Vic, Presenting, King’s Theatre, Bob Back, Beneficial, Oscar, Milan, Westerner, Flemensfirth and Kayf Tara. We’re now at the point where only the last four are available to breeders, which means that the next wave of National Hunt sires includes a mixture of familiar names that have been working their way upwards in the rankings, along with some who are only at the early part of their journey. In the next next decade, perhaps it will be the following who will top the National Hunt sires’ table.

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STALLIONS Don Cossack

SHOLOKHOV

GLENVIEW STUD, FERMOY, CO CORK Glenview Stud’s multiple champion sire Presenting died in August, but the sire of Cheltenham Gold Cup heroes Denman and War Of Attrition was just one of the notable names on the team. Imported proven blacktype sire Malinas, who represents the powerful Nijinsky line, Robin Des Champs (Quevega, Vautour, Sir Des Champs, etc) and Annie Power’s sire Shirocco are also members. The roster is completed by the classic-placed, Group 1-winning Sadler’s Wells horse Sholokhov, whose first Glenview crop have just turned four. His flatbred runners include the German classic heroine and champion Night Magic and, in 2016, his outstanding son Don Cossack was an impressive winner of chasing’s Blue Riband. The Cheltenham Gold Cup hero heads a growing list of blacktype winners by Sholokhov, a list that has a doubledigit tally on both the flat and under National Hunt rules. He is out of the Lord Gayle mare La Meilleure and his siblings include Affianced, the stakes-winning dam of Irish Derby star and notable young dualpurpose sire Soldier Of Fortune.

GETAWAY This Getaway gelding was sold for €160,000 at the Land Rover Sale

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GRANGE STUD, FERMOY, CO CORK Grange Stud in Fermoy, a powerful arm of the Coolmore umbrella, suffered a blow last February with the loss of their Group 1 ace and popular young stallion Fame And Glory. He was a son of Montjeu, as are their young classic star Leading Light and Derby-placed French import Walk In The Park, sire of the mighty Douvan.

The roster also includes the classic-winning Sadler’s Wells son and leading sire Milan (Jezki, One For Arthur, Martello Tower, Darlan, Apache Stronghold, etc), and the Group 1-winning Monsun horse Getaway, who has made one of the most eye-catching starts of any recent National Hunt stallion. His oldest offspring turned six in January, he has been represented by a string of point-to-point winners – which augurs well for his long-term prospects as a sire of staying chasers – and his early runners under rules include the blacktype-placed mare Verdana Blue and the unbeaten Getabird.

Getaway is a full-brother to Guadalupe, the Group 1-winning dam of Group 1 stars Guignol and Guiliani, and his success on the track is matched by success in the auction ring. At this year’s Goffs Land Rover Sale, for example, three of the top 10 lots were sons of Getaway, making €160,000, €120,000 and €100,000 respectively.

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STALLIONS Sea Moon

SEA MOON

BURGAGE STUD, LEIGHLINBRIDGE, CO CARLOW Burgage Stud was the home of top National Hunt sire Bob Back, it’s the long-time home of classic star and current Grade 1 sire Shantou, and also to one of the best-bred younger members of the jumps stallion ranks – Sea Moon. He is a son of the multiple Group 1-winning Sadler’s Wells horse Beat Hollow, who is a leading dual-purpose sire, and he is out of Park Hill Stakes heroine Eva Luna, which makes him a three-parts brother to classic winner and successful sire Brian Boru (Sub Lieutenant, Fox Appeal, Shotgun Paddy, etc). Eva Luna’s full-sister to Brian Boru, the unraced Soviet Moon, is the dam of Arc and runaway Derby hero Workforce, who is a member of the team at Knockhouse Stud, and her dam is the Oaks-placed Media Luna. Sea Moon’s first crop are yearlings, and he has the potential to take over from his veteran team mate as the next big sire at his Leighlinbridge base.

Notnowcato

NOTNOWCATO

KNOCKHOUSE STUD, KILACOW, CO KILKENNY Sea Moon’s brilliant relation Workforce is one of five National Hunt stallions at Knockhouse Stud in Co Kilkenny, a farm with a long history of producing notable sires. The team also includes Group 1 star Prince Flori, Shirocco’s successful full-brother September Storm, Galileo’s Derby-placed grandson Libertarian, and proven sire Notnowcato, whose first National Hunt crop turned three in January. That son of Inchinor is a grandson of influential Irish stallion Ahonoora and he won the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh, plus the Group 1 Juddmonte International Stakes at York and the Group 1 Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown. His early crops are flat-bred and they include the Australian six-furlong Group 1 winner Redkirk Warrior, the pattern-placed stakes winners Chil The Kite and Waila, and the popular and prolific Custom Cut. Bred by the famous Moyglare Stud, that triple Group 2-winning miler has accumulated a high six-figured total in career earnings.

Notnowcato’s early runners under National Hunt rules feature the tragically ill-fated dual Grade 1 star Long Dog and also Grade 2 winner Old Guard.

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STALLIONS Mount Nelson

DUNADEN

OVERBURY STUD, GLOUCESTERSHIRE

MOUNT NELSON BOARDSMILL STUD, TRIM, CO MEATH

2017 was a breakthrough year for Mount Nelson. The dual Group 1-winning son of Rock Of Gibraltar joined the team at Boardsmill Stud, his son Penhill took the Grade 1 Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham – boosting a surge in popularity that saw him cover 222 mares – and then another son, Librisa Breeze, won the Group 1 British Champions Sprint Stakes at Ascot.

A half-brother to the classic-placed Group 2 winner Monitor Closely, he is out of the Group 2 Sun Chariot Stakes winner Independence and so comes from the family of the brilliant Derby, King George and St Leger hero Reference Point. His flat runners also include the Group 2 scorers Berkshire, Boscaccio and Highlands Queen, talented performers such as Purr Along, Volume, Ninjago and Elbereth, and the promising young stayer Mount Moriah.

Grade 1 winning mare Airlie Beach was sold for €140,000 in foal to Mount Nelson last November. Boardsmill Stud, in Trim, Co Meath, is also home to Califet (Bamako Moriviere, Blue Dragon, Clarcam, etc), Court Cave (Willoughby Court, Champion Court, Court Minstrel, etc) and Kalanisi (Katchit, Barters Hill, Barizan, etc).

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The recent Group 1 Emirates Melbourne Cup was a great result for Ireland, a one-two-three led by the Joseph O’Brien-trained Rekindling.

Six years before, the race went to Dunaden, a French-bred and trained grandson of former star Irish stallion Indian Ridge. The widely travelled bay also won the Group 1 Caulfield Cup and the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase, he was a Group 3 scorer in France, chased home St Nicholas Abbey in the Group 1 Coronation Cup, and he is a popular member of the team at Overbury Stud. Dunaden’s first crop are two-year-olds, his first foals made up to 20,000gns in England, and one made €20,000 in Goffs. His largest crop to date is due to arrive this spring and he will be bidding to take over the mantle from the Gloucestershire farm’s outstanding National Hunt stallion Kayf Tara, who is as popular as ever at the age of 24. Overbury Stud’s National Hunt team also includes the classic stars Schiaparelli and Jack Hobbs, the latter a new addition for 2018.

Dunaden

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STALLIONS

OL’ MAN RIVER

ARCTIC TACK STUD, FOULKSMILLS, CO WEXFORD

DOYEN

SUNNYHILL STUD, KILCULLEN, CO KILDARE Sadler’s Wells has had a profound impact on the bloodstock industry - both flat and National Hunt - and the late dual Derby hero Old Vic was among his many notable sons. The sire of Cheltenham Gold Cup star Kicking King, Grand National heroes Comply Or Die and Don’t Push It, and many other top performers, spent most of his career at Sunnyhill Stud, which is currently home to two stallions. One is Group 1 Deutsches Derby winner Lucky Speed, who represents the Nijinsky sire line and had his first foals last year, and the other is, like Old Vic, one of the top sons of Sadler’s Wells.

Easy Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner Doyen is a full-brother to Group 1 Oaks heroine Moonshell and to Group 2 scorer Hatha Anna. He is out of Moon Cactus, the patternwinning Kris mare who chased home Rafha in the Group 1 Prix de Diane (French Oaks). Doyen’s flat runners include Group 1 Preis der Diana (German Oaks) star Turfdonna and pattern winners such as Camborne, Sneak A Peak, Vif Monsieur and Wild Chief, and his jumpers include graded and listed scorers such as Golden Doyen, Valdez, Pine Creek and Doyly Carte. His oldest Irish-conceived crop turned five this year.

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Montjeu was one of the most brilliant sons of Sadler’s Wells – on the track and at stud – and he has been making quite an impact in the National Hunt sector. In 2013, a Montjeu colt out of dual classic heroine Finsceal Beo lit up the Goffs sales ring, making €2,850,000 at the Orby Sale. He won the Group 2 Beresford Stakes at the Curragh 12 months later, and Ol’ Man River is now a popular member of the team at Arctic Tack Stud. He covered 93 mares in his initial season and his first foals will arrive this spring. His dam was a champion half-sister to German classic winner Frozen Power, his grandam, Musical Treat, was runner-up in the Lupe Stakes, and his third dam is the Group 3 scorer Mountain Ash. Ol’ Man River’s fellow team members are proven sire Arcadio (Flying Angel, Go Conquer, The Game Changer, etc) and prolific stakes winner Aizavoski (four-yearolds in 2018) – both sons of Monsun – and the high-class Jet Away, a Cape Cross horse from the family of Dansili and whose first foals arrived in 2016.

Doyen’s son Rapid Escape has won three bumpers

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INSIGHT

Court Minstrel (nearest camera)

How and when did you first get involved in bloodstock?

I grew up on the stud farm at home, so I was involved from a very young age.

Tell us about one of your best Goffs/Goffs UK purchases or sales.

Not our most lucrative sale, but we sold a homebred Court Minstrel to Evan Williams for €20,000 back in 2010. He is a multiple Graded winner and Grade 1 placed and has won over £270,000 in prize money. Probably one of the most consistent horses in training as he is still rated 150 now at the age of 11! He is owned by a lovely lady Janet Davies who also bought his three-parts brother from us at the 2016 Land Rover. Named Court Royale he was just beaten on his debut in November and looks promising.

What young National Hunt stallions are you keen on and why?

The obvious choice would have to be Mount Nelson! He is an extremely good looking horse with a great walk. As well as covering some flat mares he is getting a lot of National Hunt mares and he should cross very well with those stoutly bred National Hunt mares.

Probably best not to divulge the names of the other young National Hunt sires we have our eye on!

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FIVE MINUTES WITH…

John Flood MANAGER, BOARDSMILL STUD

Describe some of the physical characteristics you like and dislike when buying a horse.

I don’t like bad hocks. I like a loose moving horse with a good walk, a nice shoulder and a nice attractive head.

What advice would you give to anyone wishing to work in the bloodstock business?

Get as much work experience as possible across various parts of the industry and work your way from the bottom up, and learn as much as possible from all the right people.

Who has been your biggest influence in the business and why?

My father, William. He is a fountain of knowledge, be it from a stud or racing perspective. He has a great work ethic and is someone with strong values and principles.

Outside of racing and sales, what are your interests?

I am very involved with Boardsmill GAA Club. Mostly administrative at this stage as playing days are all but over!

What is your biggest ambition in racing or breeding?

To breed a winner of the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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Bay horse by Montjeu – Finsceal Beo (Mr Greeley)

1ST CROP FOALS OF 2018 Cost €2,850,000 as a yearling

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18/01/2018 09:52

Land Rover Eddie Kavanagh with Goffs Director Nick Nugent

PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE IN

EDDIE KAVANAGH, SALES DIRECTOR OF LAND ROVER IRELAND, EXPLAINS WHY LAND ROVER IS SO CONNECTED TO GOFFS AND EQUESTRIAN SPORT IN GENERAL

When did Land Rover first get involved with Goffs and why?

Land Rover first partnered with Goffs in 1996, so 2018 marks the 22nd year of the Land Rover Sale. Goffs has been synonymous with Irish bloodstock sales for over 150 years and our relationship is entirely fitting as we both aim for excellence in our fields; our partnership is one of the most enduring in the business. Land Rover has always been known for its ‘go anywhere’ spirit – designing iconic vehicles with genuine capability and composure. This philosophy underpins the brand’s continuing support of equestrian activities in Ireland and abroad.

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Land Rover

How do you measure the success of the association?

Land Rovers have long been the vehicle of choice for people who ride, own horses or enjoy following equestrian sport, thanks to their all-terrain performance, towing capabilities and great versatility.

Over the years, it has been very rewarding to see the number of Land Rover vehicles in the Goffs car park steadily increase! We’re fortunate to have a terrific working relationship with the team in Goffs and we have come to know many of their clients as a result of our presence on sale days, be it through hospitality or general enquiries about particular models which are displayed at the Goffs sales complex. We strive to accommodate all of Goffs’ clients and to arrange test drives for them through our retailer network nationwide.

What other racing or bloodstock sponsorships does Land Rover have in Ireland (and Britain)?

Land Rover globally has been at the heart of equestrian sport for over 30 years. We support some of the most prestigious equestrian events and venues in the world, including Royal Windsor Horse Show, Guards Polo Club, the Dublin Horse Show and the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials. Together with Goffs, we sponsor the Goffs Land Rover Bumper at the Punchestown Festival each year, the home of National Hunt racing in Ireland. Every horse offered at the Land Rover Sale is eligible to run in the following year’s €100,000 Goffs Land Rover Bumper. The vendor of the horse who wins becomes the outright owner of a new Discovery Sport, our versatile compact SUV. This has proven to be a very successful buyer incentive that is unique to Goffs and it also gives us the opportunity to showcase our range of vehicles to racegoers at the Festival each year. Many of our Land Rover retailers throughout Ireland are involved in local equestrian sponsorships, supporting local horse trials and point-to-points as well as homegrown riders from grassroots levels up. Land Rover globally is proud to work with a number of worldclass equestrian ambassadors including Zara Tindall, Nick Skelton, Sir Mark Todd, Sir Lee Pearson, Harry Meade, Ben Maher and England polo player Max Charlton. Here in Ireland, through Autoboland Land Rover in Waterford, we work with trainer and Land Rover ambassador Joseph O’Brien. He relies on his Discovery Sport as he travels the length and breadth of the country attending race meetings. Versatility is at the heart of the Discovery Sport. With a towing capacity of up to 2,200kg plus its 5+2 stadium seating, sliding second row and rear seats that fold flat, it gives the flexibility to accommodate almost any load with ease.

LAND ROVER GLOBALLY HAS BEEN AT THE HEART OF EQUESTRIAN SPORT FOR 30 YEARS. WE SUPPORT SOME OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS EQUESTRIAN EVENTS AND VENUES IN THE WORLD

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Land Rover

Joseph O’Brien (above) and Zara Tindall (right) are Land Rover ambassadors

Land Rover is also very prominent at the Dublin Horse Show. Tell us about that sponsorship.

The long-running Land Rover Puissance is firmly established as a flagship competition at the Dublin Horse Show and we are proud to continue our sponsorship of this world-class and unique event in the heart of Dublin. Land Rover vehicles have become an integral part of the Dublin Horse Show. The Land Rover Puissance provides a unique opportunity to bring the range of Land Rover vehicles to the attention of thousands of potential customers. Courtesy vehicles are used by the RDS for riders and visitors, and a fleet of vehicles can be found hard at work in the main arena throughout the duration of the show.

It gives us a superb opportunity to showcase our vehicles in a setting that perfectly reflects important aspects of our brand, and to demonstrate our ongoing support for equestrian sports and countryside pursuits. It also allows us to reveal to thousands of spectators the contemporary design, quality and technical sophistication that help define Land Rover today.

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THERE’S NOTHING QUITE LIKE THE BOND BETWEEN HORSE AND RIDER. THEIR PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE INSPIRES OUR SUPPORT FOR EQUESTRIAN SPORTS Is this level of equestrian sport sponsorship replicated in other countries? Land Rover was a sponsor of the 2014 World Equestrian Games in Normandy.

Yes, Land Rover supports several other equestrian events throughout the world. Land Rover UK is title sponsor of the Burghley Horse Show, the finale to the British equestrian calendar which is a firm fixture in the diaries of riders and spectators from all over the world. The Royal Windsor Horse Show in partnership with Land Rover takes place in the private grounds on Windsor Castle each May and is host to international jumping, dressage and endurance competitions. Land Rover also supports the Helsinki International Horse Show each year in Finland with the popular Land Rover Grand Prix. In 2017 Land Rover USA announced its return for the eighth year running as presenting sponsor of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event in Lexington and in turn continuing its longstanding support of the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) and equestrian sports as a whole.

Why has Land Rover singled out equestrian pursuits for such strong support?

There’s nothing quite like the bond between horse and rider. They share early mornings, long training hours and repeated travels, all for the thrill of performance. Facing fierce competition, the best will endeavour endlessly to become faster, sharper and more refined. It’s this pursuit of excellence that inspires our support for equestrian sports and the breathtaking events that demonstrate their sportsmanship and mastery.

What is the outlook for Land Rover sales in Ireland in 2018?

It looks set to be a busy year with a number of new models arriving.

We recently launched the new Range Rover Velar; sitting between the Range Rover Evoque and the Range Rover Sport, Velar’s undeniably contemporary presence is matchless and the calm sanctuary of its interior unequalled. Naturally, the vehicle has Land Rover’s inherent capability at its core, helping to deliver the most connected drive on-road and the most confident one off it. This year we’re delighted to welcome a new ultraversatile commercial version of the Land Rover Discovery which is now on sale. Featuring 1,856 litres of flexible load space replacing the second and third row seats, the new Discovery affords driver and passenger premium levels of comfort and entertainment. Priced from €52,695 exdelivery (VAT at €9,737) in Ireland, Discovery Commercial is available in SE and HSE specifications across the 3.0 TD6 model. This spring we will also introduce the new Range Rover and Range Rover Sport Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles, offering uncompromised performance both onand off-road, while promising incredible economy and CO2. The PHEV versions of these models will be available alongside our existing range of clean and efficient diesel and petrol engines, giving our customers more choice than ever before.

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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Take time out at

Enjoy 2 nights Bed and Breakfast, with dinner on one evening Package also includes: 10% discount at Spa Haven at the Westgrove VIP Card to Kildare Village Shopping Outlet 20% discount off admission to the Irish National Stud Full access to our award winning leisure club with 20m pool

T

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(Subject to availability.Terms and conditions apply.)

Westgrove Hotel and Conference Centre, Clane, Naas. Co Kildare.

045 98 99 00 E info@westgrovehotel.com W www.westgrovehotel.com

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22/08/2017 11:38

The Feed Choice of Champions

Bluegrass Horse feed Tel : +44(0) 28 3754 8276 Email: info@bluegrasshorsefeed.com Web: www.bluegrasshorsefeed.com

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04/01/2018 15:02

18/01/2018 09:54

Alaïa Balenciaga Céline Chanel Chloé Christian Louboutin Dolce & Gabbana Erdem Fendi Givenchy Gucci Hermès Louis Vuitton Prada Saint Laurent Paris Tom Ford Valentino Victoria Beckham

DUBLIN CORK LIMERICK GALWAY

brownthomas.com

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93734 NEH Advert_93734 NEH Advert 03/05/2016 11:58 Page 1

Newmarket Equine Hospital Cambridge Road Newmarket CB8 0FG United Kingdom

NEWMARKET EQUINE HOSPITAL

Comprehensive Equine Veterinary Services With over thirty veterinary surgeons working from a state-of-the-art Equine Hospital, we can cater for all your equine veterinary needs.

Tel: +44(0)1638 782000 email: office@neh.uk.com www.newmarketequinehospital.com 243723_2L_NewmarketEquine_SM_Goffs_NationalHunt.indd 1

11/09/2017 15:43

my gift to the world Together, we can continue to create a future that is fair for everyone. And make a world without poverty our legacy.

For more information contact OXFAM Ireland Tel: (01) 672 7662 Email: friends@oxfamireland.org Oxfam Ireland is a member of Oxfam International, a world-wide development organisation that mobilises the power of people against poverty. Charitable co. limited by guarantee. Reg. No. 284292, CHY5988

www.oxfamireland.org/legacy

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SOCIAL

PHOTOGRAPHS FROM GOFFS EVENTS IN DUB LIN, AINTREE, PUNCHESTOWN, DONCASTER & KILDARE

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BROWN THOMAS

ABOVE LEFT: KEIRA KENNEDY and TAMSO DOYLE ABOVE RIGHT: ANITA O’LEARY and DEBORAH HALLIGAN

PHOTO

FINISH THE PERSONAL SHOPPING TEAM AT B ROWN THOMAS, GOFFS’ FASHION PARTNER, RECENTLY HOSTED A B EAUTIFUL B RUNCH AND FASHION SHOW IN THE RESTAURANT B Y JOHNNIE COOKE ON THE TOP FLOOR OF THE GRAFTON STREET STORE

ABOVE: ELAINE LAWLOR and EIMEAR MULHERN BELOW: ALMA HOURIGAN and HEATHER FITZPATRICK

ABOVE: KELLEY BURKE and ANNMARIE HEALY BELOW: ELAINE MONAGHAN and DERVILLE MEADE

LEFT: MARIE MATTHEWS and RACHEL GRIFFIN RIGHT: CARMEL MARRINAN and HAYLEY O’CONNOR

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BROWN THOMAS

THE PERSONAL

APPROACH KATIE McGRATH, HEAD OF PERSONAL SHOPPING AT BROWN THOMAS, GIVES US SOME INSIGHTS INTO PERSONAL SHOPPING, ALONG WITH HER FASHION TIPS FOR THE WINTER RACING SEASON.

ABOVE: HAZEL and MARYSE DOYLE

RIGHT: RHONA BLAKE

Q: What are the benefits of personal shopping?

A: One of the major benefits of the personal shopping service at Brown Thomas is that our team of expert personal shoppers can bring the store to you. Some people can find shopping a daunting experience, therefore we aim to provide a relaxing space in one of our personal shopping rooms that is exclusively yours while we ensure to find the perfect solution for you.

Q: How can people make an appointment?

A: Making an appointment is simple. You can either telephone 01- 617 1108 or email personalshopping@ brownthomas.ie.

Q: Can you describe the personal shopping process/ experience for a new customer?

A: Once we receive a booking, we will contact the customer to confirm a time and personal shopper of their choice. All of the personal shopping team are profiled on BrownThomas. com or we will suggest someone suitable based on what it is they’re looking for, be it a look for a special occasion, an entire wardrobe make-over or a special gift for a loved one. Closer to their appointment, we will call to take sizing details. All that’s left then is to relax and enjoy!

Q: In which Brown Thomas stores can people avail of the service?

A: The service is available in all our Brown Thomas stores and also in our BT2 Dundrum store.

Q: Does Brown Thomas personal shopping cater for men and women?

A: Yes it does and in addition to our personal shopping services in store, we offer an amazing Made to Measure tailoring service in our Menswear Department. You can have a hand-measured and tailored suit or shirt from the world’s best brands designed especially for you by our master tailors and in store experts.

Q: Is there a minimum spend?

A: The service is completely complimentary and carries no obligation to purchase.

Q: As we are at the height of the winter racing season, can you give us some style tips and trends for dressing the part at the big jumps festivals at Leopardstown and Cheltenham?

A: My top tip would be to invest in a statement coat and don’t be afraid to have fun with it! There are some fantastic pieces this season including ruffle detailing from Alexander McQueen and feathers from Prada. If you prefer a more classic approach, then I would recommend a beautiful wool and cashmere coat from Max Mara.

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SOCIAL LEFT: A scene from the sales ring BELOW: ANTHONY BROMLEY and NICKY HENDERSON

LIVERPOOL

LIFE

ABOVE: COLIN TIZZARD BELOW: DAVID PIPE

THE GOFFS UK AINTREE SALE HAS Q UICKLY ESTAB LISHED ITSELF AS A MAJOR AUCTION OF Q UALITY HORSES IN TRAINING. IN 2 0 1 6 SAMCRO WAS THE STAR AND THE 2 0 1 7 SALE SAW A TOP PRICE OF £ 3 0 0 ,0 0 0

ABOVE: JEREMY MACTAGGART and HAROLD KIRK

ABOVE: DAN SKELTON and RYAN MAHON BELOW: TOM MALONE and PAUL NICHOLLS

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ABOVE LEFT: JONJO O’NEILL JUNIOR and SENIOR ABOVE RIGHT: MAGS O’TOOLE and EDDIE O’LEARY BELOW: JOSEPH O’BRIEN and GEAROID COSTELLOE

GOFFS NATIONAL HUNT 2018

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17/01/2018 17:14

AWARD WINNING SOLICITORS & SPORTS LAWYERS

sale & purchase • bha enquiries • stallion syndications • foal shares • road traffic • veterinary negligence • racehorse leases • horse ownership - partnership syndicates • buying and selling training yards / studs • employment law • debt recovery • bloodstock insurance law • commercial / business

CONTACT OUR EQUINE LAW EXPERTS Mark Edmondson mae@edmondsonhall.com

Deborah Hargreaves dh@edmondsonhall.com

Anna Hall ah@edmondsonhall.com

Justin Wadham jw@edmondsonhall.com

25 Exeter Road, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 8AR DX 50521 Newmarket Tel: 44 (0) 1638 560556 Fax: 44 (0) 1638 561656 www.edmondsonhall.com solicitors@edmondsonhall.com

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09/10/2017 08:56

The affordable

Galileo line in Britain

SUN CENTRAL Classy Looking Dual Purpose Sire Dual Stakes Winner ✘ Timeform Rated 119 100% record in the Black Type races Exceptionally well-bred half brother to multiple Group 1 scorers GRANDERA (Champion Older Horse) and GEORGE WASHINGTON (Champion 2 and 3 year old).

FIRST RUNNERS IN 2018 Fee: £2000

Oct 1st NFFR

ELUSIVE BLOODSTOCK Laughton Manor Equestrian Centre, Laughton, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 0HB Contact: JAMES GRAY | +44 (0) 7743 042742 | elusivebloodstock@hotmail.co.uk | www.elusivebloodstock.co.uk

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SOCIAL

ABOVE: TIMMY HYDE

ABOVE: MICHAEL HICKEY ABOVE: ROBERT TYNER and DEREK O’CONNOR

QUALITY ON

PARADE STAGED AFTER RACING ON DAY 3 OF THE NATIONAL HUNT FESTIVAL, THE GOFFS PUNCHESTOWN SALE SAW NINE OF THE 1 5 LOTS OFFERED SELL FOR SIX-FIGURE PRICES

ABOVE: EDDIE O’LEARY and GORDON ELLIOTT. BELOW: NICKY HENDERSON and DAVID MINTON

BELOW: EDWARD O’GRADY

ABOVE LEFT: COLIN TIZZARD

ABOVE: JOSEPH O’BRIEN and DAVY RUSSELL. BELOW: MATT COLEMAN

ABOVE: MARIE and MARTIN DORAN of Parkville Stud BELOW: WILLIE MULLINS and HAROLD KIRK

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Interior Design Consultants Unit 27/28, Naas Town Centre, Sallins Road, Naas, Co. Kildare

T: 045 874970 W: www.skiinteriors.ie E: info@skiinteriors.ie 239558_SKNH Interiors_IB_Goffs.indd IFC_Goffs 2017_Advert.indd 1 1

03/06/2016 11:57 14:40 18/01/2018

SOCIAL

ABOVE: LUCINDA RUSSELL BELOW: TIM KENT and ROBERT WALEY-COHEN

ABOVE: DAVID MINTON and NICKY HENDERSON BELOW: VENETIA WILLIAMS

ABOVE: ERIC MCNAMARA and NOEL MEADE

SPRING

BREAK THE GOFFS UK SPRING SALE OF NATIONAL HUNT STORES D ORSES-I - R I I G IS ALWAY S ATTENDED B Y THE INDUSTRY ’ S LEADING PLAY ERS. THE 2 0 1 7 EDITION SAW AN INCREDIB LE 8 9 % CLEARANCE RECORDED FOR THE STORES, WHILE 2 9 ORSES I - R I I G SOLD FOR £ 5 0 ,0 0 0 OR MORE. ABOVE: DONNCHADH DOYLE BELOW: HARRY and CIARA FRY

ABOVE: HENRY BEEBY presents EDDIE O’LEARY with the annaul Goffs UK Willie Stephenson Award BELOW LEFT: PETER FAHY BELOW RIGHT: GORDON ELLIOTT

LEFT: ALAN KING RIGHT: GERRY HOGAN

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BONHAMS IRELAND

ENQUIRIES +353 (0)1 602 0990 kieran.oboyle@bonhams.com

Your Gateway into the International Art & Collectables Markets

Bonhams 31 Molesworth Street Dublin 2, D02 XK84

Bonhams Ireland offers you a free and confidential service in selling or buying at any of our international salerooms. Our specialist departments cover almost 60 categories and we are market leaders in categories such as Irish and Modern British Art; Books & Manuscripts; Wine; Old Master Paintings; Sporting Guns and Motorcars. We also offer a valuation service for insurance and estate purposes.

bonhams.com/ireland

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SOCIAL

LEFT: BOBBY O’RYAN and MOUSE MORRIS BELOW: CHRISTIAN WILLIAMS and EVAN WILLIAMS

ABOVE: HUGH and NIALL BLEAHEN

JUMPERS IN

JUNE

ABOVE: PAUL NICHOLLS RIGHT: KIM BAILEY and AIDEN MURPHY

FOLLOWING GREAT RESULTS ON THE TRACK FOR THE GOFFS LAND ROVER SALE, INCLUDING B EING THE ONLY STORE SALE TO PRODUCE CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL WINNERS LAST Y EAR, THE 2 0 1 7 LAND ROVER SALE RETURNED AN OVERALL CLEARANCE RATE OF 8 8 % AND A DAY ONE AVERAGE OF € 4 3 ,3 0 2

ABOVE: SARAH and JOSEPH O’BRIEN

BELOW: BARRY GERAGHTY and NIGEL TWISTON-DAVIES

ABOVE: ROGER MARLEY and RONNIE O’LEARY

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ABOVE: NICKY RICHARDS LEFT: COLIN TIZZARD

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ECB Aqua Treadmill Market leaders in cold salt hydrotherapy, ECB Equine Spa, have developed the first English built water treadmill. The treadmill combines refrigerated saltwater, built-in incline, endless safety features and a state of the art computer system, making it the safest and most user friendly unit on the market today.

• Marine Grade Stainless Steel for saltwater compatibility • • Large glass side panels and doors giving greater gait/stride analysis • • Fully controllable built-in incline • • Quick release front/rear bars • • Temperature adjustable refrigeration • • 100 horse programme computer system - IPhone/Ipad compatible • • The back up of ECB, England •

Telephone: +44 (0)1451 822969 Website: www.equinespa.com | Email: Richard@equinespa.com Bourton Hill Farm, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL54 2LF FC advert template.indd 1 NH_V2.indd 1 244559_1C_ECB_JM_Goffs

16/01/2018 12/01/2018 10:04 08:52

SOCIAL

ABOVE: PETER MOLONY, AIDAN O’RYAN and GORDON ELLIOTTBELOW: MICHAEL MOORE

STOCKING UP THE GOFFS DECEMB ER NH SALE ENSURED THAT THE Y EAR ENDED WITH A B ANG. THE PRICES ACHIEVED FOR FOALS AND B ROODMARES CONFIRMED THAT GOFFS IS INCREASINGLY POPULAR WITH THE JUMPING COMMUNITY .

MARTIN LYNCH

ABOVE:STEPHEN KEMBLE ABOVE: CHRIS JONES BELOW: IAN FERGUSON

ABOVE: PETER VAUGHAN BELOW: AIDAN AHERNE

ABOVE: BRENDAN BASHFORD, AIDEN MURPHY and BOBBY MCCARTHY

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ner ene ●

●

●

●

●

"Plusvital is leading the way in taking an active research approach in their product development and this new nutrigenomics innovation is intriguing. CoQ10 is of growing interest a supplement in human health and we look forward to seeing the fruit’s of Plusvital’s research, particularly in our T:T horses."

Henry de Bromhead, one of Ireland's leading racehorse trainers

www.holmesteadsaddlery.com

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17/01/2018 16:25 15:29

VICTOR STUD

LANDS c.84 HA, THE CURRAGH

CLAIREMONT STUD

EXPERTS IN SALES & ACQUISITIONS

STUD FARMS | COUNTRY HOMES | AGRICULTURAL LAND

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TULLAMAINE CASTLE ON c.75 HA, TIPPERARY

Who better versed in country property ?

CASTLEHYDE

CHURCHFIELDS, THE K CLUB

MEADOW COURT STUD

WWW.GOFFSPROPERTY.COM E

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property@goffs.ie

T

+353 45 981 048

18/01/2018 09:21

SOCIAL

ABOVE: Sizing John’s breeders BRYAN and SANDRA MAYOH collect the Overbury Trophy for Leading Chaser from SIMON SWEETING.

ABOVE: PETER HOCKENHULL presents the Shade Oak Trophy for Leading Novice Chaser to SCARLETT KNIPE who, with husband ROBIN, bred Thistlecrack

AWARDS

ABOVE: DAVID SHERLOCK presents JEREMY HINDS with the Birch Farm Stud & DGS Transport Leading Novice Hurdler Trophy for Ballyandy.

BELOW: PHILLIPA GILLIE presents EIMEAR MULHERN, on behalf of breeder DAVID YOUNG, with the Eric Gillie Special Award for Special Tiara.

NIGHT ABOVE: ANTHONY BROMLEY (left) and TESSA GREATREX present the Highflyer Trophy for Leading Hurdler to BILL BROMLEY, breeder of Yanworth.

OWNERS, TRAINERS AND B REEDERS CONVENED AT THE MOUNT PLEASANT HOTEL ON THE EVE OF THE 2 0 1 7 GOFFS UK SPRING SALE FOR THE TB A NATIONAL HUNT CELEB RATION DINNER AND PRESENTATION OF 1 0 AWARDS.

RIGHT: SHEILA O’RYAN accepts the Mickley Trophy from RICHARD KENT, on behalf of Augusta Kate’s breeder, Graham Wylie

ABOVE: The Yorton Trophy for Leading NH Flat Horse is presented by LESTER FUTTER to MONICA and TIM FROST, breeders of Sam Brown

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RIGHT: RICHARD and SALLY ASTON receive the Mill House Trophy from DAVID MINTON, for breeding Petticoat Tails, the Leading National Hunt Flat Mare.

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The Home of Racing Legends Just 20 minutes from both the Curragh & Punchestown racecourses, The K Club in Straffan Co. Kildare is the perfect destination for those who want to learn the origins of the Spor t of Kings!

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL +353 (1) 601 7200 Email: sales@kclub.ie www.kclub.ie

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18/01/2018 31/08/2017 09:19 10:03

THE NEW RANGE ROVER VELAR

LISTEN TO YOUR INSTINCTS FROM €62,240*

BOOK A TEST DRIVE Some prefer to listen to their heads, others their hearts.

With the New Range Rover Velar, you have the luxury of listening to both. Your head tells you, it’s a Land Rover with legendary go anywhere capability. Then take a look at the stunning exterior silhouette, the perfect waistline with flush deployable door handles and burnished copper details.

Now listen. That’s the sound of your heart racing. landrover.ie

*Price quoted is for the Range Rover Velar 2.0D Inline 4 TD4 180PS 4WD Auto Standard and excludes delivery and related charges. Official fuel consumption figures for the Range Rover Velar range in l/100km: Urban 6.2 – 12.7, Extra Urban 4.9 – 7.5, Combined 5.4 – 9.4. CO2 emissions g/km: 142 – 214. Drive responsibly on and off road.

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