It has been a season to remember for Teofilo (Ire) as a broodmare sire with Coroebus (Ire) Dubawi {Ire}), Dreamloper (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}) flying the flag at the highest level and it was his daughter Hightown Heights (Ire) (lot 1418) who topped the final day's trade at the Goffs Breeding Stock Sale at €75,000.
Few would have predicted that Hightown Heights would have topped any sale when she was running in claimers during the spring but she received a significant update to her pedigree in the autumn when her sister Thanks Monica (Ire) gained black-type.
Hightown Heights, a dual winner, was last seen on a racecourse when finishing down the field in a Dundalk maiden, by which time her sister Thanks Monica was still a maiden.
Thanks Monica, trained by Ralph Beckett, actually ran eight times before shedding her maiden off a mark of 69, but she did it in emphatic fashion by seven lengths at Salisbury.
She then followed up on that handicap success with another wide-margin victory at Leicester, earning herself a shot at a listed race, where she performed with huge credit to finish third in the Oyster S. at Galway back in September.
That significant pedigree update played a major role in Brian Jones going to €75,000 to secure Hightown Heights from Ballintry Stud on a day where Goffs chief Henry Beeby hailed the strong trade.
Off the back of an exceptional foal sale that saw turnover rise 16% on last year's figures to €29,561,000 and the average climbed 15% to €40,110, similarly strong figures were posted in the breeding stock sale.
The average was up 27% to €55,560 while the aggregate climbed 2% to €16,501,400 and the median was also up a massive 41% to 24,000. The clearance rate of 79% represented a 2% drop.
Combining the November Sale results, turnover was up 10% to €46,062,400 while the average rose by 20% to €45,548 and the median up 20% to €24,000.
Beeby said, “It's hard to find the appropriate words to describe trade this week but it can really only be defined in the richest of superlatives. The four-day Foal Sale set the tone especially throughout the marquee Wednesday session when the cream of the Irish foal crop provoked a session of truly frenzied bidding that was the highlight of a sale of depth, consistency and hunger for the best. That followed a superb renewal of the Orby Sale with some spectacular pinhooking touches and we look forward to seeing many of those foals back here next September.”
“However strong the foal trade was though, nothing could have prepared us for the level of bidding at yesterday's premier Breeding Stock Session. Not since the heady days of the historic Paulyn Dispersal have we sold as many mares for €500,000 and over and we witnessed a remarkable day of selling with quality mare after quality mare provoking several truly seismic bidding duels from an international cast of breeders. Whilst every bidder is important, we must single out our great supporter Mr. Zhang of Yulong who was the leading buyer by some margin. His haul of the best dominated the leader board as he and his advisor Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland saw off the competition time after time with the majority bought to support his stallion Lucky Vega (Ire), himself a Goffs graduate. We are lucky to have his support, and by 'we' I refer to the Irish bloodstock industry, not just Goffs.”
He added, “I confess that we thought it would be hard to better 2021's superb results but this year's extraordinary statistics are testament to so many major Irish breeding entities who offered drafts of note that provoked a sale of incredible tempo, enthusiasm and hunger that was just breath-taking as a huge cast of international buyers, both in person and online, battled for mare after mare to highlight the enduring attraction of the best Irish bloodlines. This year's alumni will continue to promote the sale for many years as their progeny follow in the footsteps of the likes of Alcohol Free (Ire), Blackbeard (Ire), Little Big Bear (Ire), Saffron Beach (Ire) and so many more as breeders from home and abroad tap into the class and quality that was offered. Whilst today was at a lower level there remained competition for those that appealed the most as several overseas entities battled to the end.
“Goffs November has long held a significant place in the calendar and the last week has only underlined its importance to Irish breeders, who sell with us safe in the knowledge that they will always get that little bit more, as well as international buyers who are attracted to Ireland by the quality on offer, together with the unique welcome they receive from the Goffs team and our colleagues at Irish Thoroughbred Marketing who play such a key role in our buyer attraction every year.
“Finally as we close the sale I extend a special Goffs thank you to every buyer and each vendor for we are nothing without their support. Bringing both groups together and ensuring they receive equal focus is our perpetual goal.”
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