As hardy as he was talented, Dandy Man was bred by Noel O'Callaghan at Mountarmstrong Stud from the G3 Molecomb S. winner Lady Alexander (Ire) (Night Shift), who is also the dam of G2 Queen Mary S. victrix Anthem Alexander (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}). He raced for five seasons, winning six of his 30 starts, initially for Con Collins in Ireland, then for his daughter Tracey, before he was bought by Godolphin and continued his career under the care of Saeed Bin Suroor. 

Already the winner of the G3 Palace House S. before switching to the Godolphin blue, Dandy Man added another Listed win to his two previous Listed victories in Ireland, and he was fourth, beaten a length, in the G1 King's Stand S. He had also been second in that same race behind Miss Andretti when trained by Tracey Collins, as well as finishing third in the G1 Nunthorpe S.

Dandy Man spent his entire stallion career at Joe Foley's Ballyhane Stud, and he has been represented by the Group/Grade 1 winner Peniaphobia (Ire), La Pelosa (Ire) and River Boyne (Ire). The latter now stands in Ireland at Tara Stud. Further group winners include Dandalla (Ire), Mooniesta (Ire) and this year's G3 Pride S. winner Novus (Ire).

Paying tribute to the horse who served 15 consecutive seasons on the Ballyhane roster, Foley said, “Dandy Man had been a great friend to so many people, starting with Con and Tracey Collins, and especially to all of us here at Ballyhane. 

“It was very hard to say goodbye to him, and we are grateful for all that he has given us over the years he has been here with us. He was like a member of our family. 

“I would also like to add a special word of gratitude to breeders who used him over the years.”

The post Ballyhane Stalwart Dandy Man Dies at 20 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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One of the catalogue highlights is Malina Girl (Ire) (Malinas {Ger}) (lot 22), a winner of four of her six starts to date, including placed efforts in the Dawn Run Mares Novice Chase and the Coolmore Mares Novice Chases. Another is Optional Mix (Ire) (Carlotamix {Fr}) (lot 12), a five-time winner at the races for trainer Eoin Doyle and is out of an own sister to the winning hurdler Tramp Stamp (Ire) (King's Theatre {Ire}).

The 15-year-old mare Misrepresent (Distorted Humor) (lot 2) is set to be offered by Ballinahown Stud in foal to Dandy Man (Ire), meaning she is carrying a full-sibling to Countess Rosina (Ire), third in the Listed Unzip Me S. at Santa Anita. Misrepresent is a daughter of Grade II winner and Grade I-placed Halory Leigh (Halory Hunter).

Ballet Blanc (GB) (Highland Reel {Ire}) (lot 17) is part of a draft from Amanda Perrett's Coombelands Racing Stables and exits a promising runner-up effort at Lingfield on Mar. 1.

The sale has been supported with entries from trainers Mick Appleby, Ed Dunlop, Edward Lynam, Rebecca Menzies, Amy Murphy, Jamie Osborne, Henry Spiller and Tom Lacey.

Prospective buyers are required to register or logon to join the sale ahead of the commencement of bidding from 12 noon, Wednesday, Mar. 8. Bidding is scheduled to close from 12 noon on Thursday, Mar. 9.

The post Catalogue Released For Tattersalls Online March Sale appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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“Don't dream of putting a picture of that lad up on Twitter otherwise I'll have Eddie O'Leary tweeting that it's not the only pig down in Ballyhane,” – Joe Foley.

Few young sires generated as much chat as Blackbeard (Ire), who will embark on his stallion career with Coolmore Stud at €25,000 and a lofty reputation to match that fee, being a dual Group 1-winning juvenile by No Nay Never.

If you hadn't been aware of Blackbeard's antics before his races last season, you could be forgiven for thinking he was a model pupil as he stood quietly in his stable while Coolmore's Mark Byrne explained how the majority of the 1,000 visitors to the stud on Friday and Saturday came to see the G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park S. winner.

Final stop on the 2023 @IREthoroughbred Stallion Trail is a trip to @coolmorestud to see Blackbeard.

In contrast to the weather outside, the dual Group 1 winner has helped raise the temperature of the Coolmore stallion roster, as @markbyrne10 explains. pic.twitter.com/8i06T0FdvT

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

Byrne said, “Blackbeard is the horse that everyone wants to see. We've been open to the public today and yesterday and, of the 1,000 or so people who have visited us, most of them were particularly keen to see Blackbeard. He almost had a cult following on the track and it's easy to see why-he's a beautiful-looking horse, was an expensive foal, has a great walk and an excellent race record and pedigree. 

“It's a really important thing for every stud in the world to keep new stallions on the roster and thankfully we've got an exciting young sire by No Nay Never who I think is going to prove to be really good value.”

He added, “It's not only been Irish visitors over the past two days, we've also welcomed a lot of French and English people. It's kudos to everyone involved in the Irish Thoroughbred Stallion Trail as it provided everyone a chance to get out and see these horses over the course of two days. A lot of business will be generated from the Trail, even if it is not carried out over the two days, as we had a lot of breeders here on the Trail. You also have people who are lifelong fans of different horses so they get the chance to meet their heroes as such. It's lovely to be a part of that.”

With one of the leading sires in Europe, a new Group 1-winning stallion prospect to add to the roster for 2023 and one of the best lunches going on the entire trail, it shouldn't have come as a surprise to see parking spaces at a premium at Ballylinch Stud. 

Similarly to what Byrne reported at Coolmore, Ballylinch was abuzz with the majority of the visitors keen to cast their eye over Bayside Boy, who Bloodstock and Nominations manager Eoin Fives revealed to be going down a bomb with breeders. 

Bayside Boy, new to the stallion ranks @BallylinchStud, is set to cover 150 mares in his first year at stud. pic.twitter.com/Y2I3xoJ3Wb

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

He said, “We've been seeing the footfall here ever since we announced Bayside Boy. We've been mad busy showing the stallions here but in particular with Bayside Boy. Everyone is keen to see him. He has been very popular. We set aside a certain amount of shares to be sold and they have all gone. We've already got over 100 mares booked into him so we are delighted with where he is. We envisage him covering a nice big book. He will cover 15 of our best mares this year which will ensure he will get off to the best possible start.”

Fives added, “We've had a good mixture of people here over the past two days. There have been shareholders in stallions who are very tied into the Ballylinch model and we've sold nominations here today and yesterday as well. A lot of people have just come to see the stallions and it's great to have everyone and even better to have people engaging with this part of the industry because I suppose the breeding side of things can be a little bit esoteric for a lot of people.”

If bloodstock poses as a riddle wrapped into a mystery for some people, a trip down to Ballyhane Stud might do more harm than good, as the first beast to hog the limelight is not Dandy Man (Ire) or the up-and-coming Soldier's Call (GB), but a pig the size of a small car. 

Can you guess which stud the TDN Europe team have arrived at this morning? pic.twitter.com/BLhY7CSEXL

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

“Don't dream of putting a picture of that lad up on Twitter otherwise I'll have Eddie O'Leary tweeting that it's not the only pig down in Ballyhane,” Joe Foley says, only half-joking. Of course, his request falls on deaf ears. 

The pig, who happens to be Dandy Man's best friend, set a high bar in terms of entertainment but the five stallions on the rock-solid Ballyhane roster for 2023 stole the show, in particular Soldier's Call. 

It was on Friday when the TDN Europe team visited Yeomanstown Stud, where Rob O'Callagahan was bullish about Invincible Army (Ire)'s claims for first-season sire honours, but Foley described himself as extremely happy with his own dog in that particular fight. 

He said, “We have the old stalwart Dandy Man, who has been such a friend to us down through the years, and he was the champion sire of sprinters in Europe yet again last year, as he was the year before. He's the pillar of our team here. We've got four younger horses here including Elzaam (Aus), who is doing great, and then the three younger horses–Soldier's Call, Sands Of Mali (Fr) and Space Traveller (GB).”

The man, the myth, the legend – @JoeFoleyBally offers up two colts by @BallyhaneStud's Soldier's Call to follow on the track this season. pic.twitter.com/f1f4lCeapr

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

Foley added, “Soldier's Call has his first crop of 2-year-olds this year and we are very hopeful about them. He was a very fast horse himself and his stock looks to be very fast as well. We've got a bunch of them in pre-training and they are going really well. The first foals by Sands Of Mali were very well-received last autumn and the new recruit, Space Traveller, is the highest-rated Bated Breath (GB) and is out of a Galileo (Ire) mare who is out of a Kingmambo mare and is from a great family. He's a beautiful horse and has been wowing the crowds who have been here today and yesterday.”

Just a few fields away from Foley's Ballyhane base stands Jukebox Jury (Ire), Fascinating Rock (Ire) and Sea Moon (Ire) at Burgage Stud. All three have been making waves with their National Hunt runners, none more so than the Irish St Leger winner Jukebox Jury, who could have a big year ahead of him with his first Irish 4-year-olds set to run between the flags and under rules. 

Ger O'Neill's Castlefield Stud is a further 10 minutes away and offers a trio of accessible stallions for National Hunt and Flat breeders. Australian Group 1 winner Mirage Dancer (GB), who boasts a good Juddmonte pedigree, catches the eye and is joined by fellow National Hunt stallion Hunting Horn (Ire), best known for his Hampton Court success at Royal Ascot for Aidan O'Brien. 

But Alkumait (GB) could be the ace in the Castlefield Stud pack. A son of Showcasing, he confirmed himself a high-class 2-year-old when winning the Mill Reef S. and, being a half-brother to leading 2000 Guineas hope Chaldean (GB) (Frankel {GB}), his pedigree could be in lights later this spring.

Alkumait looking a picture in the at Capital Stallions. The son of Showcasing is a half-brother to Chaldean and showed classy form himself when winning the G2 Mill Reef Stakes. pic.twitter.com/g4L4YpcCYu

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

Part owner of Alkumait, Jerry Horan, said, “The Stallion Trail was the bee's knees and it was noticeable how many people travelled over from England and even further afield. The Stallion Trail has become a date in people's diary. The team at Castlefield did a great job and the stallions looked fantastic. Alkumait was late coming to Castlefield last year because he wasn't long out of training when we got him but he has let down into a fine stallion now. It's lucky for the Alkumait syndicate that the Chaldean came along and, more recently, the half-sister made 1,000,000gns at the foal sales so the future is bright. It's a proper pedigree and we're very excited by him.”

Three stallions who caught the eye on the Irish Thoroughbred Stallion Trail in 2023

First things first, like every good Irish wedding, let's acknowledge those who couldn't be with us, or in this case, those we didn't get to see. Of the 35 studs who opened their doors to the public, the TDN Europe team got to visit 11, and here are a few observations from those studs. 

Ghaiyyath (Ire). A beast. One look at Ghaiyyath and it's easy to see why his foals sold so well last autumn. A top-class racehorse, he has all the right attributes to make it as a stallion and one would venture that the team at Kildangan Stud are quietly optimistic about the future with this fellow. Although we didn't get the ruler out, Ghaiyyath could conceivably be 17hh, which is funny given he is a son of Dubawi (Ire) and his dam was the diminutive Nightime (Ire). Fellow Kildangan-based sire Earthlight (Ire) also catches the eye. A flashy chestnut, he boasts pure unadulterated power and adds to what is a strong roster at Kildangan Stud. 

Space Traveller. A horse who wasn't on the radar prior to visiting Ballyhane Stud, Space Traveller deserves consideration for his walk alone. The G3 Jersey S. and G2 Boomerang S. winner walks for fun and should be a big hit with breeders if passing that on to his stock. Fellow Ballyhane resident Soldier's Call does exactly what he says on the tin and should get fast horses which would stand him in good stead with a view towards the first-season sire championship. 

Here is Space Traveller, one of the newest additions @BallyhaneStud. pic.twitter.com/mbermuRyDW

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

Jukebox Jury. If he's good enough for Colin Tizzard and John Nallen, who are understood to be big fans of the stallion, then Burgage Stud's Jukebox Jury is likely to make waves this year with his first crop of Irish 4-year-olds. To his credit, he has already made a splash with his runners thus far but the best should be yet to come from the Irish St Leger-winning stallion. Mirage Dancer is another interesting National Hunt sire and ticks a lot of boxes standing for just €3,500 at Castlefield Stud.

A big year could be in store for @BurgageStud's Jukebox Jury who has his first crop of Irish four-year-olds to run for him. pic.twitter.com/UVS3jquGca

— TDN (@theTDN) January 14, 2023

The post ‘Blackbeard The One They Want To See’ – Young Sires Drive Stallion Trail Crowd appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Not only did Saxon Warrior top the session when Ballyhimikin Stud signed for a colt [lot 231] drafted by Kildallan Farm for €88,000, but he was also responsible for three of the top four foals on the day. 

The Monday session-topper is out of an unraced sister to black-type performer Impendor (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) and led home a cracking days's trade for the Coolmore-based stallion who, off the back of an excellent debut season with his two-year-olds, had his 2023 fee increased to €35,000.

The second most expensive Saxon Warrior through the ring on the day was a colt [lot 78] from  Collegelands Stud who was knocked down to KCS Bloodstock for €65,000. 

He is out of an unraced New Approach (Ire) mare who has produced two winners from two runners; El C Wells (Ire) (Belardo {Ire}) and Wohileh (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}).

Ciara Carty of KCS Bloodstock said, “He's a nice colt and stood out today. He's got plenty going for him, he's from a nice pedigree and he's by a sire who has done well and is going to have global appeal going forward. This colt will be back for sale next autumn.” 

Rochestown Lodge Stud's colt [lot 135] by the sire sold for €62,000 and will chart a similar path with the yearling sales next autumn the ultimate aim. 

Marie McCartan of Ballyphillip said of the big-walking chestnut out of the dual winner Zagharit (Ire) (Sir Percy {GB}), “We're delighted to get him. He's a really nice horse and will come back to the sale next year. Saxon Warrior having the Breeders' Cup winner was a big help.”

Four colts by Saxon Warrior sold for an aggregate of €260,000 at an average of €65,000 at Goffs on Monday.

The overall trade was also strong. The aggregate was up 3% to €3,529,000 and the average also rose 6% to €20,399 while the median fell by 3% to €15,000. 

Stauffenberg A Dandy Man Fan

Philipp Stauffenberg signed up to the Dandy Man (Ire) fan club by snapping up a filly and a colt by the Ballyhane-based stallion as well as an Advertise (GB) filly on the day. 

But it was the lot 162, the Dandy Man filly out of Astonished (Ire), a dual winner by Sea The Stars (Ire), who led the way for the leading pinhooker at €85,000. 

On that purchase, he said, “She was one of the best physicals of the day. Joe Foley bought the half-sister by Night Of Thunder (Ire) for €160,000, so there's every chance that there will be an update there.”

Forenaghts Stud brought a small, but select draft to Goffs this week and manager Caoimhe Doherty revealed that the whole team was over the moon with the sale of the Dandy Man filly. 

She said, “We are thrilled. We thought she'd sell well but we didn't think she'd sell as well as she did. She was bought by a brilliant judge and underbid by another top judge in Joe Foley. 

“For her to make €85,000 is really beyond what we could have hoped for. We brought two very nice foals to Goffs this week so we're thrilled with how the week has begun.”

@BallyhaneStud's Dandy Man had a filly sell for €85,000 @Goffs1866 today. She was bought by @StauffenbergBS from Forenaughts Stud. pic.twitter.com/lGYnV5K8Vm

— TDN (@theTDN) November 14, 2022

The second foal to sell under the Forenaghts Stud banner is a Starspangledbanner (Aus) [lot 710] who goes through the ring on Wednesday.

The Dandy Man colt was consigned by Kellsgrange Stud and sold for €55,000. Out of an unraced daughter of Camacho (GB), he hailed from a good family, with his granddam Miss Philllyjinks (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) producing G1 Prix Marcel Boussac winner Tiger Tanaka (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}).

It has been a memorable year for Stauffenberg with his pinhooks. At Book 1 at Tattersalls alone, Stauffenberg Bloodstock sold five yearlings for 2,345,000gns, including a 550,000gns Night Of Thunder filly who was knocked down to Godolphin. 

Asked how he was planning on reinvesting at Goffs this week, he joked, “Hopefully wisely! We will know next year if it was wise or not.”

On buying the Advertise filly [lot 62] out of a dual-winning Dark Angel (Ire) mare [Prying Pandora (Fr)] earlier on in the day, he added, “The Advertise filly was lovely as well. She was a little bit light on the page but she was a very nice physical and we are hoping that Advertise will do something next year. I think we got one of the best physicals by Advertise.”

Doyle Delighted With King Of Change Colt

Ross Doyle paid a handsome tribute to King Of Change (GB), a horse the leading bloodstock agent knows well–given he won the G1 QEII on British Champions Day for Richard Hannon–after he secured a colt [lot 102] by the first-season sire for €50,000. 

King Of Change recently made the move to Micheál Orlandi's Starfield Stud in County Westmeath and Doyle described himself as being impressed with the first foals he has seen by the stallion. 

On lot 102, he said, “Peter [Doyle, the agent's partner and father] and Flash Conroy bought him and the plan will be to resell him as a yearling. He was as nice a foal as we saw here at Goffs today–a good physical with a very good walk.”

Doyle added, “Richard Hannon held King Of Change in very high regard, which is a big help. We have seen some nice foals by the sire. They are very nice types.”

Three of the four foals by King Of Change sold for an aggregate of €85,000 and averaged at €28,333. 

Arizona Off To A Solid Start

Some of the first foals by Arizona (Ire) were well-received with Peter Nolan snapping up a colt [lot 201] by the 2019 G2 Coventry S. winner for €60,000.

The Castlebridge Consignment also sold a colt by the stallion earlier in the day for €35,000 to Paula Flannery which went some way to cementing a rock-solid trade for the newbie, with six foals selling for an average of €25,500.

Nolan's purchase is a half-brother to the speedy Eldrickjones (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}), who reached a rating of 104 in his juvenile year, and the plan will be to re-offer the colt as a yearling. 

He said, “We just thought that the mare had produced two good ones by Pride Of Dubai (Aus) [three-time winner Moddy Puddle (Ire)] and Cotai Glory. He's a big, fine, good-looking colt and the stock looks good by the sire. They're nice. He'll be for re-sale.”

LOT 201 is a colt by @coolmorestud's Arizona a half to Group 2 placed Eldrickjones

Consigned by Ballybin Stud (@peteskelly) and sold to @peternolanblds for €60,000 at #GoffsNovember pic.twitter.com/EfWf2Kkp0i

— Goffs (@Goffs1866) November 14, 2022

The post Saxon Warrior Leads The Way At Goffs November Foal Sale  appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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In Frankel's first championship, the title is in effect returned to Britain for the first time since the former National Stud resident Mill Reef was champion sire in 1987 for the second time. It is scarcely believable that Mill Reef's sireline has dwindled so significantly in Europe in the intervening years, with the Classic winners Sir Percy (GB) and Reliable Man (GB) the two most notable bearers of this genetic thread remaining.  

There is some diversity among the sirelines of this year's top 20, up to a point. Five trace back to Sadler's Wells: Frankel, Galileo, Australia (GB) (10th), Camelot (GB) (15th) and Dawn Approach (Ire) (20th). 

Dark Angel (Ire) and Mehmas (Ire), both sons of Acclamation (GB), are doing their bit to fan the resurgence of the line of another of Northern Dancer's sons, Try My Best, and were fifth and 14th respectively, with the latter being an impressive finish for last year's champion first-season sire Mehmas. 

Another of Northern Dancer's sons, Nureyev, is represented by his great grandson Siyouni (Fr), who was 12th in Britain and Ireland and is champion sire in France for the second consecutive year. More about him in the coming days. 

Through the line of Northern Dancer's grandson Storm Cat we have Lope De Vega (Ire) in sixth, his late sire Shamardal in 19th, and between that pair is No Nay Never, extending that line father still through Hennessy and Scat Daddy, in 11th place. 

The Danzig strain of Northern Dancer remains strong, mostly through Green Desert, from whom springs third-placed Sea The Stars (Ire), Kingman (GB) in seventh, Invincible Spirit (Ire) in 17th, and the latter's dependable and under-rated son Mayson, who was 18th in the table. The trio of Danehill-line representatives in the top 20 are Kodiac (GB), a growing influence in his own right and eighth this year, the late Zoffany (Ire), who was one place behind him, and the 13th-placed Dandy Man (Ire), who continues to deliver the goods year after year despite receiving little fanfare.

We only really break free of Northern Dancer when it comes to Dubawi (Ire), who had a standout winners-to-runners strike rate of 54% and is a dazzling representative for the influence of Mr Prospector in Europe. Dubawi was third overall in the table, with progeny earnings only around £250,000 short of his long-time nemesis Galileo. His most prominent son Night Of Thunder was 16th overall with only three crops of racing age, and we can expect to see more of Dubawi's stallion sons creeping into contention in the coming years.

Star performers

With Frankel's five individual European Group 1 winners of 2021 putting him way out in front, and almost £1.5 million ahead of Galileo on British and Irish earnings, joint gold stars are awarded to his pair of Classic winners Adayar (Ire) and Hurricane Lane (Ire), both of whom contributed significantly to Charlie Appleby gaining his first trainers' championship in Britain. 

For Galileo, a quieter year by his own lofty standards was headlined by the G1 Prix de Diane winner Joan Of Arc (Ire), while Love (Ire) collected another top-level win in the G1 Prince of Wales's S.

Though not counting towards his domestic tally, Dubawi's record-breaking feat of being represented by three Breeders' Cup winners in one year must not pass without further mention. He has an emerging star in the G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint winner Creative Force (Ire), as well as one who has recently departed the scene in the neat and hardy Space Blues (Ire), who signed off with consecutive wins in the G2 City of York S., G1 Prix de la Foret and GI Breeders' Cup Mile. The GI Breeders' Cup Turf winner Yibir (GB) will be one to follow with great interest through his 4-year-old season.

Sea The Stars, only narrowly behind Dubawi in fourth, looks to have another superstar on his books in the unbeaten Baaeed (GB), an important colour-bearer for Shadwell in a time of transition. From winning a Leicester maiden in early June to becoming a dual Group 1 winner just four months later, the hype raged all season for William Haggas's new stable-star, but it was well justified by the time he got the better of the Cartier Older Horse of the Year Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. on QIPCO British Champions Day. Baaeed's return in 2022 will be hotly anticipated, as will a potential step up in distance, which is well within his compass on paper. 

For Dark Angel, who completed the quintet of stallions with earnings in excess of £3 million, his best performers clinched their biggest successes outside Britain and Ireland, with the juvenile Angel Bleu (Fr) collecting a pair of Group 1 wins in France, and Althiqa (GB) and Raging Bull (Fr) both landing Grade 1s in America. The latter is now standing at Gainesway Farm in Kentucky. 

But Dark Angel also had a pair of Group 2 winners at Royal Ascot, with Berkshire Shadow (Ire) landing the Coventry S., and Indie Angel (Ire) taking the Duke of Cambridge S. Continuing the Ascot run was the Royal Hunt Cup winner Real World (Ire), who progressed impressively through the season to add three stakes wins to his tally, including the G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein. 

Honourable mentions 

Of those stallions with more than one crop of runners, it was a breakthrough year for Ballylinch Stud's young son of Dubawi, New Bay (GB), who was represented by a first Group 1 winner in Saffron Beach (Ire) and, like his sire, had a winners-to-runners ratio of 54%. The four-time winner Bay Bridge (GB) could well be an emerging older star for the Sir Michael Stoute stable, while the juvenile Bayside Boy (Ire), trained next-door by Roger Varian, surely has the Classics on his agenda for 2022. 

A former Ballylinch resident, Dream Ahead, has served a stint in France and is now about to stand his first season in Britain at Bearstone Stud, where he should fit right in with the Holdcrofts' speed-orientated broodmare band, which now includes Dream Ahead's best daughter Glass Slippers (GB). Though she could not build on her two Group/Grade 1 wins of 2020, Glass Slippers was not disgraced this season with a couple more top-level placings, and Dream Of Dreams added the G1 Diamond Jubilee S. to his G1 Haydock Sprint Cup victory of 2020.

Dream Ahead remains deserving of being given a chance by breeders, and it is worth noting that his Group 1-winning son Al Wukair (Ire) made a promising start with his first runners in 2021, siring the second-highest number of winners (15) among the French-based freshman sires. 

A stallion that we can expect to see shooting up the charts in Britain and Ireland in the years to come is Wootton Bassett (GB) following his relocation to Coolmore earlier this year. Third overall in France, where he started his stud career with some distinction, he was behind only Siyouni and Adlerflug (Ger), who respectively had a dual Classic winner and the Arc winner to boost their earnings. 

In 2021, Wootton Bassett, another who traces back to Mr Prospector through Iffraaj (GB) and Zafonic, had only 34 runners in Britain and Ireland, but they were a classy bunch, including Audarya (Fr), runner-up in two Group 1s this year having won two last year, G2 Royal Lodge S. winner Royal Patronage (Fr), and G3 St Simon S. winner Ilarab (Ire).

It is also easy to imagine the profile of Rathbarry Stud's Kodi Bear (Ire) rising in the years to come. He had a couple of highly likeable performers this season in the super-tough Oaks runner-up Mystery Angel (Ire) and the G2 Railway S. winner and GII Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint runner-up Go Bears Go (Ire).

In a year when Gleneagles (Ire) covered just 35 mares compared to 149 in 2020, he enjoyed a decent season on the track, with Loving Dream (GB) having become his first Group 1 winner in the Prix de Royallieu, following victory in the G2 Ribblesdale S. Gleneagles was also represented by the G2 Kilboy Estates S. winner Insinuendo (Ire), G2 Prix Greffulhe winner Baby Rider (Fr) and the G2 German 1000 Guineas winner Novemba (Ger).

The post A Champion Sire In GB For First Time In 34 Years appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Perhaps the greatest compliment that can be paid to the King of Tipperary is the fact that, even at his home at Coolmore, the operation which naturally has free-flowing access to the supersire via some of the best mares on the planet, the hunt is still on for his rightful heir. It may be too much to expect that a son will be able to continue the line with a show of such dominance, as Galileo did for his own sire Sadler’s Wells, and he in turn for Northern Dancer. Galileo certainly has some very good sire sons out there—not least his greatest achievement, Frankel (GB), and the former champion 2-year-old Teofilo (Ire)—but he once again remains way out in front of allcomers after another record-breaking year.

Galileo officially turns 23 on New Year’s Day and he has now been champion sire in Britain and Ireland for more than half of his life. After the most unsettling year in living memory, when the Guineas, Oaks and Derby were all delayed, Galileo once again left his increasingly imposing mark on the season’s Classics.

His daughter Love (Ire) won the 1000 Guineas before posting arguably the most impressive performance by a 3-year-old all season when going on to land the Oaks. Between those two races, her stablemate Peaceful (Ire) had pushed Galileo into new record-breaking territory when becoming his 85th individual Group 1 winner in the Irish 1000 Guineas, thereby wresting the title from Danehill, the stallion with whom he has shown such an affinity.

Further records were to follow. The Derby of 2020 was a memorable one, perhaps not for the right reason, but the tearaway winner Serpentine (Ire) meant Galileo went clear as the most successful Derby sire of all time, his five winners putting him ahead of Sir Peter Teazle, Waxy, Cyllene, Blandford, and his erstwhile stud-mate Montjeu (Ire).

With over £5 million in progeny earnings for 2020-more than double the tally of his nearest pursuer Dubawi (Ire)—Galileo duly claimed his 12th sires’ championship in Britain and Ireland, and he is the European champion, with almost £6.4 million in earnings, £777,199 of which was accrued by his top earner, the mighty mare Magical (Ire). It is worth noting that this tally is significantly lower than last year’s haul of just over £16 million owing to drastic prize-money cuts during a Covid-affected racing season. Galileo was also a long way clear by number of black-type winners: 27 in Britain and Ireland, and 32 in total across Europe, which was almost 11% of his runners.

Dubawi Provides World Beater
Darley’s admirable Dubawi (Ire) is used to playing understudy to Galileo but he is a fantastically successful stallion in his own right, and clearly the best in Britain. With an increasing array of promising young sire sons, he is also responsible for the top-rated horse in in the world in 2020: Ghaiyyath (Ire). In his 5-year-old season Ghaiyyath had Enable (GB) and Magical (Ire) behind him respectively when winning the G1 Coral-Eclipse and G1 Juddmonte International, following his front-running romp in the relocated G1 Hurworth Bloodstock Coronation Cup. And  Ghaiyyath is of course out of Galileo’s first Classic winner, Nightime (Ire) and thus bred on the same cross as his Kildangan Stud mate Night Of Thunder (Ire), who has made an eye-catching start to his own stallion career.

Dubawi posted 13 stakes winners in Britain and Ireland in 2020 to take second in the table, and with 23 stakes winners overall in Europe, he was third in the European championship behind Siyouni (Fr), who was responsible for Arc winner Sottsass (Fr) and is the champion sire in France. We’ll be looking at the French and German tables in greater depth in Sunday’s edition of TDN.

Dark Angel (Ire) and Kodiac (GB), representing different branches of Ireland’s O’Callaghan family at Yeomanstown Stud and Tally-Ho Stud respectively, are both hugely reliable sources of winners and they were the only two stallions to notch in excess of 150 winners, with Kodiac on 155 and Dark Angel on 152. 

The latter finished ahead overall in the table, with his 11 stakes winners headed by the top-class sprinter Battaash (Ire), who was faultless in his three starts in 2020, landing the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. for the second year in a row having started out with victory in the G1 King’s Stand S. He also won Goodwood’s G2 King George S. for the fourth time, beating subsequent Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint heroine Glass Slippers (GB).

Kodiac enjoyed a memorable Royal Ascot in the juvenile division as the sire of Campanelle (Ire) and Nando Parrado (GB), but leading the charge for him in Berkshire was the G1 Diamond Jubilee S. winner Hello Youmzain (Fr), who has now become the first son of Kodiac to retire to stud in France.

A Champions Day To Savour
The redoubtable veteran of the British stallion ranks is Cheveley Park Stud’s Pivotal (GB), whose range is such that he was runner-up to Galileo in the broodmare sires’ table and provided the French champion sire, his son Siyouni. In his own right he was responsible for a British Champions Day Group 1 double via Glen Shiel (GB) and Addeybb (Ire), the latter having also won two Group 1 races in Australia back in the spring while European racing was on lockdown.

Pivotal had only 79 individual runners in Britain and Ireland in 2020 – less than half of most of the sires around him in the top ten list, but he can still more than hold his own and was fifth overall.

Ballylinch Stud’s Lope De Vega (Ire) is a stallion whose popularity stretches across continents and, while his GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Aunt Pearl (Ire) doesn’t count towards his local earnings, he had a Group 1 winner on Irish turf in Keeneland Phoenix S. winner Lucky Vega (Ire). That runner’s stable-mate Cadillac (Ire), winner of the G2 KPMG Champions Juvenile S. for Jessica Harrington, looks another exciting prospect for the 2021 season.

One of the stand-out older fillies of 2020 was Sheikh Hamdan’s Nazeef (GB), winner of the G1 Falmouth S. and G1 Sun Chariot S. on each of Newmarket’s tracks. She was also the headline act for her sire, the Irish National Stud’s Invincible Spirit (Ire), now 24 and joining his half-brother Kodiac on the leaderboard at number seven. He too was represented by a Grade I winner in America when 4-year-old Digital Age (Ire) landed the Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic at Churchill Downs for Chad Brown.

Zoffany (Ire) may struggle for attention against some of his stud-mates at Coolmore but he nevertheless can be relied upon to provide his fair share of smart juveniles. Albigna (Ire) was his Group 1 star in that regard in 2019, and the following season that honour went to the Aidan and Annemarie O’Brien-bred Thunder Moon (Ire), winner of the G1 Goffs Vincent O’Brien National S. for Chantal Regalado-Gonzalez and who helped to boost his sire to the top 10.

King In The Making
The youngest of this group is Juddmonte’s Kingman (GB), whose first crop were four in 2020 and included his first Classic winner, Persian King (Ire). The classiest of his most recent Classic generation was the champion 3-year-old colt Palace Pier (GB), winner of five of his six starts, including the G1 St James’s Palace S. and G1 Prix Jacques le Marois. Kingman posted nine stakes winners in Britain and Ireland, and he was sixth overall in the European table, with 16 black-type winners to his name, including another two Group 1 wins for Persian King in the Moulin and the Ispahan.

Completing the top ten in Britain and Ireland was Gilltown Stud’s Sea The Stars (Ire), sire of the massively popular champion stayer Stradivarius (Ire) among his 18 black-type winners, eight of which came in Britain and Ireland. Fanny Logan (Ire) got the better of the colts in the G2 Hardwicke S., while another of his Royal Ascot winners, Hukum (Ire), could well be a stayer to follow this year.

Galileo’s first two sons in the table appear just outside the top ten. The profile of Australia (GB) was lifted in 2020 by his first Classic winner, Galileo Chrome (Ire), in the St Leger, while farther afield Order Of Australia (Ire) emulated the Breeders’ Cup success of his elder half-sister Iridessa (Ire) (Ruler Of The World {Ire}).

By his own lofty standards, Frankel (GB) had a quieter year in Britain and Ireland, but he was responsible for 11 stakes winners and on the international stage he was represented by G1 Metropolitan H. winner Mirage Dancer (GB) in Australia and GI Asahi Hai Futurity winner Grenadier Guards (Jpn) in Japan.

Global Success
The Irish-based duo of Dandy Man (Ire) and Camelot (GB) were also represented by international Grade/Group 1 winners, with River Boyne (Ire), a son of the former, landing the Frank E. Kilroe Mile in America, and Russian Camelot (Ire) breaking new ground by becoming the first northern hemisphere-bred 3-year-old to win a Classic in Australia with his victory in the South Australia Derby. Camelot’s Australian reputation was further enhanced by the G1 Cox Plate victory of Sir Dragonet (Ire).

Closer to home, Even So (Ire) gave Camelot a domestic Classic victory in the G1 Irish Oaks, and Dandy Man’s daughters Dandalla (Ire) and Happy Romance (Ire) shone brightly. The former landed Group-race wins at Royal Ascot and Newmarket’s July meeting, while Happy Romance beat subsequent G1 Cheveley Park S. Winner Alcohol Free (Ire) when landing the G3 Dick Poole Fillies S.

Also making the top 15 was Showcasing (GB), whose list of sons at stud now stretches to five, the most recent recruit being his top performer of 2020, the G1 Sussex S. winner Mohaather (GB). In fact, Showcasing’s top two runners of the year were both trained in his ‘home’ stable of Whitsbury by Marcus Tregoning for Sheikh Hamdan, with Alkumait (GB) displaying his talent with victory in the G2 Mill Reef S.

It takes a mighty effort to make it into the top 20 stallions in Britain and Ireland with just one crop of runners, but the prolific Mehmas (Ire) achieved just that, finishing in 17th position overall with 46 winners, and 56 across Europe from his 101 runners. His tally smashed Iffraaj’s record of 39 first-crop winners and included G1 Middle Park S. hero Supremacy (Ire) and G2 Gimcrack S winner Minzaal (Ire). There will be more about his explosive season in Saturday’s edition when we review the leading first- and second-crop sires in Europe.

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On Cooney’s shortlist the first day of the sale was the 8-year-old Hard Spun mare Plying, in foal to Starspangledbanner (Aus). A $200,000 yearling, Plying had won three times for Sheikh Mohammed and trainer Henri-Alex Pantall before being culled for €12,000 at the Arqana December Breeding Stock Sale in 2013. By the time she resurfaced at Goffs five years later, Plying had produced the placed 3-year-old filly Saguaro (Ire) and the unraced 2-year-old Alexander James (Ire) (Camelot {GB}). She had a yearling colt by Zoffany (Ire), and her No Nay Never filly foal had made €40,000 at the Goffs foal sale two days earlier.

“We went through a good few mares and it came down to one or two that we liked,” Cooney recalled. “Plying had a great walk and a good girth on her. I thought she had a great head on her. She had the frame of being a strong mare and I thought maybe with us, having a smaller number of horses, that she might improve. She was in foal to Starspangledbanner, which was a plus.”

Cooney followed Plying into the ring and was able to secure her on a bid of €21,000.

“I’d say we were lucky on the day; I think someone else at the last second tried to drop in another bid, but the hammer went down and your man said, ‘too late sir.’ From that day on, in fairness, the mare has been lucky.”

That sir, whoever he is, will doubtless be lamenting not raising his hand quicker, as Plying is now the dam of two stakes winners, including the aforementioned No Nay Never filly who was subsequently named Alcohol Free (Ire) and won this year’s G1 Cheveley Park S. for owner Jeff Smith and trainer Andrew Balding. Alexander James had previously bolstered the page last October with a listed victory in France as a 3-year-old.

Cooney, through his Jossestown Farm, brings Plying’s latest foal, a colt by Dandy Man, to this year’s edition of the Goffs November Foal Sale, and he sells during the premiere Sunday session as lot 698.

“He is a cracker,” Cooney said of the April-foaled bay. “He’s got size, he’s got scope, he’s got the looks. I’d be shocked if he doesn’t make a few quid.”

Expanding on the decision to send Plying to Dandy Man, Cooney said, “Plying is American-bred and has a speedy pedigree. Dandy Man is full of speed but as well as that he isn’t an over-big type of horse. She tends to throw them with size, not in a bad way, but we thought the perfect model might come out with the Dandy Man cross. I thought the match would work well and to be honest, it did. He’s correct and he walks. It’s hard to explain, but he is a bull. I wouldn’t change him in any way. He’s strong in every way and he has a good back end to him, which is important for those speed horses that will run five or six furlongs.”

Cooney admitted that anything the Dandy Man colt brings him is a bonus; the Starspangledbanner filly Plying produced for Cooney covered the cost of her dam as well as the Dandy Man covering fee when she brought €40,000 at Goffs February earlier this year. She was pinhooked by Knockatrina House for 130,000gns at last month’s Tattersalls December Yearling Sale.

“Plying had a lovely filly foal by Starspangledbanner,” Cooney said. “She colicked at the first sale she went to [last year’s Goffs November Foal Sale] and we were a bit unlucky because there were plenty of people on her. She went to the November sale and colicked on the day of the sale. It wasn’t the right thing to do to send her through the ring, so we brought her home and minded her and she went to the next sale and made €40,000, which covered the cost of the mare and the covering fee of Dandy Man. And then the updates happened after that.”

Cooney said he followed Alcohol Free’s progress as she was broken in and sent to Andrew Balding’s Kingsclere Stables.

“I heard through the grapevine that she might be going to Andrew Balding’s after being broken, which is always a plus,” Cooney said. “The manager at [Jeff Smith’s] Littleton Stud told me she was a real nice physical and they really liked her.”

Alcohol Free won at first asking on Aug. 15 at Newbury before running a fine race to be second to Happy Romance (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) in the G3 Dick Poole S. at Salisbury on Sept. 3. Sent off at 7-2 in the G1 Cheveley Park S. three weeks later, Alcohol Free narrowly led Miss Amulet (Ire) (Sir Prancealot {Ire}) through the opening furlongs before drawing further clear at halfway. That rival re-rallied in the closing stages with G3 Firth of Clyde S. winner Umm Kulthum (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) also proving a tough adversary, but Alcohol Free hit the line a half-length the best much to the delight of her connections, not least Cooney.

“To be honest, I nearly had a heart attack watching the Group 1,” Cooney recalled. “I nearly threw the telly out the window watching it. I couldn’t believe it. We were ecstatic. You hope that something will do that, but the likelihood of that happening is slim to none. It doesn’t really happen to an ordinary Joe; usually those pedigrees are always with the bigger operations.

“We have always had horses but we’ve never had a pedigree like that. It’s nice for the small man to get on top.”

Indeed, Cooney said Plying is currently one of two mares in his barn, and he also pinhooks a few foals annually, at both flat and National Hunt Sales. And chances are good he’ll be back at the breeding stock sale next week looking to grow his broodmare band.

“The idea going forward would be to try to find another Plying,” he said. “We’d be interested in going to the sales again and trying to find a gem that maybe we could syndicate, put in foal to a good sire and maybe it just might take off again.”

Cooney acknowledged that sire power was an important aspect of Plying’s page at the time of her purchase, despite the fact she hadn’t yet hit as a broodmare.

“The thing we liked about Plying was that on her page, she had one runner, a High Chaparral that didn’t show much, but after that she had a Camelot, a Zoffany and a No Nay Never, which on any page suggests you have a fair chance for the mare to throw a winner. That really kind of sold us on her.”

Plying is currently in foal to another Coolmore sire in Gleneagles (Ire), and while a 2021 mating hasn’t been set in stone, Plying looks likely to get another upgrade.

“We’re flat out thinking about what would be the right thing to do and where to go,” Cooney said. “I personally would love to go to Kingman (GB). I think she’d have an absolutely gorgeous horse, but there also is the likes of Lope De Vega-he’s another top-class stallion. There’s nothing confirmed yet but we’re thinking the likes of them.”

Cooney began 2020 with a profitable mare in his barn, and is ending the year at the sales with a half-sibling to a 2-year-old Group 1 winner and Classic contender. “The dream is still alive,” as Cooney himself said, but he is nonetheless keeping his feet on the ground.

“The simple and short story of it is that we went looking to buy a mare that could breed winners from,” he said. “She was the one, and it worked out.”

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With current events requiring the sale to be pushed back almost four weeks from its original calendar slot, the action now commences on Friday and consists of three days of foals and a single day of mare trade. Unfortunately for those with very deep pockets, the much-anticipated potential sale topper–the Kingman (GB) colt out of Nightime (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})–has been withdrawn which is a major blow to Goffs given his siblings have topped two of the last five editions of the sale. However, there will be plenty of other foals that will attract the attention of pinhookers and end users alike and as an exasperating year comes to a close, Goffs Group Chief Executive Officer Henry Beeby said he is looking forward to hosting the first flat sale with customers on site at Goffs since February.

“It’s good to be back trading here in Kildare Paddocks; we had the December National Hunt sale last week which was the first sale to take place in Ireland since Covid on its originally scheduled date,” Beeby said. “That obviously is not the case for this November Sale, but we did what we had to do in order to accommodate the most people. At the time when we had to make the decision we wanted to have a clear two weeks for both vendors and purchasers between this sale and the December Sale [at Tattersalls] in order for them to isolate as necessary. It’s not ideal, but this is a case of needs must and it’s a year when you do what you have to do to minimise the problems at hand and I hope it will still allow us to have a vibrant sale.

“We don’t have a Part 2 of foals which reduces the catalogue slightly but I still think we have been very well supported by a lot of Irish breeders which we are very grateful for and we will just have to do our best.”

Beeby said he has been buoyed by the sustained strength of trade at the upper end of the market at foal and breeding stock sales so far in this unprecedented season.

“The resilience of pinhookers is simply awe inspiring,” he said. “Whether they have a good year or not they get stuck in regardless, basically because the majority are lifetime industry professionals and they just have to roll with the punches. That is what we all have had to do this year and we are all in it together and we just hope we can all get out the other side intact. People understand these date changes are necessary and those who attend the sale can all be reassured that Goffs will have done everything to make the complex as safe and as user-friendly as possible. We have a 36-page set of protocols, 30 stewards, one-way systems, hand sanitiser stations and plenty of outdoor areas. These include an outdoor bidding area with heaters, a marquee and the fact that we already have an outdoor covered parade ring is a great help. We will certainly make the best of it and do whatever we can to facilitate as successful a sale as is possible.”

As Beeby pointed out this year’s foal catalogue is slightly reduced to three days which should help the clearance rate but a general trend in this sale is that trade heats up day by day as the standard of pedigree gets stronger, building towards a usually frenetic day of bidding on the final day which in this case falls on Sunday. Despite several high profile withdrawals which also includes some big-pedigreed foals from Moyglare Stud, there are dozens of foals that should ignite plenty of competition from bidders including lot 571 from Knockainey Stud. The New Bay (GB) filly is a half-sister to dual stakes winner Great Page (Ire) (Roderic O’Connor {Ire}) and her yearling half-sister by Kodiac (GB) made 220,000gns when bought as a foal last year by Shadwell. Another foal who has a big-money sibling to work for her is lot 583. This Acclamation (GB) colt’s three parts brother by Mehmas (Ire) fetched £330,000 in the Orby Sale two months ago while the pedigree already lacks little with the dam Big Boned (Street Sense) having produced the Group 3 winner K Club (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and the stakes-placed Back To Brussels (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) from only three runners so far.

Dandy Man (Ire) has been a good friend to a lot of pinhookers and there are a couple of colts by the Ballyhane stallion that could prove popular. Lot 590 from Milestream Stud is from the speedy family of Katla (Ire) (Majestic Missile {Ire}) and Wootton Bassett (GB). Later in the sale Jossestown Farm offers a Dandy Man half-brother to G1 Cheveley Park S. winner Alcohol Free (Ire) (No Nay Never) as lot 698. The mare Plying (Hard Spun) has also produced the stakes winner Alexander James (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) while her yearling filly by Starspangledbanner (Aus) made 130,000gns last month.

The progeny of Fashionable (GB) (Nashwan) have sold very well at Goffs over the years with the past two offerings out of the mare grossing €510,000 as foals and lot 621 will bid to continue that trend for breeder Ross Moorhead. The Fastnet Rock (Aus) filly is a half-sister to G1 Irish Oaks runner up Jack Naylor.

A filly with lots of residual value as well as obvious racing value is lot 659. Consigned by Ballintry Stud, the daughter of No Nay Never is a full-sister to two high achievers in American MGSW Nay Lady Nay (Ire) and G2 Coventry S. winner Arizona (Ire).

Of the four Frankel (GB) foals originally catalogued two are consigned by Des Leadon and Mariann Klay’s Swordlestown Little Stud. The first of those is lot 673, a filly out of stakes winner Marvada (Ire) (Elusive City) who is the dam of the high-class Terebellum (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}). The foal received a further pedigree boost when her 2-year-old half-sister Miss Finland (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) broke her maiden at the second time of asking at Chelmsford last week. Swordlestown Little also offers a Frankel colt out of Nisriyna (Ire) Intikhab (lot 684), a mare whose progeny have sold very well as foals in Goffs. Her 2018 offering, now called Qaasid (Ire) (Awtaad {Ire}) sold for €170,000 and he also broke his maiden for Shadwell since the catalogue went to print.

The very next foal into the ring is also a Frankel colt, this time from Neilstown Stud and lot 685 should continue the fine work of the mare Noyelles (Ire) (Docksider) who has bred two stakes winners in Lily’s Angel (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Zurigha (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) and has proven a fine money-spinner for Goffs Director Nick Nugent and his wife Alice.

Baroda Stud’s final foal offering of the year, lot 707, could also be significant as the Foostepsinthesand (GB) colt is a half-brother to this year’s G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. winner and Orby Sale graduate Lucky Vega (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}).

As the sale draws to a conclusion a pair of Dark Angel (Ire) colts could make their presence felt. Lot 723 from Hill House is a half-brother to the smart pair Inverleigh (Ire) (Excelebration {Ire}) and Setarhe (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {Ire}) while lot 745 from AK Thoroughbreds is out of the stakes winner Tarakala (Ire) (Dr Fong) and is closely related to this year’s brilliant GI Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal).

The sale begins at 10 a.m. each morning and as has become the norm on-line bidding will be available to prospective purchasers.

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Approaching his sixth birthday, River Boyne (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) is back home from America and about to embark on a stallion career five years after he was sold by his breeder Derek Iceton at the Goffs November Foal Sale. On Sunday, his full-brother will pass through the same sale ring, and potential buyers would do well to reflect on the career of his elder sibling, described by Iceton as a “hard-knocking horse”.

While River Boyne had the speed and precocity so beloved of the commercial market, he also had the durability which should be high on the list of pre-requisites for a new stallion. In this regard, his racing career was markedly similar to that of his perennially popular sire Dandy Man, who retired to Ballyhane Stud at the age of seven with 30 races under his belt. 

It is perhaps no surprise to see the name of Ballyhane’s Joe Foley in the sales returns as the pinhooker of River Boyne—a €20,000 foal who became a €65,000 Goffs Sportsman’s yearling and had his first three starts at two in Ireland for Gordon Elliott. But it was following his reappearance in the ring at the Tattersalls Horses-in-Training Sale that his career really started to flow. 

Bought by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal, River Boyne moved to the Californian stable of Jeff Mullins and won his first two starts at Santa Anita, including the listed Pasadena S., followed later in his 3-year-old season by victory in the GIII La Jolla H. From that day on, he never finished out of the first four, winning two Grade II contests as a 4-year-old before earning his Grade 1 laurels with victory in the  Frank E Kilroe Mile in March this year.

“I followed him through all of his racing career,” recalls Iceton, who has recently welcomed River Boyne home to Tara Stud. “He is a really noble, proper, hard-knocking horse. Tough, sound and consistent throughout his whole career. So that’s the sort of horse I wanted for my customers here.”

He added, “What they’re looking for is a sprinter/miler type, who is correct. And I often say that the cheaper the horse is, the more correct the individual has to be. Dandy Man has served Irish breeders incredibly well over the last number of years. And this is the first son of Dandy Man to come to stud. So I’m delighted he’s back. Obviously, I’m delighted we bred him. I think he’s exactly what the market wants and we stood him at a very competitive price to try and keep my customers happy.”

River Boyne enters stud at €5,000, standing alongside Tara’s two sons of Dark Angel (Ire), Alhebayeb (Ire) and Estidhkaar (Ire). Despite the obvious sentimental lure of standing a stallion he bred, Iceton insists River Boyne had to pass other tests first.

He says, “You know, the first question you ask yourself when you bring a colt to stud is, would I use that horse myself? And, if you have to think more than two nanoseconds about it, you shouldn’t be standing him. So, whether I bred him or not, he was always a horse I was going to go for. I was very fortunate, I had a lovely line of communication with his owners in California, who have been incredibly kind to us during his racing career. And then when he was being retired I got in very quickly  and got on board. So I’m going to stand the horse on his own merits. We breed plenty of good horses around here. He’s been an exceptional one in the last couple of years but he wouldn’t be here [other than for the fact that] he’s the right horse for the job.”

Iceton continues, “The people who are buying the foals and the yearlings are looking for those foals that have a walk and fill the eye. [River Boyne] has got the walk. There’s no reason why his progeny won’t have a walk. So, it’s important, again, if somebody comes to look at a stallion here, they can make up their mind within about three steps of him walking out the door. Is this horse for me or not? Does he fill your eye? Does he have that little bit of zing about him that you’d like to use? You know, if you have to look at him a couple of walks up and down, I think the answer then will be a ‘no’.”

As well as that “little bit of zing”, there’s no doubt that sire power counts for an awful lot when launching a new stallion and, in this regard, River Boyne can rely on some reflected glory from the exploits of Ballyhane Stud’s flagship horse.

“Dandy Man is a hell of a sire,” Iceton says. “And, I suppose one other thing about Dandy Mans, they’re very good looking, colts and fillies, but they’ve done particularly well in Hong Kong. So a lot of those good colts were getting bought to go to Hong Kong, and of course they have been gelded, so there is no coming back from that. It just goes to show how sound and tough they are. Because, unless they x-ray properly, unless they were sound enough through and through, they wouldn’t be there. Look at any decent card in Hong Kong and just look at the number of Dandy Man’s [offspring] that are running there at the highest level. So I was lucky this fellow went west rather than east.”

River Boyne’s brother goes through Goffs on Sunday as lot 602, one of three foals being brought to the sale by Tara Stud.

“He’s a grand foal. He really is a little carbon copy. When people see what the foal is like, and see what daddy is like, it’s probably a relatively unique marketing ploy,” says Iceton. 

Reflecting on River Boyne’s younger days, he adds, “As a foal, he always had that great walk. He always had a great attitude. And, to be quite honest, I hadn’t seen him from the time he went from Europe to America and came back here. And, with a certain degree of trepidation when the truck arrived in, I thought, God, I hope I’m going to like this horse. I hope he’s everything he was. So once he got off the truck, he was absolutely clean-limbed, he still has the walk, he still has a great attitude, which actually comes from his mother. His mother’s just a lovely, lovely mare.”

Their dam Clytha (GB) (Mark Of Esteem {Ire}) was bred at Usk Valley Stud by Kevin Mercer and, though she was winless in her five starts, she has proved to be far more adept in her second career. River Boyne is clearly the best of her five winners to date, but she has also produced the six-time winner Harome (Ire) (Bahamian Bounty {GB}), who earned a top rating of 93, as well as the 79-rated Brosnan (Ire) (Champs Elysees {GB}) and dual winners Incendiary (Ire) (Excellent Art {GB}) and Keukenhof (Ire) (Dutch Art {GB}). The mare’s yearling filly by Divine Prophet (Aus) has been retained by Iceton and is going into training with Eddie Lynam, while the 10-year-old Xerxes (Ire), by former Tara resident Key Of Luck, is alongside her mother back at the farm. Clytha is not in foal at present but will return to Dandy Man in 2021.

In the meantime, Iceton has the job of assembling the key first book for River Boyne, and he says that early signs are encouraging. 

“I’m just back from Newmarket and I was amazed in particular at the number of English farms, and very significant English farms, that spoke to me about him,” he states. “I actually was sorry that I hadn’t brought him over and put him on show in Newmarket. Anybody that’s come into the yard loves him. He’s certainly not going to be a difficult prospect to fill. I’m syndicating him to breeders, and breeders only, which I think is a very important thing to do. So I’m selling shares, not breeding rights because, again, I think it’s important that whoever buys into a stallion buys equity rather than a breeding right. I have a good customer base and I’m hoping I can attract plenty of those back again. Of the stallions that have stood here previously, I think everybody [who bought shares] has made money. Some of them have made very significant money out of the stallions I stood. On balance, if you sell equity to somebody and they’ve more than one mare, they are going to send the better mare to the horse that they have equity in, I presume.”

For Flat breeders, there is one final sale to come in a year which has presented plenty of challenges for the world at large, and of course for the racing and breeding industry. The Goffs November Sale is traditionally the first to offer foals in Europe; this time it will be the last after its rescheduling to this week to coincide with the easing of restrictions in Ireland. Like most in the industry, Iceton expresses relief that the business of buying and selling horses has been able to proceed, albeit in a somewhat different style to usual.

“It’s been a very difficult year,” he says. “I am delighted that we’ve managed to get through the yearling sales as well as we have. So I’m very grateful to two lots of people here. First of all, the sales companies are to be thanked and congratulated for all they’ve done. All the changes in terms of sales dates, the expenses that they all had to go to to put the sales on for us in the first place.

“The other people that I really want to thank are my own staff. I have some guys here that have been to England four or five times at this stage. They only go and they come back, they get their Covid test, they do the 14 days and then they’re back in England again. And they’ve done that without a whimper.”

Iceton adds, “It just goes to show how resilient a business we are in, whereas most entertainment businesses are really struggling. The people who own horses and have them in training couldn’t go to see them run for the last year and yet, maybe at a slightly lower level, but not a significantly lower level, the business took place, horses got sold and, please God, we will have a better 2021.”

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Established sires Dandy Man (Ire) and Elzaam (Aus) were both represented by Group 1 winners this year, and Dandy Man’s fee will remain at €15,000, while Elzaam’s has been set at €5,000.

Ballyhane Sud owner Joe Foley said of his stalwart Dandy Man, “Our flagship stallion has had another stellar season with another Grade 1-winning colt in River Boyne (Ire) and four stakes-winning 2-year-olds including the explosive Royal Ascot winner Dandall (Ire).

“His stock continue to be highly sought after in the sales ring and, with the quality of his next crops continuing to rise, his future looks very secure.”

He continued, “Elzaam’s breakthrough Group 1 success with Champers Elysees in the Matron Stakes at Irish Champions Weekend was his highlight. His colts continue to be in high demand in the Far East with many more being sold to Hong Kong this year following the path of Playa Del Puente (Ire), who was so close to winning the Hong Kong Derby last spring.”

The G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint winner Sands Of Mali is the stud’s latest recruit, following four seasons in training with Richard Fahey, during which time he landed four group wins, inlcluding the G2 Gimcrack S.

“He was also an unlucky fast-finishing second in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot,” said Foley. “A blistering success in the Gimcrack at two and the Sandy Lane at three were also impressive Group 2 wins for the good-looking son of Panis out of a highly successful mare.”

There have been fee reductions for Ballyhane’s two emerging sires Prince Of Lir (Ire) and Soldier’s Call (GB). The former got his stud career off to a great start when represented by G2 Norfolk S. winner The Lir Jet (Ire) and his fee for 2021 will be €3,500. Meanwhile Soldier’s Call has been trimmed to €7,500.

Foley said, “Soldier’s Call got a warm reception at stud last season with a large book of mares chock-full of quality. The son of Showcasing has let down into a wonderful specimen and his first foals are eagerly awaited. Given his first-season support, he’d look to have a massive chance of starting strongly with his first crop of 2-year-olds in 2023.”

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