Late late show at Goffs where National Hunt broodmares will keep them waiting for February Sale

Breeders in search of a broodmare to enhance their operations, or one to kickstart their ambitions, will have to be patient and wait until near the end of the two-day Goffs February Sale as the supplementary catalogue contains a select handful of mares tailor-made for those purposes.

The final lots through the ring include half-sisters to Grade 1 winners who have pedigrees alive with the possibility of further enhancements, including at the Cheltenham Festival.

Gordon Elliott and the Robcour team took the smart move to swerve another bruising encounter with Galopin Des Champs in the Irish Gold Cup, in order to have Gerri Colombe in the best shape to try to add to his haul of four Grade 1s, whether that comes at Cheltenham, Aintree or Punchestown.

Dermot Kelly, the spinologist who owns Gerri Colombe's half-sister Hermione Colombe (431H), believes more Grade 1s will follow for the son of Saddler Maker.

"I think we haven't seen the best of Gerri Colombe yet – he's going to be a serious horse," he says.

Kelly's belief is shared by his son Patrick, whose faith in the bay was born before he earned his Grade 1 stripes.

Kelly says: "Patrick bought Hermione Colombe for me in France, he's a bit of an encyclopaedia on horses and very skilled at spotting horses who might be very good. He picked out Gerri Colombe before he became as successful as he was, and that's how I wound up with this mare.

"It's turned out brilliantly for us. We got her before Gerri won any of his Grade 1s."

While Kelly is convinced Gerri Colombe will add more top-level success to the page, there are also younger half-siblings who could potentially develop it further, including fillies by rising star sire Jeu St Eloi. They are the four-year-old Kalypso Colombe and three-year-old Lavinia Colombe, while there is a two-year-old colt, Menelas Colombe, by Cokoriko.

Very Wood on the way to Cheltenham gloryCredit: Patrick McCann

Hermione Colombe has a weanling by Night Wish, which the Kellys have retained with an eye to the store sales, and is offered in foal to Waldgeist.

Kelly had taken another mare, La Peregrina (431F), to Ballylinch to be covered by the Arc hero and was so impressed by the quadruple Group 1 winner he decided there and then to make a return trip from Dunlavin with Hermione Colombe when the time came for her to be covered.

His son Jimmy owns La Peregrina, who is a half-sister to Daddy Long Legs and it was the emergence of that son of Almanzor which prompted Patrick Kelly to purchase La Peregrina at auction in France just over a year ago. 

The pressures of their busy practice as spinologists in Kildare and west Wicklow has resulted in Jimmy's decision to sell the winning half-sister to Listed-placed pair My Valentine and Private Romance out of the Listed winner Private Eye. Both mares are consigned under the Alpha Play Bloodstock banner.

"She has a Zarak colt who sold very well as a foal and Katie Walsh is going to breeze him," says Jimmy Kelly. "If Daddy Long Legs clicks it will be the icing on the cake, and the Waldgeist covering could suit either Flat or National Hunt breeders. There's plenty going on in the pedigree and things happening with her and her dam."

La Peregrina's colt from the first crop of the 2023 leading French first-season sire City Light is in training with Yoann Bonnefoy, while she has a two-year-old half-brother from the first crop of Persian King in the yard of Stephane Wattel. Her Iffraaj three-year-old half-brother, Private Delight, is with Nicolas Clement.

For John Lenihan of Ballyogue Stud, it was the return of a stallion from one of National Hunt's most prolific sirelines that prompted the decision to offer In Wood (431J) for sale this week.

Princess Vega and her now yearling daughter of SantiagoCredit: Patrick McCann

"I thought it was a good time to put her in the sale, with all the talk about Authorized and him coming to stand in Ireland," he says. "He looks like he's going to be a phenomenal broodmare sire, he's already a good one and I think is only going to get better."

In Wood is a half-sister to Very Wood, by Martaline, who won the Albert Bartlett for Noel Meade and Gigginstown House Stud. There is the potential for more bold black type on the page as she has two unraced younger half-brothers; Kir Wood from the penultimate crop of Muhtathir and the two-year-old My Wood, by Khalkevi.

"It's a good strong pedigree; she's out of a Cadoudal mare and is a fine, big, strong mare with loads of bone," says Lenihan. "She's at least 16.2 hands, so she has a lot of size. Cathy Grassick bought her as a foal for me at the sales in France. She's unraced, she's only six and is a good age starting off having her first foal."

Her first covering was a visit to Diamond Boy, who is gaining traction as a sire with the exploits of Grade 1 winners L'Homme Presse and Impaire Et Passe.

Lenihan adds: "I thought he'd suit her. He's getting loads of winners and is on the up-and-coming list; he's the sire of two Cheltenham winners and has more to come."

The breeding stock on Lenihan's Waterford farm is split between National Hunt and Flat mares, with his belief in Authorized's prowess as a broodmare sire evident in both herds.

"I've another nice Authorized mare at home and her Ten Sovereigns colt is going to the sale as well," Lenihan says of lot 142. "He's a nice colt and his half-sister by Dark Angel is with Mick Murphy in Longways and I think we'll probably breeze her. He's happy enough with her so it's so far so good. 

"Dark Angel works really well with Authorized, it seems to be a good cross and I went that route with her."

Dione is that Authorized mare and she is closely related to Diamonds Pour Moi, a daughter of another Derby-winning son of Montjeu in Pour Moi. She won the Listed Prix Belle de Nuit and their dam is a Fantastic Light half-sister to the Grade 3 winner Antoniette, dam of Switch, who won the Grade 1 La Brea and Santa Monica Stakes.

Lenihan also offers an Elzaam filly who is the second foal of a winning daughter of Kingman (192) and the dual Listed runner-up Songbird. It is the family of Hernando, Johann Quatz and Well Timed.

Quevega pictured with her daughter Princess Vega, by Beat Hollow, when she was a foalCredit: Caroline Norris (racingpost.com/photos)

"She's a nice filly and I bought her dam out of Sir Robert Ogden's dispersal," says Lenihan. "She's a big, strong mare and I thought Elzaam would suit her physically. 

"She's a lovely, strong, forward type of filly and she's going to be a two-year-old, that's for sure. Hopefully she'll be okay."

Joining In Wood in the supplementary catalogue is a colt by Bated Breath (313A) who has Juddmonte encoded in his DNA. His dam Zaminast won the Listed Trigo Stakes for Dermot Weld and is a Zamindar half-sister to the trainer's wonderfully consistent Group performer Famous Name. The son of Dansili won 13 Group races and was second in the Prix du Jockey Club and Prix du Moulin.

"The Bated Breath is a fine, big colt out of a black-type Zamindar mare," says Lenihan. "He's a good, big colt and hopefully he'll be okay. The mare was bought out of Juddmonte and Zamindar is a good broodmare sire, which is what we were looking for."

It is In Wood who is the highlight of the quartet, however, as Lenihan adds: "On pedigree she's the standout."

Ballyogue and Alpha Play don't have a monopoly on relatives to equine celebrities in the supplementary catalogue, with Princess Vega (431G), the first foal out of Quevega, an eyecatching inclusion among the additional lots. 

A winning daughter of Beat Hollow for her owner-breeders, Ger O'Brien and Sean Deane, she is consigned by the Irish National Stud, where she was born and has resided, along with her dam. Princess Vega is offered in foal to Walk In The Park, who is the sire of her half-siblings, both of whom were in action at the Dublin Racing Festival.

Facile Vega has four Grade 1 victories to his name and was third in the Irish Arkle behind Il Etait Temps and Found A Fifty on Saturday. Aurora Vega was unbeaten in three bumper starts, including the Listed Mucklemeg Mares' Bumper on her previous run at Gowran Park in September. She was fourth in the Grade 2 mares' bumper that closed out the festival on Sunday.

Princess Vega won a Tramore four-year-old maiden hurdle on her debut for Willie Mullins and her first foal, a daughter of Order Of St George, was bought for €48,000 by Swanbridge Bloodstock two months ago at the Goffs December National Hunt Sale, when consigned by the Irish National Stud. She also has a weanling filly by Santiago.

Goffs February Sale factfile 

Where Goffs, Kildare Paddocks

When Two-day sale begins on Wednesday at 10am and continues on Thursday at 10am

Last year’s stats From 424 offered, 273 lots sold (64 per cent) for turnover of €4,348,500 (down 28 per cent year-on-year), an average of €15,929 (down seven per cent) and median of €9,000 (unchanged)

Notable graduates Seddon (sold by Tim and Helen Keoghan/Belvedere Bloodstock, bought by Orchardstown Farm for €11,500); Amada (sold by Ringfort Stud, bought by Jamie Railton Sales for €80,000); Twilight Jet (sold by Olive O'Connor Bloodstock, bought by Tally-Ho Stud for €28,000); Bolthole (sold by Glenspring Farm, bought by Hegarty Bloodstock for €12,000); Yaxeni (sold by Norelands Stud, bought by Gaelic Bloodstock for €8,000)

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