Samcro: the pedigree behind the second coming

Following his success in the Deloitte Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown in early February, Martin Stevens delved into the pedigree of Samcro, who added the Ballymore Novices' Hurdle to his trophy haul on Wednesday. First published on February 4.

Samcro has been billed as the second coming since winning a Monksgrange point-to-point and subsequently selling to trainer Gordon Elliott for £335,000 at the Goffs UK Aintree Sale in April 2016.

The six-year-old has since remained unbeaten in five starts for Elliott and he showed the excitement surrounding him was not misplaced with a bloodless near six-length victory in the Grade 1 Deloitte Novice Hurdle at Leopardstown on Sunday.

Samcro is now around a 4-6 shot for the Ballymore Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival and only a shade of odds against for the Supreme Novices' Hurdle at the same meeting.

He was certainly bred to be a superstar, with both sides of his pedigree responsible for some household names in jumps racing.

Samcro is by the late Germany, a son of Trempolino who proved well named as he took two middle-distance Group 1 contests in that country before standing at Clongeel Stud in County Cork and later Woodlands Stud in County Galway.

Germany did not produce the same large volume of runners that some of his peers in the Irish National Hunt stallion ranks have, so it is to his credit that he is also responsible for the great hurdler Faugheen – runner-up to Supasundae in the Irish Champion Hurdle on Saturday – and fellow Cheltenham Festival scorers Captain Cee Bee (Supreme Novices' Hurdle) and Tiger Cry (Grand Annual Chase).

Quite how well Germany did despite scant support is illustrated in his covering numbers in the last years of his life. In his final year in 2013, he received only five mares; in 2012, only nine; and in 2011, the year Samcro was conceived, just five.

Samcro was bred by Douglas Taylor out of the unraced Saddlers' Hall mare Dun Dun, and is one of two winners out of the mare.

Dun Dun is a sister to Master Of The Hall, the winner of 11 races including the Grade 2 Reynoldstown Novices' Chase, and Featherbed Lane, who notched victories in two competitive handicap hurdles. She is also a half-sister to talented handicap chaser Pairofbrowneyes.

Dun Dun is out of the Be My Native mare Frankly Native, a half-sister to the fine chaser Sound Man, winner of two Tingle Creek trophies and placed behind Klairon Davies in the Arkle and Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham.

The mare has a four-year-old son by Jeremy called Think Positive, a three-year-old filly by the same sire and a yearling filly by Jet Away.

Samcro must have always been a looker, as even as an untried three-year-old by not necessarily the most fashionable sire, he commanded a price of €95,000 when knocked down to Bobby O'Ryan at the Goffs Land Rover Sale.

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