Soldier's Call already in high demand as Ballyhane Stud releases 2020 fees

Ballyhane Stud's new recruit Soldier's Call has had his introductory fee set at €10,000, with stallion master Joe Foley reporting that breeders are already queuing up to secure nominations to the high-class son of Showcasing.

"We've had a very good response to the news of Soldier's Call's arrival and he's been very popular with breeders," Foley said of the Flying Childers and Windsor Castle Stakes winner.

"He's an exciting prospect and breeders are loving him and have already booked some beautiful mares into him."

Soldier's Call will stand alongside Ballyhane flag bearer Dandy Man, sire of major talents such as La Pelosa, Lady Kaya and Peniaphobia. Dandy Man will stand the upcoming season at a career-high fee of €15,000, up from €12,500 in 2019, when he covered a strong book of 215 mares.

"A lot of people couldn’t get into Dandy Man last season so they're booking early this year and, given the year that he's had on the racetrack and in the sales ring, I'm sure we could have put his fee much higher," Foley said of the son of Mozart, whose 2019 yearlings sold for as much as €220,000.

"But, like with Soldier's Call's fee, we're keen to price these horses realistically for the current market to give breeders every chance of doing good business with Ballyhane stallions."

The four-strong line-up is completed by Elzaam and Prince Of Lir, both of whose fees remain unchanged at €4,000.

The Prince of Lir colt out of Folegandros Island sells to SackvilleDonald for 260,000gns at Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling SaleCredit: Laura Green

Elzaam, a son of Redoute's Choice, was seen to best effect in 2019 through his daughter Waitingfortheday, who defeated Skitter Scatter when winning the Group 3 Fairy Bridge Stakes, and son Playa Del Puente, a leading fancy for the Hong Kong Derby.

Prince Of Lir's debut crop of two-year-olds will hit the track in 2020, and hopes will be high for the progeny of Kodiac's Norfolk Stakes-winning son after his first crop of yearlings fetched as much as 260,000gns.

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