'We are big believers in Joseph O'Brien' - €72,000 Sioux Nation filly on the way

Speculation over next year's stallion fees fuels almost as much debate at sales this time of year as the level of trade and quality of horses on offer.

The first juveniles by Sioux Nation have achieved more than enough on the track to warrant Coolmore increasing his stud fee for next year, but if there were any dissenting voices they were quietened by the prices returned in the sales ring by his second crop.

A Norfolk Stakes winner by Scat Daddy, like his paternal half-brother and leading two-year-old sire No Nay Never, Sioux Nation was responsible for two of the most sought-after yearlings during the closing session of the Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale on Thursday.

The father-and-son duo of Neil and Con Sands was actively stocking up on new horses to run in the Bronsan Racing silks next season for Joseph O'Brien, and it was sire power which prompted them to look at Mountarmstrong Stud's chestnut filly out of the Exceed And Excel mare Emerald Isle.

Just the second foal of her dam, who is a daughter of the Group 3 Prix du Bois winner and Prix Robert Papin third Ela Merici, she became the priciest of the Bronsan racing acquisitions on Thursday, making €72,000.

"She was a sire buy," said Con Sands, "as was the Ten Sovereigns filly we bought earlier."

His son explained that both fillies, along with a National Defense colt they also bought, would find themselves tackling the fearsome gallop up Owning Hill at Joseph O'Brien's yard.

"We are big believers in Joseph O'Brien and have invested a lot with him," said Neil Sands. "Joseph has the talent to see the early potential in horses and is skilled at bringing those abilities out."

Their current string in Piltown includes Goa Gajah, who beat the subsequent Listed-placed Lakota Seven (by Sioux Nation) to win a maiden in June and was second in the Irish EBF Auction Series Final at Naas last month.

Very recently they expanded their ownership interests into the National Hunt arena.

"We bought Stormbreaker, who was a winner on the Flat for James Fanshawe and he has gone into training with Willie Mullins," added Neil Sands. "We're looking forward to seeing how he gets on."

Sioux Nation strikes a poseCredit: Coolmore

Abbeville Stud's Sioux Nation colt will also head into training in Ireland after Dr Khaled Salami of KGS Bloodstock secured him on behalf of Dubai owner Nasir Askar for €48,000.

He is the second foal out of Any Little Rhyme, a daughter of Shamardal who was bred and raced by the late Queen Elizabeth II. His second dam Free Verse is a winning Danehill Dancer half-sister to the dam of Gordon Elliott and Gemma and Andy Brown's exciting hurdler Pied Piper, who contests the Grade 2 WKD Hurdle at Down Royal on Friday.

It's a family that Salami has followed with interest, as he explained, saying: "Sioux Nation is a very good young sire and I really liked this colt. My client didn't anticipate having to spend as much to buy him but I encouraged him to keep going as he is such a nice horse.

"We tried to buy the dam previously, as she is young, with a good page and by a very nice broodmare sire."

Marnane answers the Call

Con Marnane has supplied Joe Foley's Ballyhane Stud with two stallions who are successful graduates of the Bansha House Stable breeze-up academy in Prince Of Lir and Sands Of Mali.

Sherbourne Lodge's Soldier's Call colt emerges from the chute at GoffsCredit: Peter Mooney

The noted judge had no connection with Ballyhane's first-crop sire Soldier's Call, but he is an admirer of the stock of the Flying Childers, Prix d'Arenberg and Windsor Castle Stakes winner and struck at €62,000 for Sherbourne Lodge's colt.

"He was the standout of the sale and will go back to Doncaster for the breeze-up sale," Marnane enthused. "Hopefully he will be another Royal Ascot horse, like Prince Of Lir and Sands Of Mali who we breezed."

Prince Of Lir won the Norfolk Stakes and sired from his first crop The Lir Jet, likewise winner of that race, while Sands Of Mali, who won the Group 1 British Champions Sprint, was second to Eqtidaar in the Commonwealth Cup at the royal meeting.

Marnane has been very impressed by the first yearlings sired by their stud mate, a son of Showcasing who was placed at Royal Ascot in the King's Stand, and also in the Prix de l'Abbaye and Nunthorpe Stakes.

"I love the stallion and he was a really good and fast horse," was Marnane's ringing endorsement of Soldier's Call.

The sale represented a handsome return on the €18,000 JODK Bloodstock paid for the son of Listed October Stakes and Spring Cup second Elshabakiya last November at Goffs, where he was sold by Esker Lodge Stud.

O'Ryan and Weld strike early

Bobby O'Ryan and Dermot Weld had their alarms set early as they were keen to buy the very first horse into the ring, a Mehmas colt from the Hyland family's Oghill House Stud.

The Oghill House Stud Mehmas colt who was the first yearling in the ring on ThursdayCredit: Peter Mooney

The chestnut is the second foal out of Tillys Angel, a Society Rock granddaughter of the Cheveley Park, Lowther, Queen Mary Stakes and Prix Maurice de Gheest winner Dead Certain.

Weld has history with the family, having initially trained Supreme Bases, Dead Certain's son by Sadler's Wells, to win twice at three back in 1993, before he was sold to continue his career in Hong Kong.

The Master of Rosewell House was standing beside O'Ryan when bidding commenced and he had to go all the way to €70,000 to secure the colt by the sire of three Group 1 winners, including this season's Haydock Sprint Cup victor Minzaal.

"He is a cracking horse," O'Ryan commented. "Dermot and I looked at him yesterday and we loved him. The sire needs no introduction and the horse comes from a great farm."

It was a sentiment reiterated by the man who will train the colt.

"It's lovely to buy from Oghill House and the Hyland family, that's very nice," said Weld.

The result was another pinhooking success from last year's Goffs November Foal Sale as the colt was purchased by Tuesday Bloodstock for €18,000 from Harefield Cottage Stud.

Davison's acclamation for Rathbarry

Trainer Jack Davison splashed out on a six-figure Acclamation filly from Rathbarry Stud at the Goffs Orby Yearling Sale just five weeks ago, and he returned to the same source for another daughter of the Cashman family's stalwart, albeit one that was not quite so expensive.

"Acclamation is a proven sire, they are two exceptional fillies and the pedigree is obviously strong; she ticks all the boxes," said Davison.

An autumnal backdrop for Rathbarry Stud's Acclamation fillyCredit: Peter Mooney

His Autumn Yearling purchase cost €70,000 and is a full-sister to Karaoke, who won a juvenile fillies' maiden at Dundalk in August for Joseph O'Brien.

Their dam Click And Roll was bred by Barronstown Stud and won at three in America for Qatar Racing. She is a Smart Strike half-sister to Hootenanny, who won the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf and was second in the Prix Morny for Wesley Ward, and stands at the trainer's Ward Ranch across the road from Keeneland.

"She looks like a racehorse and I cannot wait to train her," remarked her purchaser. "The pedigree is there and she will always be worth something, but hopefully she can run as well as she looks."

There is plenty of speed and quality through the page; her second dam More Hennessy is a Hennessy half-sister to Grade 1 Prioress Stakes winner Cat Moves and fourth dam Dance Teacher was also successful at the highest level.

The trainer feels that this youngster will be ready to run early in the new season.

"I am looking for the next Mooneista [homebred Group 2 Sapphire Stakes winner] so I'm hoping one of these can go close," he said. "She is robust and looks precocious, we will get her home, break her straight away and slot her in with the other early two-year-old types."

McConnell's late late show

There was a late flurry of activity as the supplementary catalogue kept buyers waiting until the very end, when the final of the five yearlings to make over €50,000 came under the hammer.

Rathasker Stud consigned the Footstepsinthesand colt, who is the first foal out of Ho Ho Bird, a daughter of Dark Angel from Sir Edmund Loder's iconic Marwell family.

Bobby O'Ryan (left) and Dermot Weld (right) follow their Mehmas coltCredit: Peter Mooney

The Burns family purchased Ho Ho Bird, carrying this colt, at the 2020 Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale for €45,000, so she has already earned that back with her first foal, as McConnell went to €52,000 for the bay who is a grandson of Moyglare Stud Stakes third Littlefeather.

The trainer was very enthusiastic about the colt, who be believes has the potential to go all the way to the top.

"He has got everything – looks, pedigree and sire – and came very highly recommended," said McConnell, who now needs to find an owner to race the colt.

"I must have buyer's frenzy as I bought him without having an owner in place," he smiled. "Hopefully it won't be difficult to find one for him but I really do think this colt has Classic potential."

That is writ large in his DNA. Footstepsinthesand was the first Classic winner sired by Giant's Causeway when he won the 2,000 Guineas in 2005.

The colt's second dam, the aforementioned Littlefeather, is a half-sister to Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Marling (also successful in the Sussex, Coronation and Cheveley Park Stakes) and to Group 1 National Stakes winner Caerwent, whose Group 1 placings included second in the Irish 2,000 Guineas.

Third dam Marling was Europe's champion three-year-old filly in 1981 following victories in the King's Stand Stakes, July Cup and Prix de l'Abbaye, and she also won the Cheveley Park Stakes at two.

Facts and figures

As with Wednesday's opening session, there was never any way this year could compete with last year's blockbusting renewal, which produced astonishing returns.

Trainer John McConnell, who purchased Rathasker Stud's Footstepsinthesand coltCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

However, compared with the 2020 Autumn Yearling Sale, which was smaller and held during pandemic restrictions, the median and average both posted strong improvements.

Thursday's average of €9,445 represented a gain of 55 per cent on the 2020 figure of €6,109, while the median recorded a more modest increase of ten per cent.

The clearance rate of 77 per cent was much healthier than the 66 per cent posted two years ago.

Turnover of €1,889,000 was generated from the sale of 200 horses, whereas in 2020 a total of 70 horses were sold for an aggregate of €427,600.

Removing last year's truly astonishing sale from the equation, overall the 2022 Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale was the best since the company introduced the auction in 2010.

End-of-sale statement

Goffs group chief executive Henry Beeby said: "'You're only as good as your last sale' is an oft used adage when analysing bloodstock sales and we are all guilty of only measuring against the immediate predecessor.

"Twelve months ago the Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale benefited from a large dispersal from Derrinstown Stud following the sad passing of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum, who was such a valued and revered supporter of Goffs. That draft accounted for a quarter of the turnover with eight of the top ten prices and propelled the sale to record-breaking levels headed by a top price of €180,000.

Henry Beeby in actionCredit: Sarah Farnsworth

"Those lofty heights were always going to be out of reach and so it is that the statistics from the last two days are well behind 2021. However, we are far from despondent when reviewing this year’s renewal as it has finished ahead of every other incarnation of the Open/Autumn Yearling Sale since its inception in 2010 with a second best turnover, average and median flowing from a reasonable clearance rate of 77 per cent.

"Whilst some of these figures do not necessarily point to massive returns for breeders, they do demonstrate a vibrancy to the proceedings and those that appealed most had plenty of admirers."

He continued: "Demand over the two days has been driven by a truly international buying bench, with a flood of overseas buyers headed by a large group from Italy who accounted for nigh on 100 yearlings and another strong contingent from Eastern Europe who bought over 50, with a further 20-plus heading for China. There were also significant parties from Scandinavia, Germany, the Gulf region, Libya, the USA and France taking on spirited bidders from the UK and Ireland.

"All of these international visitors were attracted to Kildare Paddocks by the reputation of Irish breeders and their world-class bloodlines which allow our passionate purchaser attraction team, working in tandem with our network of international agents and the team at Irish Thoroughbred Marketing, to trumpet their attributes on the global stage.

"How lucky we are to have the assistance of the latter group as they provide an invaluable and unique service to those who choose to sell here, whilst the superb IRE Incentive is a real plus for sellers in Ireland."

He went on: "As the sale closes we can reflect on vibrant, strong and positive renewals of all three parts of the Irish National Yearling Sale, each of which graphically makes our case that Irish breeders can sell, and sell extremely well, to the world at Goffs as highlighted by the Orby sale-topper of €2.6 million, which proved to be the world's top-priced yearling filly of 2022, and a high of €300,000 at Sportsman's, the highest-priced yearling ever sold in Ireland outside the Orby Sale."

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