‘They have come back to the grassroots’ - British buyers hit Fairyhouse again at busy August National Hunt Sale

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Low profile but otherwise encouraging trade continued into Thursday’s second and final session of the Tattersalls Ireland August National Hunt Sale.

Revived interest in jump racing, particularly by British-based buyers, has been evident throughout the store sales and this last significant leg was no different.

Comparisons are not identical as the date has been switched back from a former guise as the July Sale. However, the aggregate of €3,411,400 was the highest turnover at a Tattersalls Ireland July or August National Hunt Sale since 2019 and an increase of 30 per cent on last year’s equivalent. 

The average price of €11,185 was up 26 per cent while there was a 25 per cent increase year-on-year in the median of €7,500. The clearance rate, although only 63 per cent, was an improvement on 58 per cent from 2025.

There was not a headline horse to rival the €70,000 half-brother to Old Park Star from the opening session but a son of Poet's Word, a wildcard entry from Lisroan Farm, was bought by Kevin Ross for a respectable €36,000. He is out of a half-sister to three black-type horses headed by Gusda, winner of the Grade 3 Blackwater Hurdle.

"He is for a client in England as a racing prospect," said Ross. "I don't know training plans. He is out of a Westerner mare and has a good dam side, and missed his date at an earlier store sale."

Anna and Kevin Ross, who was behind the purchase of a leading light on ThursdayCredit: Healy Racing/Tattersalls Ireland

Ross was asked for his thoughts on overall trade.

"It has been strong the whole way through,” he added. “I think a lot of English buyers came here to buy from the store horse sales, because the point-to-pointers have got so expensive. They have come back to the grassroots, and I think that has upped the whole level of the store horse market."

Point-to-point handlers have become the powerbase of the store market and Matty Flynn O'Connor swooped for a Lakefield Farm-consigned son of Roman Candle. At €34,000, he has the upside of being the half-brother of Willie Mullins’ ill-fated It’s For Me, fifth in championship bumpers at Cheltenham and Punchestown.

“We're just happy to have him – he made plenty!” said the buyer. “Roman Candle is getting some winners in France, so hopefully he can keep going forward. He looks as though we can get on with him and, please god, he is one we can get to a spring sale at Cheltenham."

Flynn O'Connor’s colleague Tom Keating stretched beyond his intended limits for a €31,000 Maxios gelding from Moyfinn Farm.

“I thought I might get him for around €20,000!,” Keating, signing as Glennconnor Stud, said. "I like Maxios, I have been lucky with them, and this is a fine-looking horse. He will go point-to-pointing and looks like one we can get moving on with."

Tom Keating (right) was among those restockingCredit: Healy Racing/Tattersalls Ireland

While Maxios is the sire of last season’s supreme chaser Gaelic Warrior, lot 351 is also out of a much lesser-known bumper-winning mare from the Mullins yard, Supreme Bailerina. She has already produced Supreme Yeats, who has taken three of his last four starts for Dan Skelton.

It was not only from across the Irish Sea where buyers were active. Central and Eastern Europe’s Tattersalls Ireland representative Tomas Janda signed for more than a dozen.

“They are all shipping to Czech, most are for owners, I have one trainer who has bought on spec," said Janda. "I have one client with a bigger budget and we trying hard and were underbidders a number of times, but we are happy to have bought lot 443, by Mahler for €30,000.

"The sale has matched up what we were looking for and it was not so easy to buy some of the nicer horses. But overall we are quite happy and I think we have got good value. The purchase horses all look as though they could be open to a variety of options in Czech – either to run in bumpers and then go jumping or go directly jumping. If any turn out to be above average they can go to run in France or Germany."

Best turned out: Trainer Nicky Richards, left of Ger Hannon, was among the visitorsCredit: www.healyracing.ie

Tattersalls Ireland CEO Simon Kerins said of the sale: “The National Hunt store market has been extremely buoyant this year, with record trade at the Derby Sale, and there was strong anticipation ahead of this week’s sale. Following the change in sale date from July to August, we were very pleased with the continued support from our vendors, as well as the strong participation from buyers, and to see increases across across the board.

“Buyers were particularly focused on horses with commercial appeal. We had a strong presence of clients looking to prepare, race and trade horses, which contributed to healthy competition for horses with the right profile, however it would be remiss not to acknowledge that it was selective for those horses that did not meet with the exacting requirements of the market.

“Most of Ireland’s leading point-to-point handlers were on site over the two days, and we look forward to following the progress of our graduates in the point-to-point fields next spring. It was also encouraging to see a strong UK presence, with owners and trainers from across the water featuring prominently on the buyers’ table.”

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