Vibrant Trade at Sportsman’s Sale
After spending just shy of €1.5 million on eight lots during the two days of Goffs’ Orby Sale earlier in the week, bloodstock advisor John Ferguson remained hard at work Thursday, snapping up the top two lots at the lower-key Sportsman’s Sale.
Ferguson, whose eight Orby purchases were by eight different stallions, was extended to €110,000 for Thursday’s dearest offering, a Yeomanstown Stud-bred and -consigned daughter of stud inmate Dark Angel (Ire). Catalogued late in the sale as hip 689, the Mar. 13 foal is a daughter of Rumline (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}), the dam of two winners from three to race, including the 2-year-old Bukle (Ire) (Approve {Ire}), who won his maiden at Salisbury Sept. 3. The filly’s third dam is Princess Athena (Ire) (Ahonoora {GB}), herself the dam of Dark Angel’s sire Acclamation (GB) (Royal Applause {GB}). Ferguson gave €140,000 for a colt by Dark Angel–Sodashy (Ire) (Noverre) during Wednesday’s final session of the Orby.
It has been another banner year at the races for Cape Cross (Ire), whose G1 Investec Derby-winning son Golden Horn (GB) looks set to take his spot against two-time defending champion Treve (Fr) (Motivator {GB}) in Sunday’s G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp. Hip 537 represented the stallion’s best result over the course of the three days of selling at Goffs when Ferguson gave €90,000 for the son of Chantilly Pearl. That daughter of the recently deceased Smart Strike is a half-sister to SW & MGSP Lemon Chiffon (Lemon Drop Kid) and SW Masked Maiden (Sky Mesa), while GISW Zoftig (Cozzene) and her Grade I-winning daughter Zaftig (Gone West) appear under the third dam.
At the end of business Thursday, some 203 of the 225 lots presented (89.3%) were reported as sold for turnover just shy of €4.9 million, an increase of 11 percent, despite a catalogue that was 50 horses leaner than the 2014 Sportsman’s sale. The average of €24,102 represented a gain of 24.6% over last year, while the €18,000 median jumped by 20%.
“As in recent years, many have stayed on from Orby whilst we have welcomed a number of new UK and overseas buyers who have travelled specifically for today following a targeted campaign from the Goffs team, backed up as ever by another proactive drive from Irish Thoroughbred Marketing,” explained Goffs Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “After last year’s sale we took the decision to tighten our selection policy and that has clearly paid dividends as we work with Irish breeders to provide a catalogue that is truly appealing to a whole range of buyers.
Beeby added, “As yesterday, I want to repeat our thanks to every client for their support and reiterate to Irish breeders that we will continue to innovate and work to make Goffs the obvious first choice for the best Irish horses at all levels of the market. The last three days have once again clearly demonstrated that we can and will deliver.”