Gordon Elliott returns to familiar source as €100,000 Kadeen headlines Goffs Autumn Sale

The Aga Khan Studs can be relied upon to provide the treats at the Goffs Autumn Horses In Training Sale and the renowned operation came up with the goods again on Halloween, with the sweetest being a six-figure sale-topper.

When the opening gambit for Kadeen, a winning three-year-old son of New Approach, was €20,000 there was a sense that this was the big one and that was confirmed as bids flew in from all around the ring.

Gordon Elliott, Mouse O'Ryan and Eddie O'Leary were determined to land the son of Listed Cooley Stakes winner Kadra and their final bid, of €100,000, was the one that frightened off the competition.

Kadeen will swap the green and red of the Aga Khan silks for the green, white and red of Bective Stud revealed the trainer, who was nominated as spokesman by the team.

Zariygann is a Sea The Moon half-brother to Zanahiyr and made €62,000 Credit: Goffs

"He's a grand horse and is ready to kick on with, so he will go hurdling soon. It's a good family and we have been lucky buying from the Aga Khan before so hopefully he will be another good one for us," Elliott said.

Kadeen's family stretches back to that of Derby and Irish Derby winner and sire Kahyasi and Kastoria, the Selkirk mare who beat Yeats in the 2006 Irish St Leger.

That good fortune most recently has been with Zanahiyr, the Grade 2-winning hurdler who has proven himself a consistent horse in the best company, placing in the Champion Hurdle, Irish Champion Hurdle and Morgiana Hurdle among other Grade 1 contests, carrying the silks of Bective Stud.

Unsurprisingly, the team tried hard to buy the six-year-old's half-brother by Sea The Moon when he came under the hammer earlier in the sale. Zariygann has run twice for the Michael Halford and Tracey Collins team and sparked a bidding battle with Michael Donohoe of BBA Ireland, who prevailed at €62,000.

Donohoe was helping out a friend, Joe O'Flaherty, who had to leave the sale before Zariygann was due to sell and entrusted him with the bidding duties for the three-year-old who had impressed O'Flaherty when he inspected him at the Conyngham Lodge yard of his trainers.

Julie White of the Aga Khan Studs snapped at Goffs on TuesdayCredit: Goffs

Halford and Collins were responsible for another of the day's most expensive horses, with two-year-old Intello colt Darazeni also to be found in the Barn E boxes that housed the Aga Khan draft.

The half-brother to Listed Prix Vulcain winner Darzan and the Group 3 Prix du Pin and Prix de Lieurey second Dabawa left the ring without reaching his reserve at €48,000. However bloodstock agent Ed Stapleton later bought the colt, whose unraced dam is an Arch half-sister to the dam of Almanzor and comes from the family of Princess Zahra Aga Khan's champion Darjina, for a round €50,000.

That sale completed a perfect nine from nine for the draft which generated turnover of €289,000 with the average and median for the Aga Khan Studs' horses running significantly higher than that of the sale as a whole. Their average came in at €32,112 with the median hitting €16,000.

McConnell on dual-purpose mission

John McConnell trained his first Cheltenham Festival winner in March when Ben Harvey guided Seddon to victory in the Magners Plate Handicap Chase and the trainer was both restocking and moving horses on at Goffs on Tuesday.

In the former category, he swooped early in the session for Churchwarden, a three-year-old gelding by Jim Bolger's homebred Dewhurst winner Parish Hall by another Bolger homebred winner of that race; champion two-year-old Teofilo.

Churchwarden in the ring at Goffs where trainer John McConnell paid €54,000 for the three-year-oldCredit: Goffs

Churchwarden has run twice this season for Eddie and Patrick Harty, for whom Baroda Stud offered the relation to Group 1 Phoenix Stakes and Moyglare Stakes winner Saoirse Abu, and McConnell sees the €54,000 purchase as an immediate dual-purpose prospect.

"He has the profile of a nice dual-purpose horse with a lovely run at the Curragh on his most recent start and I hope there is progression in him," the trainer said. "I thought with the way the sales were last week that he wasn't a dear horse. With only two runs, you would think there is more to come from him and he should be right for juvenile hurdles."

It was a second trip to the Autumn Sale for Churchwarden, who first went through the ring during the yearling sale that follows the horses-in-training session. He cost €10,500 back in 2021, with his value increasing five-fold in the intervening two years.

His third dam, Out Too Late, is the dam of Saoirse Abu by Mr Greeley, and is a half-sister to Fillies' Mile third Morning Devotion, the dam of Oaks and Irish Derby heroine Balanchine, and Sun Chariot Stakes winner Red Slippers whose descendants include last year's 2,000 Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes winner Coroebus and Thunder Snow, the dual Dubai World Cup hero.

Save Your Love for Spain

McConnell wasn't the only purchaser seeking value at Goffs on the back of previous sales. International agent Edgar Byrne was another looking to fill outstanding orders at Kildare Paddocks, including on behalf of Spain's leading trainer Guillermo Arizkorreta.

The trainer has showcased his abilities across Europe with horses such as Rodaballo, who won the Group 2 Oettingen Rennen, and Kitty Marion, who landed the Group 3 Goldene Peitsche.

Edgar Byrne signs for Spain-bound Save Your LoveCredit: Goffs

Arizkoretta and Byrne had their studies completed while in the thick of the action last week, choosing Save Your Love offered by trainer Johnny Murtagh on behalf of owner Kilcarn Stud, as their best subject.

"We picked him out in the middle of last week," Byrne reported of the €50,000 purchase. "We wanted to buy five horses and when we only had four purchased, we were short so he was the one we saw here that we really wanted to get. He's 91 rated and suits the programme in Spain."

Save Your Love is a three-year-old son of Invincible Spirit and has won twice this season for Murtagh and owner-breeder Miss Pat O'Kelly. He is a half-brother to the Ribblesdale Stakes winner Banimpire, trained by Jim Bolger, and to Dream On Buddy, the dam of Melbourne Cup winner Twilight Payment. Their dam My Renee won the Harvest Stakes and Give Thanks Stakes and is out of Mayenne, a Nureyev sister to Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Carnegie out of another Arc winner in Detroit.

He was one of the seven horses to sell for €50,000 or more on Tuesday, one more than at the equivalent sale in 2022.

Carol Walsh, bidding online, went to €55,000 to secure Fernao, a Frankel half-brother to the Group 1 Prix Jacques le Marois winner and sire Al Wukair. The four-year-old was offered by trainer Willie McCreery and won a mile maiden at Listowel's June festival.

Bred by Ballylinch Stud, he is also a half-brother to the Group 3 Autumn Stakes third Dream Today and to Witches Brew, placed in the Knockaire and Platinum Stakes. A daughter of Duke Of Marmalade, she is the dam of Group 3 Princess Royal Stakes and Prestige Stakes winner Antonia De Vega.

Cheltenham-winning trainer John McConnell signing for Churchwarden at GoffsCredit: Goffs

Donald McCain was an active purchaser, buying two members of the Peter Nolan draft. He went to €50,000 for Lunar Power, who has been a classy dual-purpose performer for Noel Meade.

The son of Power has won three times on the Flat and twice over hurdles, earning placed results in the Grade 2 Knight Frank Juvenile Hurdle at Leopardstown's Christmas meeting and the Grade 3 Juvenile Hurdle at Fairyhouse.

Meade is also the former trainer of the Starspangledbanner gelding that McCain bought for €25,000. The three-year-old named Union Flag made his hurdles debut at Cork just over a fortnight ago and was third, beaten just three-quarters of a length by JP McManus homebred Hands On.

End Of Sale Statement

The catalogue was larger than the offering in 2023 with 121 horses going through the ring and 90 of them changing hands for a clearance rate of 74 per cent. They generated turnover of €1,234,200 which was down 12 per cent from last year's figure of €1,367,700. Consequently the average and median dropped with the median showing the greatest decline, down by 32 per cent to €7,500. The average of €13,714 was down by 18 per cent year-on-year.

Henry Beeby, group chief executive of Goffs, reiterated his call to Irish owners to patronise the sale with their horses in training.

"As is nearly always the case on this day of the year we reflect on a busy and vibrant day of trade for horses-in-training but bemoan the lack of entries," he said.

"We so want to do more and will continue to strive to grow the catalogue as the time and date makes so much sense with so many overseas buyers combining a visit with our large two-day Autumn Yearling Sale.

"Goffs HIT is a convenient, low-cost option when compared to the alternative and is promoted around the globe by Irish Thoroughbred Marketing and our network of international agents, but they can only work with what we have which makes it a challenge.

Lunar Power on the way to the ring where he made €50,000 to Donald McCainCredit: Goffs

"That said trade today has been strong for those that stood out and, as ever, we are indebted to the HH Aga Khan's draft who have topped the sale with another six-figure winner. So I make no apology for repeating our annual cry following this sale as we’re here, we’re keen and everything is in place for today to be the natural choice for Irish horses-in-training but, as with every category, we cannot do it without the horses."

Beeby continued: "The buyers are here as today’s results will see horses heading for the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Sweden as well as the UK while, of course, many will stay on these shores and the prices exceed expectations in so many cases. So it’s really up to Irish owners and trainers to give us the chance as we are confident we will deliver."

"All that said it is disappointing that the statistics have fallen back, although the upper end of the market has proved marginally stronger with a higher top price and more at €50,000 and above. We now turn our attention to yearlings and our two-day Autumn Yearling Sale that is once again packed full of potential and value."

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