Irish sires in focus at Fairyhouse as store season comes to a close

There used to be certain signs that summer was drawing to a close; the All-Ireland hurling final would take place on the first Sunday in September and Tattersalls Ireland would stage a final store sale of the season in August. But now the calendar has shifted forward and as BBC viewers discovered last Sunday, the All-Ireland hurling final is now in July, as is the last store auction of the year. Summer does indeed have all too short a lease.

This week's July Store Sale is the final opportunity for buyers this year hoping to add to their strings, whether in the point-to-point yards or the ownership lists, and the last chance for vendors to empty their stables ahead of the autumn so the Tattersalls Ireland sales complex will be a hive of activity over the next two days.

There are a handful of Irish-based stallions who have enjoyed a successful store sales season to date and their stallion masters will be optimistic that they will continue to see demand from buyers this week.

Harzand

One such young sire who has impressed purchasers over the last couple of years is the 2016 Derby and Irish Derby hero Harzand. The Aga Khan's homebred son of Sea The Stars began his stallion career alongside his supreme sire at Gilltown Stud but moved to the O'Keeffe family's Kilbarry Lodge Stud ahead of the 2023 breeding season.

Consequentially his progeny at the store sales are from his time at Gilltown, where his books became increasingly dominated by National Hunt mares. The average price achieved by his three-year-olds this year is €42,067 – more than five times his advertised covering fee of €8,000 in 2020.

His most expensive store of 2023 was sold at Tattersalls Ireland last month where Tom Malone and Paul Nicholls went to €185,000 to secure Mark Dwyer's half-brother to Arizona Cardinal, Destroytheevidence and Lilly Pedlar out of a half-sister to Long Run.

There are five members of his fourth crop catalogued in the July Store Sale including two wildcard entries. The first of those to sell is the second lot into the ring on Wednesday morning; Lot 1A from Brown Island Stables was offered at the May Store Sale where he was bought back for €28,000. The bay gelding is the third foal out of Talk To The Face, an unraced Milan half-sister to the Grade 1 David Nicholson Mares' Hurdle winner Roksana.

Harzand's other wildcard, one of 38 later entries in total, also sells on Wednesday (234A). She is a half-sister to Gambling Girl, who was a classy dual-purpose performer for Jessica Harrington, winning the Grade 3 mares' novice hurdle at Down Royal and finishing fourth in the Listed Challenge Stakes at Leopardstown. By Hawk Wing, Gambling Girl has been a successful broodmare and is the dam Queen's Gamble, a Listed winner over hurdles last season for Harry Derham.

Diamond Boy

Harzand's stud mate in Waterford, Diamond Boy, is a more established sire but has also enjoyed a successful store sales season, recording an average of €41,517. The sire of Grade 1 winners L'Homme Presse and Impaire Et Passe and Grade 2 winners Diva Luna and Grand Sancy, has been in Ireland since 2018 therefore his oldest Irish-bred crop is just five.

Con O'Keeffe with Diamond Boy

His best price so far this year was the €150,000 Mags O'Toole gave for Brook Lodge Farm's gelding out of the Listed bumper and hurdle winner Cap Soleil, a Kapgarde full-sister to the dam of this year's Champion Bumper runner-up Romeo Coolio. 

There are three members of his third Irish crop remaining in the sale including a gelding (322) from Wells Stud. A half-brother to a couple of winners, he is out of La Brave who is a full-sister to the multiple Grade 1 winner Voy Por Ustedes and a half-sister to the dam of Un Temps Pour Tout, successful in the Grade 1 Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil.

Jukebox Jury

Victor Connolly's Burgage Stud has been home to Bob Back and Shantou, stallions who have left an indelible mark on National Hunt racing and breeding. Jukebox Jury is the heir to that legacy on the Carlow farm and the son of Montjeu is carving out his own niche as the sire of three Grade 1 winners.

Il Etait Temps, successful in Grade 1 novice chases at three of the major Spring festivals - Dublin, Aintree and Punchestown - and third in the Arkle at Cheltenham has thrust his sire, who won the Group 1 Preis von Europa and Irish St Leger, more firmly into the spotlight.

Jukebox Jury: the dashing grey looks to have a bright future ahead of himCredit: James Thomas

The 18-year-old grey moved from Germany to Burgage in 2018 and as with Diamond Boy, his oldest Irish-bred progeny are just five this year but the representatives of his third Irish crop have returned an average of €40,929 at the store sales this year which is more than five times his 2020 advertised fee of €6,000.

Tom Howley and Caoimhe Doherty's pinhooking prowess ensured that their Galway farm, Brook Lodge Stud, has also sold the most expensive Jukebox Jury three-year-old of the season. Kevin Ross went to €120,000 to secure their Jukebox Jury gelding at the Derby Sale. He is a half-brother to Sunday Soldier (by Shantou), who was the first foal and winner out of Fortunes Harvest. Their dam is an unraced Soldier Of Fortune half-sister to Auteuil Listed winner Doctor Kaleo.

The Doyles of the renowned Monbeg Stables snapped up a Jukebox Jury gelding at Tattersalls Ireland last month of €92,000. From the draft of Norman Williamson's Oak Tree Farm, he is out of Turica, a Flemensfirth half-sister to the Grade 1 winners Carlingford Lough and Thisthatandother and the Grade 1-placed The Tother One.

There are 11 horses by the Royal Lodge winner remaining in the July Store Sale including a half-sister to Minella Crooner (334), who won the Listed Pat Taaffe Handicap Chase at this year's Punchestown Festival for Gordon Elliott. Consigned by the Furlong family's Thistletown Stud on behalf of Niall Tennyson, she is a half-sister to three further track winners and one successful point-to-pointer out of German Listed winner Laren (by Monsun).

Burgage Stud consigns two fillies by the grey who was trained by Mark Johnston with one of them (513A) a full-sister to McLaurey, winner of a four-year-old maiden on debut at Loughanmore last year for Jonathan Fogarty. He has subsequently been purchased by JP McManus.

The sale begins on Wednesday at 10am.

Tattersalls July Store Sale Factfile

Where Tattersalls Ireland, Ratoath

When Wednesday and Thursday from 10am

Last year's stats From 268 offered, 192 sold (72 per cent) for turnover of €2,610,300 (down eight per cent year on year), an average of €13,595 (down nine per cent) and median of €11,000 (down six per cent)

Notable graduates Shanagh Bob (sold by Caroreigh Farm, bought by Chris O'Donovan for €10,000); Noah And The Ark (sold by Ballincurrig House Stud, bought by Thorne Farm for €9,000), Gwennie May Boy (sold by Dromod Stud, bought by Stroud Coleman Bloodstock for €20,000)