Aga Khan draft dominates trade at Goffs with Tetrarch winner Shelir topping bill

The Aga Khan’s drafts can always be relied on for producing big prices at sales and so it proved once more at Goffs Autumn Horses In Training Sale on Tuesday as the early Halloween fireworks began when the renowned owner-breeder’s draft of ten horses took their turn in the ring.

Lot 566, the Listed Tetrarch Stakes winner Shelir, achieved the sale’s highest price when purchased for €70,000 by Jason Kelly. The three-year-old son of Dark Angel out of the Dalakhani full-sister to Group 3 Prix Allez France and Prix Lutece winner Shemima has shown a high-class level of form for Dermot Weld over seven furlongs and a mile, and boasts the deep pedigree that draws so many people to the Aga Khan’s horses.

He is a grandson of Prix de Diane winner Shemaka, who is also the ancestress of 2017 Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris winner Shakeel. Shelir will be joined at David O’Meara’s yard by the 102-rated Tinandali, a three-year-old son of Oasis Dream who Kelly bought for €45,000. Successful over a mile and ten furlongs this season for Weld, he is out of Group 3 winner Timarwa, a daughter of Daylami and Group 1 Champion Stakes, Grosser Dallmayr Preis and Beverly D Stakes winner Timarida.

“They were the obvious horses in the sale, lightly-raced, highly-rated and they fit the profile of horses we’ve done well with,” explained Kelly. “They’ve been bought on spec so hopefully will be successful and they’ll be able to go straight into those big Saturday heritage handicaps next season.”

Hopes for Shamiyan

Richard McNally has enjoyed success with horses sourced from the Aga Khan’s drafts in the past and the owner is hopeful that Shamiyan, a three-year-old son of Lope De Vega, will continue that lucky run. He went to €58,000 to secure the twice-raced colt, who was second last week at Gowran, and is out of an Azamour half-sister to the dam of sale-topper Shelir.

McNally said: “This horse came with strong recommendations and we’ve been lucky with horses bought from the Aga Khan in the past. He’ll stay in training with Michael Halford, like Hasanour, who I bought from the Aga Khan here and went on to win a few big premier handicaps for us at the Curragh and be Listed-placed.”

Lot 561, Hazran, was another of the Aga Khan’s draft to prove popular. His pedigree pointed to him playing a leading role as a son of Lope De Vega out of an Oasis Dream half-sister to the Aga Khan’s dual Derby hero and sire Harzand. The first foal out of the winning Hazaraba, he has been placed in all six starts, all at three, and was bought for €52,000 by Millwood Bloodstock.

While the Aga Khan horses may have attracted the lion’s share of attention, they were by no means the only show in town. Lot 518, Njord, a three-year-old gelding by Irish 2,000 Guineas winner Roderic O’Connor, made much of the early running when selling to Richard Fitzsimons of BBA Ireland for €54,000. Sheila Lavery trained him to win at the Curragh this month, which, added to five previous placings, meant he was an attractive proposition.

Johnny Murtagh’s Fox Covert Stables also consigned a popular draft, with Lot 573, Finding Nero, a winning half-brother to Listed winner and UAE Group-placed Bravo Zolo, making €50,000. The three-year-old will follow in his half-brother’s hoofprints to the Middle East as the son of Holy Roman Emperor was bought by Abdullah Aziz Al Boenain and Al Wakra to continue his career in Qatar.

Hard to know what to expect

Horses In Training sales are difficult ones to quantify for auction houses as they are completely dependent on the quality of horses submitted and the demand they create among buyers.

Henry Beeby, group chief executive of Goffs, was satisfied with the returns posted by Tuesday’s sale. They failed to match the heights of last year’s renewal but still cultivated a strong trade for the most desirable lots.

He added that it is an area of trade that the company wished to develop, and the seeds of that could be seen in the catalogue which included drafts from leading trainers including Jessica Harrington, Ger Lyons, Johnny Murtagh and Willie McCreery as well as the Aga Khan’s team.

Beeby said: “Our Horses In Training section is one we would dearly love to develop as every year we prove its worth with the small number we present. Trade was strong for the catalogue assembled and the figures simply reflect the vagaries of horses in training sales rather than any particular issues."

The Autumn Yearling Sale, which preceded the Horses In Training Sale, was one which exceeded expectations and reflected the global nature of the bloodstock and racing industries as Goffs assembled a cast of buyers from across Europe and further afield.

Agents reel them in

“Goffs is fortunate to be assisted by a superb network of international agents and this week several of them have been to the fore as Angela Robiati, Filip Zwicky, Matthias Seeber and Kishore Mirpuri have delivered a truly eclectic group of buyers from Italy, Scandinavia, Germany and Eastern Europe," said Beeby.

"In particular, the last-mentioned has played an absolute blinder with a group of 43 that required a bigger than ordered bus to ferry them from airport to Goffs to hotel and in between.

“Their enthusiastic bidding allowed our yearling trade to make significant advances from a smaller catalogue, the most noteworthy being a very respectable clearance rate of 74 per cent and a median that grew by a third.”

The background work paid off handsomely with the figures all showing increases from a slimmed down catalogue including the aggregate, which grew by three per cent to €1,691,750 from just 387 horses offered, in comparison to €1,641,750 with 504 horses offered in 2018.

Both the average and median figures grew, the latter by a whopping 33 per cent to €4,000, with the average recording a more modest increase of eight per cent, but the most positive result was the improved clearance rate of just under three-quarters. All this happened against the backdrop of the continuing confusion that has enveloped the world socially, politically and economically.

“The durability of the yearling market was never more graphically illustrated than over the last two days,” continued Beeby. “With the world in a state of some flux with Brexit, economic uncertainty and so many other factors that would at least suggest some contraction, it was extremely heartening to witness a trade of vibrancy and energy from start to finish.

“No one is suggesting that this is the most glamorous sale of the year and everything is relative but we cannot let the moment pass without mentioning the pinhook success of the year, if not the decade, with Clonmult Farm’s spectacular €78,000 sale-topper who was picked up here for a mere €1,000 last November, so providing yet another example of the potential of the Goffs November Foal Sale.

"We are so pleased for James Sheehan and Vicki Hancock, whose delight was infectious as their sale unfolded.”

Click here for second session of yearling sale