'It looks like the world's his oyster' - trainers Eustace and Horton keeping a close eye on Curragh ace Power Blue

The combined brains of quite a few trainers have played a role in the story of Power Blue, who maintained the immaculate record of Adrian Murray in Sunday's opening race of the Irish turf season at the Curragh.

James Horton and Harry Eustace, two of the brightest young names among the British ranks, will have plenty of chances to get themselves on the scoresheet in the coming weeks, and it was that pair who found the son of first-season sire Space Blues for €30,000 in a draft from Oak Lodge and Springfield House Stud at the 2023 Goffs November Foal Sale.

Other names including Chris Waller's assistant Charlie Duckworth and Eustace's Hong Kong-based brother and fellow trainer David are part of their pinhooking syndicate. Horses purchased then head to Luke Barry's Manister House Stud in County Limerick to be prepared for resale.

"We had an association with him but I would very much heap the praise on the people who bought the horse," Barry said. "The Blind Leading The Blind syndicate is a pinhooking syndicate which James and Harry set up from the days when they were assistant trainers in Newmarket. 

"They roped in a bunch of pals, various assistants and other people in the industry, brothers, a couple of parents and so on and had a pot of money. For years they'd go off and buy a foal or two and they were kind enough to send them to our farm from the fall of hammer and then we'd look after them for the whole way through."

Luke Barry prepared and sold Power Blue from his Manister House StudCredit: Sarah Farnsworth/Goffs

Power Blue, who made his debut for the LNA Racing Syndicate represented by breeze-up supremo Robson Aguiar, is not the syndicate's finest result in the ring as he was bought for £44,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale but he looked a smart youngster when coming nearly four lengths clear in the Castle Star At Capital Stud Irish EBF Maiden.

"They've had some lovely pinhooks, one of them was a lovely Pride Of Dubai filly that they had a good touch with, she went from 14,000gns to 115,000gns at Tattersalls Book 2 [maiden winner Fabricated]," Barry said.

"Harry and James decided in 2023 that they'd have a little bit of a change in tack and instead of going to Newmarket every year they'd come to Goffs. It was them who found him as a foal and I think they got great value on the day. We're very proud to have looked after and raised him and we took him to Doncaster for a sale we'd always target with some nice horses. It's also been a lucky sale for Manister House Stud as we've sold three Group 1 winners out of it already in La Collina, Fev Rover and Law Enforcement."

Recalling the sale itself, Barry added: "He was a lovely strong colt, he's got a great shape, a strong hip on him, nice strong back. Just a correct, medium-sized horse, and great balance too. He's inbred to Dubawi out of a Worthadd mare that had a bit of form when she was in Italy.

"He had no better home to go to and we've heard whispers all winter that they really liked the colt."

James Horton: 'I think it’s important for trainers to look at the foals'

Horton was moving yards in Newmarket and Eustace was saddling runners in Australia, so the pair did not have enough time to scour the foal sales late last year, but Horton does not rule out another go in the future.

"We’ve just tried to buy low-level foals and flip them around," he said. "We liked this horse, we thought he looked strong and racy and we liked the idea of Space Blues as a first-season sire. He fell into our budget and was on our list.

"I thought they bought him quite cheaply at Doncaster, he was just going through a bit of a growing stage at the time, but it was nice to see him go on and do that and it looks like the world is his oyster."

Barry, a major figure in both spheres whose operation bred the Phoenix Stakes winner La Collina and sold Grand National hero One For Arthur as a store, has not had a great deal to do with many offspring of Space Blues, who was off the mark with his second runner in Europe, aside from selling one colt out of the winning Kingman mare Queen Of Silca who is expected to deliver a good showing for Longways Stables at the Goffs Doncaster Breeze-up Sale.

Godolphin flag-bearer Space Blues signed off an exemplary career in landing the 2021 Breeders' Cup Mile and is standing for €16,000 at Kildangan Stud.

"They're my only association with the stallion for the moment but you'd have to like what you saw," he added.

Horton is also a fan. 

"I’ve got one Space Blues filly who I like a lot out of a mare called Neesaan," he said. "She’s going to be a middle of summer two-year-old but she goes very nicely. I think he’s a sire who could kick on this year."

A victory in such an eagerly watched race would give any breeder or consignor a boost as the Flat season begins. Barry, like many others, is waiting for "a couple of sleepers" among his graduates through the ring over the last year or so but at this stage prefers to class them as little more than hopes and dreams rather than piling the pressure on their trainers.

Space Blues has made a bright start to stallion life at Kildangan StudCredit: ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy

"A win like that means a huge amount to us as there is a wonderful roll of honour in the race," Barry said. "You've got Bucanero Fuerte on the list, Dawn Approach won it, Arizona Blaze last year, so a lot of very good horses. It's very exciting. We get a huge kick out of horses like that going on and we're proud to see another good horse to come out of that sale at Donny, but I'd give James and Harry all the credit."

Even if Power Blue is not in his own stable, there are no complaints from Horton as he finds the whole pinhooking process an instructive one.

"If we were really clever one of us would have bought him back!" he laughed.

"We haven’t made ourselves rich but we haven’t had to go in again to prop it up either. It’s more for a bit of sport and an interest with mates but I also think it gives us a look into the foals.

"I think it’s important for trainers to look at them as it gives you a fairly good guide as to what you’re going to be looking at as yearlings and a bit of a feeling about what the first-season sires are like. A week spent looking at foals at that time of year doesn’t do you any harm."

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