Promising Porthill brings £250,000 after heavyweight Spring Sale showdown
Sales correspondent James Thomas reports from a busy day of selling in Doncaster
A heavyweight clash between two of the most successful buyers in the business saw the promising Porthill fetch £250,000 during a frenetic opening session of the Goffs UK Spring Horses in Training and Point-to-Point Sale in Doncaster on Wednesday.
Following an optimistic opening bid of £30,000 it was Highflyer Bloodstock’s David Minton and trainer Thomas Gibney who moved the price beyond the £100,000 mark. At £160,000 Harold Kirk, chief talent scout to Willie Mullins, entered the fray and began exchanging £5,000 increases with the Highflyer man.
It was Kirk who drove the price to £200,000 but Minton wasted little time in firing back with a £10,000 raise of his own. The outcome appeared to hang in the balance right until Kirk reached the quarter-of-a-million mark with a final £10,000 push, at which point Minton tapped out with a clear shake of the head.
Offered by Colin McKeever’s Loughanmore Farms, the four-year-old finished a running-on second to Adieulevieux Enki at Fairyhouse on his debut between the flags last month. He also possesses an eyecatching pedigree, being by Flemensfirth and out of a Presenting half-sister to the dam of Champion Bumper heroine Relegate, who is by none other than Flemensfirth.
Porthill has been primed by McKeever on behalf of Wilson Dennison, just as the likes of Bellshill, Shaneshill and Yorkhill were previously. Porthill will now follow in the footsteps of those high-class talents by heading into training with Willie Mullins.
“To me he was the standout of the sale,” said Kirk. “We’ve been very lucky buying from Wilson Dennison; we’ve bought Yorkhill, Bellshill and Shaneshill, a lot of Grade 1 horses, from him before. We’ve been very lucky with Flemensfirth too.
“We had stiff opposition from Highflyer but those sorts of horses don’t come on the market very often so that’s the kind of price you have to give. He’s a gorgeous horse, he’s 16.3 hands and a big, strapping chaser in the making. He’ll go to Willie Mullins.”
Porthill was bred by Deborah Hobson and bought privately by Ian Ferguson. The mating between Presenting Juno and Flemensfirth looks a smart move as the sire has worked notably well with this family before, not only producing Relegate but also dual Listed-winning hurdler Mrs Hyde and her Listed-placed sister Flementime, both of whom are out of Presenting Juno’s half-sister Funny Times, who also scored in Listed company.
“I had a feeling he'd make it past two hundred thousand,” said McKeever. “He’s a lovely horse but he’s not the finished article, he’s got an awful lot of developing still to do. He was showing so much class at home that I’ve been praying for rain so I could get a run into him, being a Flemensfirth he’d probably want softer ground, but we took our chance at Fairyhouse.
“He was still green but he wasn’t beaten far and he was the one horse in the race galloping at the finish. We’ve had a lot of luck selling to Willie Mullins so I hope he’s as good as horses like Yorkhill, Shaneshill and Bellshill.”
McKeever also credited Dennison and Ferguson for bringing such a high-class prospect to his County Antrim base, adding with a grin: “We break them as two-year-olds but they’re away on other farms being reared before that. Ian Ferguson does a lot of buying with Wilson but I don’t get involved with that side of things - that way I can blame them if it doesn’t work out!”
Bolstered by a strong supplementary catalogue, the session produced a record aggregate for a Goff UK horses in training sale, with receipts totalling £5,085,700, a sum that represents a ten per cent year-on-year increase.
The daily average was down by one per cent against the corresponding session from 2021 at £31,393 while the median was clipped in by four per cent at £22,000. The most encouraging metric of the day was the clearance rate, which closed at 90 per cent as 162 lots from a 180-strong offering found a buyer.
Snowden and Malone take the Coastal Path
The five-year-old Passing Well had shown distinct promise in three outings for the recently retired Robert Tyner and will now continue his career with Jamie Snowden after the trainer and Tom Malone went to £185,000 for the son of Coastal Path.
“He was unlucky in both his bumpers and obviously he’s already had a sighter over hurdles but he’s a great big staying type,” said Snowden. “He’ll go straight over hurdles next season and you’d hope he can be a Graded performer.
“We’ve been lucky enough to have plenty of winners and we need to keep stepping up and getting some more decent horses in the yard. Coastal Path is a lovely sire and obviously [damsire] Passing Sale is the sire of Mon Mome, so he’s got the pedigree to be a decent horse and the performances were very promising.”
Passing Well was last seen finishing runner-up, beaten three and three-quarter lengths, by Green Glory in a Punchestown bumper.
Another Ahoy for Russell
Tyner also sold the third top lot, the impressive Dromahane maiden winner Myretown, who was knocked down to Malone, acting on behalf of Lucinda Russell, at £135,000.
The five-year-old is a son of Dylan Thomas, sire of Russell’s dual Grade 1-winning stable star Ahoy Senor, who was last seen romping to victory in the Mildmay Novices' Chase at Aintree.
“Personally I thought this was as impressive a point-to-point winner as I’ve seen,” said Russell’s partner and assistant trainer Peter Scudamore. “I don’t know what he’s beaten but he did it so well. Some people don’t like the Dylan Thomases as much as we do but I want to buy every Dylan Thomas that moves!”
Myretown was making his second appearance at public auction, having fetched €16,500 from Oneliner Stables as a foal. He is a half-brother to two winners, namely A Fine Young Man and Gone Platinum.
“The sire is after becoming very popular and he was very impressive in his point-to-point at Dromahane,” added Tyner. “He was a bit unlucky on his first run [when falling], he just clipped heels with the horse in front at the fourth-last but he won well the next time. I bought him as a three-year-old and he’s always been a nice horse. Hopefully he’ll be lucky.”
New venture secures Great Samourai
Ryan Mahon has been busy during the opening three days of the Doncaster Spring Sale and his purchases on Wednesday were headed by Great Samourai, a son of Great Pretender, who cost £130,000.
The Donnchadh Doyle-trained five-year-old showed distinct promise on his debut at Stowlin prior to falling at the second-last, and will now join Dan Skelton for a new venture being run by Mark Speelman, who previously ran the National Hunt branch of Chelsea Thoroughbreds.
“I’m starting a five-horse syndicate and this is our third horse,” explained Speelman. “We’ve got two stores and this was the form horse we were looking for. We might get another store and then a Flat horse to go hurdling, which would give us a varied portfolio with horses coming to their peaks at different times and will give everyone involved a lot of fun, hopefully!
“The horses are all going to Dan Skelton and this horse looks like he could be anything. He fell two out when he was going to win very easily and he looks very exciting. He’s got a good pedigree and I love Great Pretender as a sire. It’s been a strong sale and we’ve been underbidder a few times but I wouldn’t swap this horse for any of the others we’ve bid on. I’m delighted to get him.”
Despite coming to grief, Great Samourai’s Stowlin effort helped enhance his valuation as he was sourced by Monbeg Stables for €40,000 at the Arqana Summer Sale in 2019. He is out of Bahama Pearl, who has already bred two winners in France and is a half-sister to the Graded performer Fils D’Ecosse.
Gibney gets involved again
Having missed out on the top lot earlier in the day, Thomas Gibney made amends by securing another of Wilson Dennison’s offerings, the Broughshane runner-up Ballystone, at £120,000.
The son of Shirocco, a €30,000 Tattersalls Ireland November National Hunt Sale foal buy by Ian Ferguson, not only has a promise-filled run between the flags to his name but is out of the Listed-placed King’s Theatre mare Last Theatre, making him a sibling to the four-time Grade 2 scorer Wholestone.
“We saw both horses [Porthill and Ballystone] at home, and Noel McParlan, who rides for Wilson and also most of my bumper horses, was very sweet on them,” said Gibney. “This one has a bit of a page and we’ve had luck with Shirocco. I’ve bought him for Derek Kierans, who lives in America and has other horses with me. We’ll give this one a summer break and get him out in the autumn.”
Gordon back for more
“I’ve bought a lot from the Doyles down the years and they’ve been a great source for us. I went down to Donnchadh’s and saw this horse when we were over for Punchestown and I just loved him. I can’t wait to get him to Plumpton!”
The four-year-old son of Sea Moon, whose pedigree features a host of classy Flat performers such as Preis der Diana heroine Amarette, was another making his second appearance on the public market, having cost Monbeg Stables €38,000 at last year’s Land Rover Sale.
O'Ryan sweet on Kayf Tara cross
The £110,000 mark was hit for a second time when the very next lot, Donnchadh Doyle’s Thermusa, was knocked down to Bobby O’Ryan and Ruth Jefferson.
The daughter of Kayf Tara and a Presenting sister to Hilly Way Chase winner Our Ben made a successful debut in a five-year-old mares' maiden at Dawstown earlier in the month.
“I love the Kayf Tara - Presenting cross,” said O’Ryan. “She actually reminded me of a horse who won at Cheltenham a couple of years ago called Black Tears. She’s just a lovely mare and when I saw her on Tuesday I thought we have to try and buy her. Hopefully she’ll be lucky.”
Thermusa was first offered for sale as a foal when Rathturtin Stud signed the ticket at €20,000.
Another exciting prospect for Scudamore and Dunphy
Michael Scudamore and owner Mark Dunphy have plenty to look forward to with the promising chaser Do Your Job, who was last seen storming home in the Grade 2 Future Champion Novices' Chase at Ayr, and the pair have another exciting recruit having gone to £95,000 for Rossea.
“She’s a beautiful filly and Affinisea seems to be all the rage at the moment,” said Scudamore. “We bought one by the same sire at the Festival Sale too.
"She looks very tough and did everything nicely in her point-to-point and she’s a striking filly who moves very nicely. Mark has a couple of broodmares now so she may join the broodmare band at some point, although there’s plenty of racing to do first.”
Doyle and Russell given Stateside mission
With eight lots sold for a combined £536,000 Donnchadh Doyle’s Monbeg Stables headed the consignors’ charts at the close of play. As well as the three six-figure lots, Doyle also sold the £88,000 Pride Of Erin, who was signed for by JW Bloodstock having been knocked down to Davy Russell and James Doyle.
The four-year-old son of Soldier Of Fortune, a €23,000 Land Rover Sale store, dead-heated on his only completed start at Dromahane and will now continue his career on the other side of the Atlantic, having been secured for owners with the American Grand National-winning trainer Keri Brion.
“Keri Brion kindly asked Davy Russell and myself to act on her behalf here today and this horse is going to be carrying the colours of Irv and Diane Naylor,” said Doyle. “They’re the equivalent of someone like Gigginstown House out in America, they own a lot of horses.
“We were over in the States not long ago and Keri said keep an eye out for horses that could be suitable for hurdling over there. He won a point-to-point at Dromahane on ground that would be similar to what you’d get in America and he absolutely floated across the ground down in the yard here.”
The Spring Horses in Training and Point-to-Point Sale concludes on Thursday with a session starting at 10am.
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