Delight for Oneliner Stables after 'life-changing' 725,000gns pinhooking success

Their name may be Oneliner Stables, but the pinhooking touch landed by the Lowry family's operation during day two of Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale on Wednesday was definitely no laughing matter.

Gerard Lowry had risked 330,000gns to secure the Sea The Stars colt out of Emreliya at last year's foal sales, but was royally rewarded when Anthony Stroud added the well-related youngster to Godolphin's haul at 725,000gns.

Still visibly stunned in the aftermath of the six-figure transaction, Lowry said: "He went down like a dream all week, all the right people loved him. It was a brilliant result in a tricky market. I hope he's lucky for Godolphin, we want to see him going on."

Lowry was joined at Park Paddocks by his girlfriend, Leah Brett, who added tearfully: "The last month has been so nerve racking! It's a life-changing amount."

Lowry went on to explain how he had selected the colt, a half-brother to the stakes performers Just An Idea and Staisenzapenzieri, when working last year's foal sales.

Oneliner Stables' Sea The Stars colt sells to Godolphin for 725,000gnsCredit: Laura Green

"Dad has been in the game 45 years and has always thought it's all about the individual and the athlete, and this horse ticked both of those boxes. These horses are so hard to come by, it's very rare for a horse like this to come back to public auction. The remit we had was to go for the best individual."

Luckily for Lowry, the colt also boasted plenty of appeal on pedigree too. "He's by the right sire and the right broodmare sire; he ticked a lot of boxes. A big factor was that he's out of a Danehill Dancer mare and from a champion's pedigree," he said.

"It's the Aga Khan's 'E' family, which throws up a good horse every year. A big factor I knew, even though it wasn't on the page, was that Taghrooda was from the same family. We have a great team at home with all the family and I just want to thank everyone who has helped us during the year."

Oneliner Stables' Sea The Stars colt during the foal sales, where he was pinhooked for 330,000gnsCredit: Laura Green

Wednesday's result may have been their biggest, but it was not the only fruitful sale the Oneliner team have toasted this week, having also sold an Exceed And Excel colt pinhooked for €100,000 to Oliver St Lawrence and Barry Lynch for 180,000gns during the opening session of Book 1.

"We've brought three Flat horses to public auction this year, they're all from champion's pedigrees and by proven stallions, and thank God it's worked out," said Lowry. "There's nothing to say it'll work out again but this has been a lucky year for us. It's been amazing and hopefully this is the start of something big."

Oneliner already has a fine track-record of producing top-class talent at public auction, albeit in the National Hunt sphere, having sold the likes of two-time Grade 1 winner Oscars Well and the talented hurdler Getaway Trump.

Lowry also went on to reveal that the origins of the operation's unusual moniker come from a horse of yesteryear and not, as many have presumed, his father's sense of humour.

"Dad sold a horse in the 80s to Neville Callaghan who won 11 races," he said. "He was a very good sprinter, he was the first horse Dad bred and the best he bred too, and he was called Oneliner.

"Although a lot of people think it's because Dad is witty! The first thing people say is 'Jimmy named it that because he's the king of the oneliners!'"

More on Book 1:

Godolphin outgun Coolmore once more as Golden Horn sibling brings 3,100,000gns

Godolphin deny old rivals Coolmore to land 3.6m gns half-brother to Barney Roy

A result like no other for Harry McCalmont's Norelands Stud