'The stuff dreams are made of' - €850,000 Blue Point half-sister to Bay City Roller tops Goffs Orby trade

Trading conditions may not have been entirely plain sailing on day one of the Goffs Orby Sale on Tuesday, but there were still significant returns for those who found everything falling into place. Among those were the team behind the €850,000 Blue Point filly who led the market after a transaction described as “the stuff dreams are made of.”

The filly in question is a half-sister to Bay City Roller, who was listed as unraced when the catalogue went to press but is now three from three having swept through novices at Sandown and Chelmsford before striking in the Group 2 Champagne Stakes.

The filly was knocked down to Ananias Antoniadis, representing Rotterdam-based ownership vehicle Agrolexica International Trading. The company’s website describes its activities as being “a vanguard in the realm of agricultural commodity trading”.

The filly is set to begin her racing career in Ireland, as Antoniadis said: “She’ll be going to Joseph O’Brien for a new owner based in central Europe. She’s got the pedigree to be a very good racehorse and a fantastic broodmare in time.”

The filly is by some way the most expensive lot Agrolexica International Trading has signed for at public auction, although she is far from the operation’s first purchase. The brand’s signature has appeared besides a range of foals, yearlings and broodmare prospects over the last 12 months. Among those is the €200,000 acquisition Gouache, dam of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth hero Goliath. The Group 1-winning producer is set to be reoffered at the Goffs November Breeding Stock Sale.

Tom Whelan of Church View Stables (right) with Ananias Antoniadisafter the team's Blue Point filly out of Bloomfield sells for €850,000 at Goffs Orby Book 1Credit: SARAH FARNSWORTH

The market-leading Blue Point filly was bred by nonagenarian breeder John Connaughton and consigned by Church View Stables, whose Tom Whelan was understandably delighted with the trade. Bay City Roller was not the only runner who has boosted the page, as the filly’s half-brother Botanical added black type to the pedigree having finished a close second to Novus in the Listed Foundation Stakes on his latest outing.

“She’s an absolutely beautiful filly, a queen,” said Whelan. “Every time she was pulled out she walked perfectly and showed herself no problem. She was the same at home: she just has a great attitude. I’m so lucky Mr Connaughton has trusted me with rearing his stock for so many years.

“The updates made the sale. We sold Bay City Roller here last year; he was a beautiful horse, he was a great athlete and walked for Ireland. This lady was a different type, but had the same good attitude and athleticism.”

Expanding on what a transaction of this magnitude meant to the team, Whelan said: “I’m only a small operation, so to have stock of that quality is a huge thrill. I’ve been a long time at it, nearly 45 years standing outside doors trying to sell horses, and this was on another level.

“I was standing in the bidding area while she sold and I actually had to sit down as my legs started to wobble. It means a lot, and it will to the lads at home, Eddie Doyle, my head man, and Pat Smith. The work they do is amazing. Without them I wouldn’t be here. It’s all teamwork. It’s the stuff dreams are made of.”

Frankel colt caps fast start

Oliver St Lawrence was quick out of the blocks at the Goffs Orby Sale on Tuesday morning as the agent brought the hammer down at €780,000 to secure a well-related Frankel colt offered by Imad Al Sagar’s Blue Diamond Stud. Blandford Bloodstock’s Richard Brown was also in action early but ultimately filled the role of underbidder.

“He’s by Frankel, who needs no introduction to any of us,” said St Lawrence. “He’s a big, strong, good-moving horse; the type that one can’t help but like. I don’t really know where he’ll go but he’ll head back to England for a client I don’t often buy for.”

St Lawrence added: “I wouldn’t have bid too much more than that, I think that’s about what he was worth. There’s some really nice stock here generally and I think it’s an improvement on last year. There’s some nice, solid horses out there and I think Goffs have done a good job.”

The colt is out of Tisa River, who joined the Blue Diamond broodmare band in December 2020 at a cost of 400,000gns. Breeders’ Cup success runs in the family with three winners at America’s headline meeting in the immediate pedigree.

Blue Diamond Stud's Frankel colt out of a half-sister to Order Of Australia, Iridessa and Santa Barbara takes his turn in the ring Credit: SARAH FARNSWORTH

Tisa River is a sibling to five winners, most notably Iridessa, who landed the Pretty Polly and Matron Stakes, as well as the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf, and Order Of Australia, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Mile. That pair were bred by Aidan and Annemarie O’Brien under the Whisperview Trading banner, as was another sibling in Santa Barbara, winner of the Belmont Oaks and Beverly D Stakes.

The O’Briens bought the Group/Grade 1-winning siblings’ dam, Senta's Dream, through BBA Ireland for just 14,000gns in 2013. In turn, Senta’s Dream is a daughter of Starine, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf in 2002 in which she got the better of Banks Hill and Islington.

Tisa River has already done her bit to add to the page as she has bred two winners from two runners. Her first foal is Bolt Action, a dual scorer who also reached the frame in three Listed contests. The dam was purchased in foal to the up-and-coming Blue Point, and the filly she was carrying in utero is Enchanting who was last seen registering her third victory with a ready success in a useful sprint handicap at Goodwood.

There should be plenty more to come too as Tisa River delivered a colt by Camelot on March 15 and returned to Frankel for her latest mating.

Juddmonte join Lope De Vega fanclub

The third top lot came much later in the session when the Juddmonte buying team clashed with agent Hugo Merry over the Lope De Vega half-brother to Saffron Beach from Ballylinch Stud. The hammer fell in Juddmonte’s favour after the operation’s general manager Simon Mockridge signalled a bid of €750,000.

“He’s a half-brother to a very, very good mare and Lope De Vega’s had a tremendous season,” said Mockridge. “He’s a very good individual and we need colts, so he was an obvious one for us. You’ve always got to pay for a nice horse but he was around where we thought he should be.”

He added: “What’s important is looking for horses with a stallion’s pedigree; that’s certainly what he’s got. Lope De Vega has got two new Classic winners this year and he is, without a doubt, a horse we have to look to. As we saw with the Middle Park winner [Shadow Of Light] at the weekend, they’re precocious too, and this horse looks like he’d fit into the programme very well. This colt has an outcross pedigree and there’s already a Group 1 winner bred on the cross in Rouhiya.”

Ballylinch Stud's Lope De Vega half-brother to Saffron Beach will join the Juddmonte ranksCredit: SARAH FARNSWORTH

Despite the colt’s lofty price tag, he is only the third most expensive offspring of Falling Petals. Leading the way is Saffron Beach, who sold to Najd Stud for 3,600,000gns in 2022. The Group 1-winning daughter of New Bay began her broodmare career earlier this year when delivering a Frankel filly on February 6 before returning to the same stallion.

And at last year’s Orby Amanda Skiffington went to €1.65 million on behalf of owner Fiona Carmichael to secure Saffron Beach’s full-sister. Named Goldie Trickett, the two-year-old is in training with William Haggas.

Mockridge was back in action just a few lots later when Juddmonte went to €580,000 for a Kingman filly out of a sister to Hydrangea, Hermosa and The United States offered by Glenvale Stud.

Godolphin get involved

Lope De Vega is out clear at the head of the European sire standings, with his progeny’s prize-money haul of €6.676m over €800,000 more than Dark Angel in second. He has registered three new Group 1 winners in 2024 in Prix du Jockey Club hero Look De Vega, the aforementioned Rouhiya, who landed the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches, and Saturday’s runaway Middle Park Stakes scorer Shadow Of Light.

Shadow Of Light races in the Godolphin blue, and Sheikh Mohammed’s operation reaffirmed their support of the Ballylinch Stud resident by going to €550,000 for one of his daughters on Tuesday.

“Lope De Vega is a very good stallion,” said the operation's Anthony Stroud. “She’s a very nice filly who comes from a good hotel. She moves very well and all the team liked her. We’re delighted to be able to buy her and we’re delighted to be back at Goffs.”

Anthony Stroud: "We’re delighted to be able to buy her and we’re delighted to be back at Goffs"Credit: SARAH FARNSWORTH

The six-figure filly is the first foal out of Bletchley, a winning and Grade 2-placed daughter of Makfi who joined the Deerpark Stud broodmare band at a cost of 200,000gns in 2019.

“That’s an absolutely fantastic result,” said Deerpark’s Peter Fagan. “We were busy all week with all the right people looking at her, and the filly never missed a step. She’s by a world-class stallion who dances every dance and out of a good broodmare. It’s a well-worn cliche, but she really did tick all the boxes.

"The team at home did a fantastic job with her: my father John Fagan, our manager Patrick Kirwan and Rachel Harvey who works with us. Suzanne Roberts is also an important part of the operation and deserves a lot of credit as she bought the mare for us."

He added: “This is where we want to be: breeding good horses, and we’ve had some nice prospects on the track this year, with hopefully more to come. I’m looking forward to seeing this filly race, and thank Godolphin for putting their faith in the farm. I hope she’s a champion. My thanks also go to Goffs for getting so many people here. There’s been a great buzz about the place all week.”

Harris gets to the Point

The top lot was not the only big result for Blue Point on the day, as later in the session Anthony Stroud and Mill Stream’s owner Peter Harris outbid Coolmore at €580,000 for the filly out of Copplestone offered by The Castlebridge Consignment. The transaction returned a handsome pinhooking profit for Ronan Griffin Bloodstock, who signed for the youngster at €75,000 last November.

The filly was another lot who boasted an eye-catching pedigree update as her sister Raknah was catalogued as the winner of two races but had since added a third victory to her record in the Listed Corrib Fillies Stakes.

Despite the update, Harris said it was an affinity with the slightly more distant generations of the pedigree that caught his attention, as he was responsible for breeding the likes of Leporello, Poppy Carew and Calypso Grant who appear beneath the third dam.

“I bred all the family much earlier on so that’s really why I wanted her,” said Harris. “She’s a good filly and well-related, so we’ll try and keep the family going. She’ll probably go to Adam Kirby to be broken in and then she’ll go to Jane Chapple-Hyam. That price was more than I expected to pay, but not dramatically so.”

Harris said his purchase was made with a long-term view, and when asked whether the filly could one day visit his July Cup winner Mill Stream at stud, he said: “We’ll have to see what distance she runs over, but at least it would be free if I went to him!”

Punchy pinhook pays off

Another outfit to supply a tidy pinhooking return was Dermot Dwan’s Kellsgrange Stud, which sold the Sea The Stars colt out of Celeste De La Mer to Joseph O’Brien for €500,000.

The half-brother to Maritime Wings, who ran second in the Futurity Stakes for O’Brien, was pinhooked through Peter and Ross Doyle for a punchy €310,000 last November, when he was offered by Carrick Hill Stud.

“He has a great mind, great athleticism and super movement,” said Dwan. “He fills the eye all the time and each time he came out of the stable he just did his stuff. He’s a true athlete. We’ve had him since the foal sales, where Magne and Bente Jordanger bought him through Peter and Ross Doyle. They paid a substantial amount of money and they’ve got well paid. It’s great to see him going to Joseph.”

O’Brien added: “He’s very athletic and I trained his brother, who was a high-class two-year-old. This guy was a magnificent foal and we’re excited about the future with him.”

Salhia Stud secures Jan Brueghel sibling

Mohammed Saleh Bin Laden’s Salhia Stud made its entry into the thoroughbred industry with the purchase of ten lots at Book 1 of last year’s Tattersalls October Sale. The group cost a combined 2,555,000gns, and thus far has yielded the winning Too Darn Hot filly Bintjeddah and the Listed-placed Binadham.

The stud made another notable addition to its string on Tuesday when agent Richard Knight went to €460,000 for the half-sister to recent St Leger winner Jan Brueghel and Irish Derby hero Sovereign. The first-crop daughter of St Mark’s Basilica was bred and offered by David and Diane Nagle's Barronstown Stud.

The St Mark's Basilica half-sister to Jan Brueghel and Sovereign heads to Salhia Stud for €460,000 at Goffs Orby Book 1Credit: SARAH FARNSWORTH

“We have a team of ten two-year-old fillies in training at the moment, and we're trying to up the quality a bit and buy some nice pedigrees to make a top-class broodmare band in the future,” said Knight.

“This was the standout pedigree in the catalogue for us. She probably wasn’t bad value for a half-sister to two Classic winners, but maybe being by a first-crop sire made her more affordable. But we’ve seen quite a few St Mark’s Basilicas throughout the sales season and we’ve liked what we’ve seen.

“This filly was very uncomplicated, she vetted very cleanly, and she has a beautiful pedigree we look forward to one day breeding from. That takes us to four yearlings bought this season, we’ll go to Book 1 at Tattersalls and maybe add a couple there and then we’ll be done.”

By the end of a near 11-hour session of selling the clearance rate stood at 85 per cent with 210 lots sold from 246 offered. In turn, those transactions generated turnover of €25,028,500, which was up one per cent against the corresponding session 12 months ago. The average price for the session was €119,185, up eight per cent, while the median was €80,000, a two per cent dip against day one in 2023.

Book 1 of the Orby Sale continues on Wednesday at 10am.

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