Time for tea at Tattersalls Ireland as Edmond Kent recounts story of session-topping Blue Bresil yearling

Edmond Kent of Ballyhampshire Stud dons different hats according to the occasion; the dress code at Tattersalls Ireland on Thursday dictated that he wear a consignor's cap and his gorgeous homebred Blue Bresil gelding caught the eye of Anna and Kevin Ross.

In his various guises as breeder, owner and trainer, Kent has experienced all the trials and tribulations that racing can throw at a person and, having seen a plan that had been many months germinating yield a fruitful harvest, he was in relaxed mode as the natural raconteur recounted the story behind the €58,000 yearling which includes a biological link to one of racing's most infamous and enduring mysteries.

The May-born bay is the third generation of his family to have been bred at the Castlelyons farm as his second dam, the Revoque mare Papal Princess was bred by the family from Maafi Esm, a Polish Precedent sister to Listed winner Hayya Ya Shareef. His fourth dam Hayya was one of just 36 foals sired by Shergar before his abduction 40 years ago.

There's even Japanese Group 1 form back on the page through the champion three-year-old filly Mikki Isle.

Papal Princess's role in the story is tinged with the bittersweet nature of what might have been.

Kent takes up the tale, saying: "I trained the dam and had the granddam with Paul Nolan, she was very promising but picked up a back injury. She was looking like a nice broodmare too with three winners from three runners but died young."

Those three winners are Thanks For Tea, her Shantou full-sister Teochew who won a maiden hurdle for Kent before being sold to continue her career in Britain, where she added a second hurdles success, and the Westerner mare Dory. She won a Uttoxeter bumper for Warren Greatrex and a maiden hurdle at the track for Ian Williams.

Kevin Ross (centre) with wife Anna (right) inspecting yearlings at Tattersalls IrelandCredit: www.healyracing.ie

Kent held on to Thanks For Tea and, as it transpired, she was the best of the three, with four victories and black type gained in a pair of Grade 3 chases. The road to that success was far from smooth but, despite the bumps, it was an enjoyable journey.

"We had a lot of fun with Thanks For Tea, she won a few bonuses for us and got black type," he recalled. "She was a really tough mare, so much so that I ran her three times in a week! It was the October bank holiday Monday and she fell in a Listed chase at Wexford, got beaten a short head at Clonmel during the week, and flew home in a Grade 3 at Mallow at the weekend to be third."

As if that wasn't enough drama for the mare to handle, she then had her shot at Cheltenham glory thwarted by an unlikely source, as Kent went on to explain.

"When she was in foal, I took her to Cheltenham for a mares' race; everything was right for her, we were in the parade ring ready to go but the race was called off because it was too hot," he said. "We brought her to Wexford, she got a kick at the start and couldn't run."

During Thanks For Tea's 36-race career, there were some other miscommunications and misunderstandings of the more mundane variety that befall most racehorses but, so far, her broodmare career has been less bumpy.

She has a four-year-old Mount Nelson gelding, who played his part in the sale of this yearling, a three-year-old Walk In The Park gelding with the Monbeg team and a two-year-old daughter by Crystal Ocean. With this Bleu Bresil yearling arriving in early May of 2022, Thanks For Tea was given a year off from breeding, but she will have Kent on foal watch while everyone else is ringing in the new year.

Kent, breeder of Verdana Blue who famously upset Buveur D'Air in the Grade 1 Christmas Hurdle, smiled: "She is back in foal to Blue Bresil and due on January 12 so I won't be taking any holidays in January!"

That late foaling date for the yearling was the catalyst for Kent's plan to sell him this year rather than in 2022.

The Blue Bresil gelding strikes a pose after his session-topping saleCredit: www.healyracing.ie

"He was always a nice foal but he was born a bit late so I decided to keep him back till he was a yearling to sell," he added.

The buyers are very familiar with the family, having the aforementioned Mount Nelson gelding at home, where he is being readied for his point-to-point debut, but the couple broke from long-established patterns when buying this yearling on spec.

Anna Ross said: "We have the four-year-old half-brother at home and we really like him, so we looked at him. The mare was a very tough racemare."

Thanks For Tea is by Shantou, another reason why the yearling caught the attention of his new owners.

"His half-brother should be out in a maiden in the spring, but they are quite different horses," said Kevin Ross. "We loved the horse and the sire speaks for himself. We've been very lucky with Shantou as well, so there was a lot to like about him."

Kent would agree that there's plenty to like about both the yearling and his dam, who, if her tale so far is anything to go by, is sure to produce a few more twists and turns and plenty of enjoyment too.

Young blood

While Kent is an experienced hand, young bloodstock agent Aubrey McMahon is only at the start of his career in the industry and the former jockey, who won successive runnings of the Connacht Hotel Qualified Riders Handicap at the Galway Races, was busy sourcing broodmares for his clients during the second part of Thursday's sale.

Having a long association with the Closutton yard of Willie Mullins, who provided him with both of those Galway winners and career highlights, and where his family's Grade 1 winners Cilaos Emery and Whiskey Sour were trained, he was very well-placed to assess the merits of the two mares he purchased.

The Twelve Pins who, at €40,000 was one of the joint-session toppers in the mares' section, will have her broodmare career put on hold for the time being and will return to Closutton to carry on racing for McMahon's client.

The Twelve Pins in the ring at Tattersalls IrelandCredit: www.healyracing.ie

"She has been bought for a client who would like to send her back on the track and hopefully get some black type with her before she goes to stud," said McMahon, who has established Temple Bloodstock.

"It's an excellent pedigree with lots of good horses on the page and she is a nice broodmare prospect after her racing days are over."

Named after the Connemara mountain range and hotel, the Beat Hollow mare continues a theme for the family started by her breeder Jackie Mullins. She is a full-sister to the Grade 1 Champion Novice Hurdle and Christmas Novice Chase winner Blackstairmountain, who was the first European-trained winner of the Nakayama Grand Jump.

She is also a full-sister to the Grade 2 Greenogue Novice Handicap Chase winner Mt Leinster, also third in the Grade 1 Brave Inca Novice Hurdle, and to the Listed Oyster Stakes winner Diamond Hill. 

Their Diamond Green half-sister Bluemountainbeach won a bumper and is the dam of Grade 3 Joe Mac Novice Hurdle and Listed Mucklemeg Mares' Bumper winner Purple Mountain.

Sixhills, dam of The Twelve Pins, is by the Diesis horse Sabrehill, who was second in the Juddmonte International, and is a half-sister to the Listed Stubbs Stakes winner Eilean Shona, by Arc hero Suave Dancer.

Temple Bloodstock's other mare purchase, the bumper winner Ivana, will be retired to the breeding paddocks having cost €17,000. 

The daughter of leading French sire No Risk At All made a successful debut for Mullins at Limerick in May and is out of Valoise, a winning Gentlewave half-sister to the Grade 1 Prix Alain du Breil Summer Hurdle winner Messange Royale. Another of her half-sisters by Garde Royale - Gazelle Royale - was second in the Oaks and the Prix Vermeille, and third in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud and Prix Saint-Alary.

"She is a broodmare prospect for a client," McMahon confirmed. "She has a lovely page with lots of black type and I think she was good value. No Risk At All is a top-class stallion and should become an excellent broodmare sire too."

Bonny result for Clonbonny

The Grade 2 Dawn Run Novice Chase winner Bonny Kate, who was also third in the Thyestes for Noel Meade, was the first mare into the ring and she brought a successful bid of €40,000 from Wicklow breeder Maurice Sheehy.

In foal to Jet Away, she is a Beneficial full-sister to the Grade 2 Galmoy Hurdle and Troytown Handicap Chase winner Mala Beach, and those were two of the compelling reasons why Sheehy was determined to add her to his handful of broodmares.

"She is a black-type Beneficial mare and a sister to a good horse as well, with black-type horses under her first four dams," he stated.

Those relations with black type include Aztec Warrior, who was second in the Grade 1 Scilly Isles Novices' Chase for Henrietta Knight and is a half-brother to Bonny Kate's dam Peppardstown.

Under her third dam is the Welsh National and Henrietta Knight Handicap Chase winner Monbeg Dude and that third dam, Floating Dollar, is a half-sister to Mackeson Chase winner and King George runner-up Fifty Dollars More.

Denise O'Brien and Peter Nolan at Tattersalls IrelandCredit: www.healyracing.ie

The sale was the cherry on top of the cake for consignor Denise O'Brien's Clonbonny Stud, which ended the November National Hunt Sale as one of the leading vendors, selling just shy of half a million euros of stock.

She is a black-type mare and in foal to a solid sire, she was very popular here and there were plenty of people there at that price," O'Brien said of Bonny Kate. "I hope she is lucky for her new owners."

Reflecting on five days of trade that saw the Westmeath farm sell 30 horses for €497,500, and finish third overall, she explained how it was the best result for the business to date but was realistic in her outlook.

"This has been our best ever sale, and we brought a big number here for clients," she said. "Parts of the trade were tricky and sire power played a massive part in the foal trade with buyers wanting certain stallions, and that's a pinhooker's prerogative. If you had a good-moving and quality type of horse by the right sire, then they sold well."

The Kapgarde colt that Clonbonny consigned on behalf of breeder Cathal Ennis certainly fitted that description, and made €92,000 to Jamie Codd, which was the third highest price of the foal sale.

Combined with selling one of the two most expensive mares on Thursday, it sends the farm into Friday's Sapphire Sale at the same venue in good health. They consign the Galileo Chrome half-brother to last year's Group 1 National Stakes winner Al Riffa.

Statistics and reflections

It was a disappointing end to the November National Hunt Sale as the final session, consisting of mares and yearlings, saw just 36 sold out of the 117 lots offered, for a clearance rate of 31 per cent. Turnover from those 36 lots was €474,100, with the average price coming in at €13,169 and the median at €6,750.

Across the board over five sessions of selling, the trend was downwards, with a smaller catalogue and differing market conditions combining to produce lower returns.

More the 200 fewer horses were offered for sale, with 606 out of the 976 changing hands for a clearance rate of 62 per cent and generating €10,660,700 in turnover. The sale average was €17,592 and the median came in at €12,000.

Simon Kerins, CEO of Tattersalls Ireland, commented: “It was always going to be a tough ask to follow two years of record-breaking trade at the November National Hunt Sale, so for the foal section to return an average just off €18,000 and a commercially bred yearling fetch €58,000, the best price given for a yearling at the sale since 2021, is a satisfying result. 

Simon Kerins: 'We are committed to a thorough reflection on improving this particular section for 2024'Credit: Tattersalls Ireland

"The mares’ session lacked the stars from previous years, reflecting the desire for owners to retain good racemares as breeding prospects. We recognise that the yearling format on the last day did not prove effective, and we are committed to a thorough reflection on improving this particular section for 2024.

“For the November National Hunt Sale to achieve record-breaking sales of top-level foals is a fine reflection on the quality of the stock produced by breeders and offered at Fairyhouse, supported by our regular as well as new buyers, both pinhookers and end users from Ireland, the UK and France.

“Foals sold at that top level were a feature of all four days’ trade, but while that top bracket of foals sold this week over €50,000 was a joint record and more foals were sold in excess of €80,000 than ever before, undoubtedly there are trade gaps further down the level and there is no denying the current market is selective.

“We look forward to seeing those foals bought this week as resale prospects returning to the Fairyhouse sales ring in 2026, and to seeing 2021’s stock at our May, Derby and July Store sales.”

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