THERE’S a new face at the helm of Shanaville Stables, situated mid-way between Cahir and Clonmel, these days in Eoin McDonagh. With the boundaries of people’s jobs having become blurred since the onset of Covid-19, resulting in his aunt Noeleen Moloney, a veterinary assistant with the IHRB for more than 20 years, being even busier than usual, Eoin is the go-to man for anyone wanting to have their horses prepped for the breeze-up sales or the main store sales.

The 31 year-old, who sold five horses at the recent Land Rover Sale in Goffs and is hoping for a good return on the two three-year-olds he has going to the Derby Sale, is keen to build on Shanaville’s good reputation as a source of well-handled and well-prepared stars of the future.

Monty’s Pass

Grand National winner Monty’s Pass and Mouse Morris’s Cheltenham Gold Cup scorer War Of Attrition are just two of the household names to have been sold under the Shanaville Stables banner.

Noeleen, who will obviously still give Eoin a hand when work commitments permit, emphasised: “The most important thing is to have your horse looking well and educated well. You have to be able to stand over your horse and be honest with people when you’re selling.”

Eoin has inherited Noeleen’s work ethic and the two horses he has going through the sales ring next week – a Mahler gelding (lot 47 on the first day), described as “a lovely active individual with a nice pedigree” and a well-bred Walk In The Park filly out of a King’s Theatre mare from a blacktype family (lot 380 on the second day), will hopefully catch the right people’s eye.

He said: “I started off hunting and was always around the yard but, bit by bit, I got more interested in the way things were being done. I rode as an amateur for a few years but not on a major scale, starting off with our neighbour Tom Keating who’s always been very good to me. Even to this day, he’s a big help.

“Then I worked for Harry Kelly for a few years and, when I finished up riding, I went to Con Marnane for two seasons, doing breeze-ups. After that I worked for John Nallen for three or four seasons around the time Minella Times was being broken and also did a summer in America.”

Eoin’s interest, however, lay more with the breaking side of the business, spurred on by the experience he gained with Marnane, or ‘King Con’ as he is known! He said: “That’s how I started getting into it in 2015 and then in 2019 I started buying flat foals to sell on as yearlings and National Hunt foals which I leave running in the field until they are three-year-olds.

He reflected: “The door is always open for anyone wanting sales prep or their horses broken or pre-trained and, although I took out a dual-purpose trainer’s licence in April, that’s not a road I want to go down. I train a few pointers but I know how hard it is to compete on the racecourse in this country.”

Two-furlong gallop

The 31-year-old is fortunate to have 18 stables at his disposal and also put in a two-furlong gallop which played a big part in the success story of a Churchill filly that he bought as a foal for €16,000 and subsequently sold on to that good judge Paddy Twomey for €74,000.

Eoin describes the outcome as “a good twist” and said: “Paddy seems to like her, so hopefully she can still progress.”

He started doing the breeze-ups with a horse of his own that he bought for €3,000 and couldn’t sell as a yearling. He breezed him, getting a return of €25,000 and has had a good year: “I’ve got plenty of experience and you learn everywhere you go. You have to take the ups and downs out if it and it’s up to you whether you do it or not.”

Eoin is lucky to have a good back-up team at home and Eoin Shaw, who rides as an amateur and has ridden a few winners this term, is “a big cog in the wheel.”

McDonagh said: “He’s a good rider and rides the breakers. He’s with me every day and runs the show while I’m at the sales, doing a good job, if not better!

“My uncle, Noeleen’s brother Martin Moloney is another man I can rely on. He’s a general all-rounder who works in Fethard veterinary hospital and is good around horses. He’s always on hand and looks after the maintenance side of things.

“Then there’s Heather Walsh who comes in in the evenings. She rides out for John Nallen and comes from an eventing background. She’s good to do flat work and keeps on top of things in the yard.”

As everyone knows, the secret behind the success of every venture is team work and Eoin acknowledged: “I have good people to help me out and they’re good friends. I keep investing in the place and every time I’ve got a few pound, I put it back into the yard.

“Everything in the yard has a price tag and anything that goes to the sales is for sale. I would be ambitious and like the numbers I have at the moment but would just like to buy better stock to get up to the next rung on the ladder.”

He explained: “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, buying and selling horses, and it’s addictive. We all dream about what a horse could make or what it could turn into and the horse that could turn the whole thing around for you.

“You’re always dreaming about making your first €100,000 and then, once you achieve that, the next aim is to get your first €200,000!”

Great grafter

Noeleen, who is always on hand for advice, has great faith in her nephew who described her as “the backbone of the operation”. She said: “He’s a great grafter and very dedicated and I’ve left it in good hands – he’s well able to look after himself.”

We may be living in uncertain times but Eoin describes himself as a realist: “I didn’t find this year too bad but last year was a very long year because the sales dates were being changed so often.

“We had to keep the horses in, rather than letting them off but people have got more adaptable now and we’ve all had to change things.

“There’s a lot more paperwork than there used to be but you just have to get on with it.”