Tell us about your consignment for the sale?
Lot 100 B.F. Soldier’s Call / Esmaggie
She is a very straightforward filly and has wintered really well which has meant we have got a very good prep into her. She seems to be quite a pacy filly and I am really looking forward to breezing her.
Lot 128 B.C. Earthlight / Hundredsnthousands
He is a half-brother to four winners. He is the first Earthlight we have had. His work has been very solid all the way through his prep. He is a very good-looking horse and hopefully he will be received well.
Lot 175 B.F. Land Force / Mirror Magic
She is a lovely filly, extremely good-looking. She is a first foal and probably a filly for the back end of the season but has been a dream to prep.
Lot 198 B.F. Invincible Army /Ottilie
She is a quite correct, good-looking filly. She is very precocious and should come to hand very soon after the sale. I am hoping she is going to breeze well; her work at home has been good!
Lot 251 B.C. Caravaggio / Surround
He is a first foal but looks like he should come to hand quite soon. He is a very straightforward colt, he has been very easy to prep. I am hoping he will breeze well, and he will be received well. He is a very good-looking horse.
Lot 259 B.C. Sergei Prokofiev / Butterfly Lily
He is a very scopey horse, over 16hh, but extremely well put together and a real good-walking horse. His work has been exceptional, and I am really looking forward to selling him. The sire has had an unbelievable start, and this is a very exciting horse.
Who are the other members of the team helping you at this sale?
We have built quite a big team at home and it’s a very good, experienced team. We have four people working for us full-time and three part-time riders.
Eric Bruno has been with me from the start. He owns the Soldier’s Call filly in partnership with me. It’s our first breezer together.
Ex-jockey Leighton Aspell rides out with us in the mornings, and he is a massive asset to have with the calibre of his experience.
Throughout the year we get a lot of help from Slatterys’ Meadowview Stables jockeys and this year, Andrew Slattery rides a lot of work for us as does Sam Coen who is having his first year breezing horses and has been doing an excellent job. My dad Val O’Connell is a massive help come sales time for both buying and selling.
What was the best result you have had from this sale in the past?
Purple Lily was a dream filly to come across so early on consigning, in only our second year selling at the breeze-ups. To have sold potentially a Group 1 filly is something we are proud of. She has five Group 1 entries in the next eight weeks. Potentially she is fancied for a classic such as the Irish 1000 Guineas which is very exciting.
MC Thoroughbreds
Tell us about your consignment for the sale?
Lot 77 Ch.C. Teofilo / Cuckoo Clock
He is a lovely colt with very good movement. He has been going very well in his prep and looks to be ready to rock and roll. He’s a very forward-going horse.
Lot 113 B.F. Blue Point / Fiuise
She looks to be a quick filly, typical of the sire. She has great movement and is a very nice filly. She has a good pedigree; she’s a half-sister to Barbill, winner of the Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes for Mick Channon.
Lot 170 B.C. American Pharoah / Marquee
He is a big, scopey horse with a real loose movement. He is a typical American type and looks like one that is tailor-made for Scandinavia, America, or the Middle East.
Lot 229 B.C. Persian King / Shanndiyra
He has had a few very good updates - his half-brother in France, Shadizi, keeps winning! This fella is nice and Persian King’s have been selling well so we’re hoping this horse will be the same.
Lot 235 B.F. Tale of Verse / Silent Perfection
She has been one of my picks all year. She is a lovely filly and is quite quick. She is built like a colt; she is hardy and thrives on her work.
Who are the other members of the team helping you at this sale?
At the sale, Mick O’Dwyer runs the show. I leave him to it! He is very good at his job and knows all the clients.
I ride them in the breeze myself, it works well when I know them.At home, my girlfriend Oceane rides out with me, Biscuit Boland comes into us, and he is excellent with young horses. My father Tony helps a lot too. It’s a small team but a very good team.
What was the best result you have had from this sale in the past?
Selling Ballymount Boy last year at the sale has to be the highlight. It was a brilliant result, a horse who was bought for €8,000 at the September Yearling Sale and making €110,000; it was a dream really. He was the type of a horse who can change your year. The Tattersalls Ireland Breeze Up Sale has been good to us, it is a good sale and that is why we have five going there this year.