WEDNESDAY saw the opening salvos fired as the four-day Tattersalls December Foal Sale got underway. While the clearance rate of 72% was an improvement on last year’s 68%, the average and median both declined, by 22% and 16% respectively, and the session’s top price of 48,000gns was well behind last year’s 110,000gns.

Leading the way was Brook Stud’s March-foaled Kyllachy colt out of the winning Royal Applause mare Amicable Terms.

Her first two runners are winners and she comes the family of notable performers Riverman and Rock Of Gibraltar. Kate Barclay was the successful purchaser, and afterwards the vendor Dwayne Woods said “he is a really straightforward individual, sound and has a great temperament. He deserved to make that price and I wish all the best to the new connections.”

The first foals by the Rathasker-owned, National Stud-based Gregorian are being sold and the most taking on the day was Maywood Stud’s half-brother to a winner this year, from the immediate family of the Grade 1 Test Stakes winner Sweet Lulu. He cost Rathasker Stud 47,000gns and prompted Madeline Burns to say “He is a strong foal, with a great temperament. Gregorian seems to be getting them of a type and this colt is fairly typical. He is from a good farm too.”

Bearstone Stud sold a Delegator half-brother to the 2016 juvenile winner Whiteandgold, out of the two-year-old winning Kyllachy mare Irrational, to Tally-Ho Stud for 43,000gns.

Tony O’Callaghan was impressed by the start made at stud by the Overbury stallion and commented “Delegator had a good year from limited opportunities. This is a nice colt and will be back for resale.”

Another half-brother to a winner this year was Ballybin Stud’s Foxwedge colt out of the Marju mare Carsulae, and he sold to Mags O’Toole for 40,000gns. His Showcasing yearling half-sister realised 120,000gns in October.

Two other lots reached the 40,000gns mark. First to do so was Plantation Stud’s home-bred daughter of Slade Power out of a Pivotal own-sister to the Group 3 winner Summer Fete.

Larry Stratton bought this member of her sire’s first crop from Michael O’Leary’s farm in Newmarket and she is expected to be reoffered at Tattersalls next October from Tom Whelan’s Church View Stables.

A Cheveley Park Stud consigned daughter of Pivotal caught the eye of agent Tom Malone and was another to change hands for 40,000gns. The filly’s third dam was the Group 1 Coronation Stakes winner Exclusive and she bred the Group 1 Matron Stakes winner Echelon (also dam of the dual Group 1 winner Integral) and the Group 2 winner Chic.