Whistle tops

THE aforementioned Whistle Dixie carried all before her, with her €230,000 sale to The Beeches Stud’s Robert McCarthy. He indicated that the daughter of Kayf Tara, who was sold in foal to Mount Nelson, could now visit the great stayer Order Of St George in his first year at stud.

Whistle Dixie was a Grade 3-placed runner during her time on the track with Gordon Elliott but of more significance was her outstanding pedigree.

Her siblings include the 2005 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Kicking King, the Grade 2-placed Four Commanders, a Grade 3-placed runner in Colonel Monroe and the dam of the already top-class performer and leading Arkle candidate Kalashnikov.

All this made the eight-year-old a National Hunt mare of rare and unusual value and McCarthy duly pulled out all the stops to see off the attentions of Katie Rudd and Gerry Hogan.

Another member of the Gigginstown draft was the bumper winner Monastery and she cost Nelius O’Keeffe €72,000.

The six-year-old is a half-sister to a very smart triple bumper winner in Good Boy Bobby and they are out of a half-sister to Voler La Vedette.

Vambeck foal

THE top priced foal on offer over the two days was a €90,000 son of Walk In The Park who was offered by Ballincurrig House Stud on behalf of noted Westmeath-based breeder Louis Vambeck.

This colt has the distinction of being the highest priced National Hunt foal to be sold at Goffs and he is also the joint second highest priced jumping foal to come under the hammer this year.

The half-brother to Minella Foru and the recent Grade 2 winner Penny Jane was bought by Armagh-based Patrick McCann who had pinhooked his Yeats half-brother from €55,000 into €82,000 at the Derby Sale this summer.

Back in June a Flemensfirth three-year-old, sold by McCann through Ballincurrig, who was also bred by Vambeck, set a new record for the Land Rover Sale when selling to Paul Nicholls for €325,000 having been picked up for €110,000 as a foal.

This colt will be reoffered and so too will a €46,000 Walk In The Park half-brother to Didtheyleaveuoutto whom McCann purchased from Ballyhampshire Stud.

Mount Nelson’s crop

THE first crop of Irish foals produced by Mount Nelson have been well received over the last couple of months and the Boardsmill Stud-based sire supplied one of the standout representatives of the week in a colt who cost Adrian Costello’s Park Farm €82,000.

Another member of the impressive Ballincurrig draft, whose 30 members averaged in excess of €25,000 to make the Cork farm the leading vendor of the week by some distance, this Fiona McStay-owned colt is the third produce of the top-class dual Grade 1 winner Glens Melody. Her finest hour came when she won the David Nicholson Mares Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

This colt will be resold and a similar plan could beckon for the Galberstown Stud-consigned son of Flemensfirth out of a half-sister to the multiple Grade 1 winner God’s Own who was knocked down to Costello for €62,000.

Frisby stocks up

LEADING National Hunt pinhooker Dick Frisby was once again busy accumulating stock for future store sales and his spending was headed by a €68,000 son of Walk In The Park whose siblings are headed by Henry de Bromhead’s dual Cheltenham Festival runner-up Monalee.

The following afternoon Frisby forked out €48,000 for a Flemensfirth colt out of a placed half-sister to J’Y Vole.

Frisby also spent €46,000 on a Flemensfirth colt out of a half-sister to the great Sprinter Sacre. All three will return for sale as three-year-olds.

Flemensfirth’s progeny

A FEATURE of this year’s National Hunt foal sales has been the insatiable appetite for the latest crop of Flemensfirth foals and another son of the veteran sire to take a high rank was a €56,000 colt from Conna Stud.

Aiden Murphy signed for the colt who is out of a sister to the classy chaser Petit Robin. This is also the immediate family of the Gold Cup third Anibale Fly.

Murphy reported that his purchase would return for sale as a three-year-old and the agent also had an eye on resale after giving €50,000 for a son of Soldier Of Fortune.

The Soldier Of Fortune comes from the immediate family of Shattered Love.

French-related filly

THIS week’s sale afforded buyers the chance to secure an own-sister to one of the best jumpers in France and the daughter of Black Sam Bellamy cost Kevin Ross €48,000.

This filly, who was offered by Thomas Westropp Bennett, is an own-sister to the Irish-bred Galop Marin. The French-based six-year-old has won his last four outings since returning from a summer break and he was a hugely impressive winner of last month’s Grade 1 Grand Prix d’Automne at Auteuil.

Shantou star

A WELL-TOUTED son of Shantou emerged as one of the stars of day two when falling to Kieran Shields’ bid of €52,000.

This Mary Brennan-owned colt is out of a winning daughter of the high-class hurdler Bilboa.

This price was closely matched by a cracking colt from the eyecatching first crop of Affinisea who cost Richard Rohan €50,000.

A half-brother to Soldier Of Fortune and the top price foal at the 2011 Goffs November Foal Sale, Affinisea has produced some taking sorts from his first crop of foals and none more so than this Debbie O’Neill-owned colt who is out of an own-sister to four blacktype winners headed by the Grade 1 Lexus Chase hero Outlander.

The foal section of the sale ended on quite a high when Carrigeen Bloodstock went to €55,000 for a son of Soldier Of Fortune who numbers the Grade 2 performers Minella Awards and Montys Meadow amongst his siblings.