TATTERSALLS Ireland’s Cheltenham Sale, scheduled to be held last month but deferred until Thursday, produced a satisfactory set of results, though most of the key figures showed a decline on last year’s sale. The median did increase.

Nine of the 32 lots offered remained unsold and six of these were at prices ranging from £58,000 to £95,000, indicating that some reserves may have been a little optimistic. Nonetheless, four lots realised six-figure sums and 10 of the 23 lots sold made £50,000 or more. All but one of these were sold from Irish yards.

Richard Pugh was pleased with the sale outcome. “All the buyers were present and we can look forward now with some confidence to the next sale in conjunction with the Cheltenham Festival in March.”

The sale topper Cesar Collonges was one of half a dozen wild card entries and only won his point-to-point last Sunday at Kirkistown. This was on the four-year-old’s debut for Warren Ewing and Barry and Paula Geraghty and his three-length success was eye-catching enough for trainer Evan Williams to part with £200,000 for him on behalf of owner William Rucker.

A son of Fragrant Mix and out of a winning half-sister to Neptune Collonges, the gelding also comes from the family of Grade 1 winners Nenuphar Collonges and Hussard Collonges. He cost Ian Ferguson just £14,500 at last year’s DBS (now Goffs UK) Spring Sale.

This was one of three purchases by Williams on the night, totalling £350,000, and the more expensive of the other pair was Billy Bronco, a five-year-old son of Central Park who won a bumper at Towcester in early January, beating the subsequent impressive winner Pride Of Lecale. Trained and owned by Debbie Hamer, he cost Williams £110,000.

Billy Bronco is a half-brother to Sweeney Tunes, a Grade 2 winner and runner-up in the Leopardstown Chase for Paul Nolan, having previously been a winner for Shane Donohue. This is the family of the Sweeps Hurdle winner Bonalma.

Gordon Elliott made a single purchase in his own name at the sale, giving £135,000 for Burren Life who was sold from Norman Lee’s Gort, Co Galway yard.

He looked all over a winner when falling at the last in Belharbour earlier this month and the five-year-old son of Pelder is from the family of Panto Prince and Ekbalco.

Another buying group to snap up three lots on the night was Highflyer Bloodstock’s Anthony Bromley and trainer Alan King. They spent £200,000 and half of that was on Reality Bites from Robert Tyner’s stables. He won at Belharbour recently and impressed Bromley.

A five-year-old by Mahler, he is from the family of Grade 1 winning siblings Rhinestone Cowboy and Wichita Lineman, and the Triumph Hurdle winner Rare Holiday.

Both of the other Bromley/King purchases cost £50,000. The first of these was Denis Murphy’s Beneagles, a four-year-old son of Milan who finished second on his only start to date at Tallow. From the famous ‘Shuil’ family, he is out of a Bob Back winning half-sister to Grade 1 winner Liss A Paoraigh.

Martin Hassett had a great sale, with three lots making a total of £161,000. One of these was the other King/Bromley purchase, Dingo Dollar, and this four-year-old son of Golden Lariat won on his debut at Belharbour this month. From the family of the Leopardstown Chase winner What A Native, Dingo Dollar cost just €9,000 at the Tattersalls Ireland August Sale last year.

The best of the Hassett trio was Mulcahys Hill and he was signed for at £61,000 in a private deal by Highflyer Bloodstock, but this time for trainer Warren Greatrex. He won on the same day as his stable companion Dingo Dollar, though this four-year-old son of Brian Boru did so at Tallow. Mulcahys Hill was bought last June at Goffs for just €5,000.

The third Hassett sale was the best-priced mare in the catalogue. Ms Parfois won a four-year-old mares’ maiden point-to-point in a very fast time in December and she comes from the family of such jumping stalwarts as Pettifour, Garamycin and Afford A King. She cost €4,200 at the Tattersalls Ireland August Sale in 2014.

Andrew Latta sold the family-bred Steal My Thunder for £72,000 to the Mick Fitzgerald Racing Club and this five-year-old son of Craigsteel was runner-up on his only start at Ballinaboola. His dam Party Woman won in the colours of Andrew’s father Charlie when trained by Martin Lynch. This is the family of Duke Of Lucca, Wolf of Badenoch and White Star Line.

Shane Donohue consigned Hurricane Dylan, a five-year-old by Brian Boru, who had been placed on both his starts at Ballindenisk and Nenagh.

From the family of Jezki, he cost John Stimpson £66,000 and returned a nice profit on the €18,000 Donohue paid for him at the 2014 Derby Sale.