What spiked your interest in bloodstock and sales?

I grew up on a farm at home and would have always been around horses from an early age. My father has bought National Hunt foals and sold them as three-year-old stores for as long as I can remember, so I would have been going to sales, both buying and selling, since I was about 12. When I finished college I took more of an interest in the flat racing side of things after spending some time working in America with Gerry Dilger at Dromoland Farm.

Who has been the biggest influence in your career so far?

To be fair, my parents have been the most influential with regard to my career. My mother was very adamant that I went to college and got a good education, and my father would have always taught me plenty on the equine side of things growing up, so I owe them a lot.

Are there any challenges you’ve had to overcome? And how did you overcome them?

It is a tough industry that we work in and any time you lose an animal or the market turns against a certain sire that you may have stock by, it is tough to take. I was always told that “it’s the bad days that make the good days better” so I have found that if you keep your head down and keep working hard, things will turn your way.

If you could go back in time, what would you tell yourself starting out in the industry?

I would probably be more inclined to diversify a little more. I was sorry that I hadn’t done a proper stint in a breeze-up yard, or worked for a number of different figures in the industry but I would be very much a home bird and I was always in a rush to go home and trade for myself. If I was to go back in time, I would have waited a couple of more years to do that.

What goals have you set for yourself going forward?

As I have never done it before, I would be striving to sell a six-figure yearling and once I have done that, I will then aim to sell a seven-figure yearling!