The year’s sale toppers
Top Priced Older Horse
Higgins Sport Horses’ Oliver Twist, four-year-old gelding by Henkie (dam by Idocus) €33,000.
Top Priced Four-Year-Old
Monbeg Sport Horses’ Monbeg Condor, four-year-old gelding by Condios (dam by Diamond Valley Gold) €87,000.
Top Priced Three-Year-Old
Monbeg Sport Horses’ Private Monbeg, three-year-old gelding by Bamako de Muze (dam by Heartbreaker) €60,000.
Top Priced Foal
Brian Connolly’s CSF Good Vibes, colt foal by Good Luck VDL (dam by Cruising) €38,000.
Top Priced Mare/Filly
Allanah Morgan’s Diva vd Bergoeve Z, three-year-old filly by Dourkhan Hero Z (dam by For Joy Van’t Zorgvliet HDA) €30,000.
Review
HAVING stabilised from the post-pandemic flush, last year’s sales’ returns held up well. At the top end of the market, the figures continue to astound, with the full gamut of age groups scoring well.
From the get go, every auction house in the country reported a strong trade, many with five-figure prices appearing in multiples. The influence of remote bidding was once again an important factor, although it did appear to decline a little towards the latter end of the year.
Less positively, the past few months have also seen a weakening in the sector, and, while this has been most noticeable in the mid-range three-year-old division, it has slightly shaken confidence. As a result, the two-tier market, which has become such a regular feature of the year’s reports has, if anything, widened and, with many breeders facing substantial covering costs, this is a not a welcome trend. As breeders know to their cost, an expensive sire is not necessarily the key to success and, while astute producers benefit, the market is hugely selective and there are many boxes to be ticked. That said, it is good to see the continuing rise of the home-bred three-year-olds in the tables, with many breeders completing the sales process themselves, and others gaining assistance from the professional yards. Looking at further positives, the step up in the standard of marketing and production is notable, with the quality of the pre-sales’ videos rocketing, and the bar is now high.
X-rays
On a less satisfactory note, the emotive subject of x-rays is an issue of growing concern. While this is now a permanent feature of the higher end selling process, the confusion surrounding both the variations in quality, reading and opinion of such, is damaging and costly all round. It would be a very positive and helpful move if the veterinary profession could take steps to address this and perhaps move forward to standardise.
Looking at the tables, it has become the norm to see continental bloodlines dominating the figures. There are probably more individual sires featured than there were in 2022, but standing out as he did 12 months ago, Padraig Howley’s home-based and home-bred Sligo Candy Boy (ISH) was the only sire to feature in every table under his category. With nine progeny listed, the 15-year-old was most dominant in the sector for foals, where he filled five of the top 10 placings.
John McManus’s home-bred unnamed gelding (Lot 33) by Sligo Candy Boy was sold for €22,000 at the Premier three-year-old Cavan sale \ Cavan EC
Another ISH sire to make an impact was the Kennedy brothers’ Lagans OBOS Quality, whose five listed progeny appeared in every table apart from the foals. As an international show jumper competing at 1.50m level, the Peter Rice-bred son of OBOS Quality was also a former RDS potential event horse champion, and has great commercial appeal to supporters of both disciplines. Now a nine-year-old, he is as his name suggests, by the Kennedys’ late resident sire, OBOS Quality out of Calvo Queen (Cavalier Royale).
Making steady headway is HHS Cornet, an eight-year-old son of Cornet Obolensky out of the jumping mare HHS Geneva by OBOS Quality. Bred by Miguel Bravo, and standing at the Hughes Sport Stud, this exciting ISH registered sire made an impression last year and, with his oldest crop now rising five, was creditably represented by three individuals in the three-year-old division.
Not for the first time, it was left to the Hatton family’s Pointilliste to fly the thoroughbred flag. The son of Giant’s Causeway, appeared twice in the ridden horse tables, most notably in the four-year-old ranks.
As illustrated, the end of year figures are dominated by the autumn specialist sales, but they were also well supported by the renewals in the country. The major auction houses of Goresbridge and Cavan regularly delivered upbeat returns, while the Connemara trade at Clifden continued to be phenomenal.
Higgins Sport Horses' Oliver Twist, Lot 267, fetched €33,000 from America's Rich Fellers to top the sales at Goresbridge in July \ Sally Parkyn
Older Horses
Demand for the older riding horse was strong throughout and especially for fully warranted, rideable performers. While this was reflected by a wealth of accompanying five-figure returns, there were no outliers and so, despite the demand, the top returns for this age group are down on the past two years, although the clearances are similar.
It is also interesting to note that many traditionally-bred horses appeared in these tables, and the majority of these by Irish Draught stallions.
The year’s top price of €24,000 (€36,000 in 2022) went to James Smyth’s AFS With Class, a nine-year-old mare by Classe VDL out of AFS Juno by Puissance. Bred by MJ Kavanagh in Co Wexford, and sold to dissolve a partnership, the mare carried a very smart jumping record, having been campaigned by her vendor, as well as by Paddy Reape and Eamon Byrne. Topping the age group at the Goresbridge sale in July, this smart sort was knocked down to regular British trade buyer Carron Nicol (European Sport Horses) from Warwickshire.
James Smyth's AFS With Class, Lot 170, topped the older horse trade at Goresbridge at €24,000 when bought by Carron Nicol in July 2023 \ Sally Parkyn
A second mare from the same renewal realised €20,000 in the form of William Dalton’s Tyson’s Pride, a six-year-old by Tyson out of Captain Pride (Captain Clover). Bred by Jackie Lee, and sourced by her owner as a three-year-old, she was secured by Co Meath show jumper Karen Healy.
Five months later, in Co Wexford, Tomas Doyle and Marti Rudd (Monbeg Sport Horses) equalled that figure, when their five-year-old mare Goldsmith Monbeg changed hands at the Go For Gold sale in November. Aiden Flanagan bred this attractive grey jumper, who was by Balou du Rouet out of Tireagh Cruise by Cruising.
William Dalton's Tyson's Pride, Lot 52, fetched €20,000 from Meath show jumping rider Karen Healy at Goresbridge in July 2023 \ Sally Parkyn
Topping the Irish Sport Horse table at €16,500 was MBF Sporthorses MBF Lagans Lulu, a five-year-old daughter of Lagans OBOS Quality, bred by Sinead Kennedy out of KEC Lulu by Lancelot.
In comparison, the thoroughbred sired stock delivered fewer five-figure prices, but – and as he did last year - Slyguff Stud’s Pontilliste gained the best result, when Eoin O’Brien’s well related gelding OBL Pointilliste realised a very respectable €11,200 at Cavan in May. The five-year-old event type had been sourced through the same sale ring nearly two years earlier and, bred by the late Brendan McChesney out of the well-related Leestone Vella Imp (Ballinvella), looked well bought by Reading-based trader James White.
Monbeg Condor (Lot 22) was purchased for €87,000 by Britain’s Karla Wheatfort \ Bit Media
Four-year-olds
Interestingly, as the three-year-old returns steadied overall, so the four-year-olds increased. Despite recording a massive €87,000 outlier, the prices clustered well throughout the year, and demand was on fire for the correctly produced individual. This was never more evident than at the Goresbridge Go For Gold sale, which claimed 13 of the top 20 returns. Overall and across the country, trade for the age group was both strong and extensive, and heading the tables was Tomas Doyle’s (Monbeg Sport Horses) Monbeg Condor, a four-year-old gelding by Condios out of Little Diamond (Diamond Valley Gold). Sourced from his breeder John Flynn, and well-produced by the vendors, the gelding was the subject of a protracted bidding war before the hammer finally fell in favour of British international event rider, Max Warburton at a heady €87,000 (€42,000 in 2022), Also notable at the Go For Gold sale, and a shot in the arm for his amateur producers as well as for his thoroughbred sire, was the €47,000 sale of Jodie and Emma Skelton’s Borris Two Point Oh by Pointilliste. Bought as a foal at Goresbridge from breeder Colm Delany, he was out of Clonin Princess (Mullentine Cavalier) and was snapped up by Vicky Irlam, for international event rider, Emily King.
Trade was also very buoyant in the country, and heading those figures at €33,000 (€30,000 in 2022) was the sale of Higgins Sport Horses’ Oliver Twist, a four-year-old gelding by Henkie (dam by Idocus). Changing hands at Goresbridge in July, this professionally produced gelding had been sourced unbroken in Holland and was sold online to America.
On predominantly traditional lines front, it was good to see Mrs Ivy English’s Edenager Ned change hands at €26,000 at Goresbridge in October. Bred by Jim McNulty in Donegal, and bought through the same sale ring 12 months earlier, the four-year-old was by the Drumhowan Stud’s former resident Scrapman, out of Edenagor Enya who, by Loughehoe Guy, was out of the Ekstein sired mare Shannondale Spirit.
Ralph Morgan’s home-bred son of Vivant Van de Heffinck topped the Cavan three-year-old Premier Sale at €34,000 \ Cavan EC
Three-year-olds
The keenly awaited sales of three-year-olds delivered mixed results with plenty of highs, but unfortunately rather too many lows. At the top end, the prices largely mirrored those of 2022, but less positively, the clearances were down.
Once again, the spoils were garnered at the Go For Gold sale, where Monbeg’s Tomas Doyle and Marti Rudd completed the three and four-year-old top price double. This time, they scored with KWPN registered Private Monbeg, a gelding by Bamako de Muze out of Estra D’Or by Heartbreaker. Bought in France as a yearling, the eye-catching bay realised the year’s top return of €60,000 (€65,000) in 2022) when knocked down to American customer, Kathleen Sullivan.
Prices fluctuated throughout the evening, but never far from the top rank was Jason Higgins, who did well when his own and Mary Bolger’s home-bred Kilcannon Stylus realised €45,000. This son of Colandro was out of Bolger’s good jumping mare Kilcannon Cavaquin, and is now set to travel to America. Niall O’Doherty’s unnamed gelding by Vittorio was one of two lots to close at €40,000, the other being MBF Sporthorses’ Dolmen MBF, who was knocked down to American, Kim Meyers.
It was not all plain sailing however, and, at the other end of the scale, seven lots disappointingly made under €10,000 in comparison to just one last year. At the close of the night, 30 lots commanded prices in excess of €20,000, leading to an average of just over €23,000, together with a decreased clearance 64% (87% in 2022).
The first of the select sales took place at Cavan in August, where the Premier Sale catalogue of around 70 three-year-olds saw an improved top price of €34,000 (€27,000 in 2023) and 21 lots returning at five figures. Vendors at the top end were well-rewarded, but a generally inconsistent market resulted in moderate, but nevertheless improved clearance 61% (55% in 2022), which was accompanied by an average of €12,234 (€13,271).
Not for the first time at the venue, the top honours went to Co Clare, and on this occasion, the top two placings fell to producer Ralph Morgan, together with his daughter Alannah. Morgan’s homebred sale topper was by Vivant Van de Heffinck out of Honeylands Hollywood by Luidam, and knocked down at €34,000 to a ‘cash’ customer. The successful buyer had earler paid €30,000 for Alannah’s continentally bred filly Diva vd Bergoeve Z. The latter, was sourced locally last year and is the first foal out of the six-year-old mare Rimba Van’t Zorgvliet by Lanaken winning sire Dourkhan Hero.
The annual Monart sale of three-year-olds took place in November and, heading their sales’ list at €34,000 (€38,00 in 2022) was MBF Sport Horses’ MBF Hit The Road, a WSI registered gelding by Tolan R out of Lisclamerty Lass (N-Aldato). The online sale closed with several good results, but a disappointing clearance. The full returns together with vendor and buyer details were not made available to The Irish Field.
October saw the third running of a new select sale in Goresbridge, specifically for three-year-olds. The figures here were also below par, although the sale did produce a worthy sale topper in Anne Marie Murphy’s home-bred Ogue Grandato by Grandorado. Changing hands for €30,000, this well-related gelding is a sibling to several smart young jumpers and was the fifth produce out of Ogue Ali Furist, a full sister to international jumper Alfurist (1.60m).
The writing had been on the wall from mid-summer, as trade in the country was not quite as lively as in recent years. Obviously, this was in some part due to the increased number of horses heading for the specialist sales and, while none from the general renewals featured in the top 10 tables, there were still some excellent returns.
Standing out among these was Jodie and Jerry Skelton’s Borris Cornet Coole, a gelding by Castlefield Cornet (dam by Warrenstown You 2) who, equalling last year’s top figure, headed the Goresbridge September sales at €20,000.
Lot 24, a colt by Diamant de Semilly, was sold to Belgium for €28,000 at the Cavan Elite Foal sale \ Laurence Dunne Jumpinaction.net
Foals
Pedigree, pedigree, pedigree, and this year’s top auction prices of foals fell to those with the most contemporary of blacktype bloodlines. As the demand grows, so the pedigrees get stouter and this was never more obvious than at the Cavan Elite Foal sale in September, where the catalogue of 29 lots was truly outstanding.
One that stood out, however, and justified his pre-sale favouritism was Brian Connolly’s CSF Good Lux Vibes, a colt by Good Luck VDL out of CSF Telly Cruise by Cruising. Selling for a heady €38,000, this half-brother to the illustrious James Kann Cruz was the subject of some intense bidding, before he was secured by Adrian Murray, acting for the American-based partnership of Eamon Hughes and show jumper McClain Ward. At the close of play, five lots smashed the €20,000 mark, with Declan Phelan’s Diamant de Semilly-sired colt out of Biscaya d’Eversem (by Sheyenne De Baugy) next in line at €28,000.
The sale deservedly dominated the end of year foal tables and, almost unfairly drawing the only negatives on a wonderful night, the clearance did slip to 81% (93%), while the average hovered similarly at €15,368 (€15,474).
The Goresbridge Supreme/Breeders’ Classic fixture at Barnadown also garnered good results, as did the Mayo and Roscommon foal renewal later in the season. The former enjoyed a phenomenal 100% clearance with the Connolly family’s colt foal CSF Harrison by Harley VDL (out of Call Me Cool Z by Clinton) taking the top spot at €18,000.
Now in its sixth year, the well-run and well-supported Mayo and Roscommon Breeders’ showcase enjoyed another lively evening and, although it didn’t feature among the year’s major prices, it closed with a healthy top return of €13,000 (€12,500 in 2022).
Completing the elite sale treble, and enjoying the rewards of astute breeding, this figure once again went to the Connolly family, who this time offered CSF Hot Toddy, a colt by Harley VDL (dam by Lux Z).
As always, there was a major monetary divide between these select sales and the general auctions across the country. There was probably not a lot of change in the bottom echelons, but certainly the middle-range foal found it hard to maintain consistency, as did those by expensive sires but with weaker maternal pedigrees. An exception to this, and topping the Goresbridge October returns at €16,500 was Pat Kehoe’s beautifully-bred colt ABC Dettori by Livello out of the useful jumping mare Ardnehue Diamond Cruiser.
A sibling to the international show jumpers ABC Quantum Cruise (1.60m), ABC Private Jet (1.50m), ABC Caruso (1.45m) and to the 2022 Lanaken world six-year-old champion ABC Saving Grace, he was knocked down to online customer, Melanie Davidson.
The ISH sire’s returns are modest in comparison, but exceeding last year’s figure, the top price of €9,000 (€8,400) went to Patrick Connolly’s well related CSF Cyprus by Castlelawn Cobra 19.
Lot 70, a filly foal by Sligo Candy Boy, made €8,000 at the Cavan Youngstock sale \ Laurence Dunne Jumpinaction.net
Ponies
The pony market enjoyed another lively year. The returns from Cavan, Goresbridge and Mullingar delivered several five-figure prices, while the trade at Clifden, although not equalling the record returns of 2022, was most encouraging. A strong sale in May saw Wesley Ryan’s son of Rathlacken Richard realise €15,800, while at the same renewal, the performance pony Belmony Danny by Gurteen Dara changed hands at €15,000.