Walter Connors, Sluggara Farm

Q: Tell us about your consignment for the sale.

I am very pleased with the horses so far; we like to think that they are a good draft of horses. We have been lucky at the Derby Sale in the past and we think these will measure up to the previous well-sold Derby Sale horses. We have a No Risk At All gelding and a Doctor Dino filly that stand out – they have the biggest pedigrees, and they match them physically.

Lot 127: Docteene, 3yo gr f by Doctor Dino ex Turteene

The Doctor Dino is a fine big filly, we are fond of her. I am getting a little bit of pressure from my daughter that I should be racing her and keeping her as a broodmare, but my nature is to see and let the market decide. Seamus Murphy bought her as a yearling in France and she has been with me since.

Lot 398: Kopek Des Bordes, 3yo b g by No Risk At All ex Miss Berry

The No Risk At All, I am very keen on him. He has a massive pedigree and is a really good-actioned, big horse, and has a bit more strength than the No Risk At All’s. I am looking forward to him. We bought him in France as a foal.

Q: Who are the other members of the team helping you at this sale?

My wife Una oversees everything at home and my son and daughter, Shane and Rachel, are at home, and they will help at the sales. We have James Dunne and Nichola Shorten with us at the sales too. It is very much a family affair. We are not a massive consignor in numbers so it is all hands on deck at home.

Q: What was the best result you have had from this sale in the past?

Last year we sold an Authorized horse to Henrietta Knight for €220,000 and, if you go back further, we sold Shot From The Hip for €235,000 to M.V. Magnier. We also sold No Risk Des Flos to Aiden Murphy for €200,000.

Q: Why the Derby Sale?

For as long as we remember the Derby Sale was something that was spoken about in our house. Starting out in horses when my father consigned horses at the Derby Sale, he was friendly with Willie O’Rourke, so that’s going back a long time. It’s a sale that was always looked forward to every year. It’s a good sale and you need a good horse for it. It’s the premier sale. It’s the place to be.

Peter Nolan, Peter Nolan Bloodstock

Q: Tell us about your consignment for the sale?

We are selling 17 at the Derby Sale.

Lot 96: Cocktail De Cerisy, 3yo g by Muhtathir ex Suzuka

He is a big, old-fashioned, chasing type, proper Derby Sale horse. He is 16.3hh and moves very well. He is a good walker and an even better trotter. He is one that I would be hoping will catch the imagination. He was bought as a two-year-old in France.

Lot 181: Walk In The Park 3yo g ex Askanna

He is a half-brother to Minella Cocooner. He is a big 16.3hh great-moving horse. He floats over the ground and, being a half-brother to a recent Grade 1 winner, we will be hoping for good things. Whoever will be showing the horse will need a good pair of runners! He was bought at the November NH Sale.

Lot 186: Flemensfirth 3yo f ex Augusta Kate

She is a very good looker, great walker, great mover. A racy filly. She is out of a Grade 1 winner who is out of a Grade 1 winner. I have a great alliance with the family as we owned Feathard Lady two generations back who went on to breed Augusta Kate and hopefully this filly might continue on the Grade 1 form. She is a homebred belonging to Kevin Doyle.

Lot 152: Walk In The Park 3yo g ex Youngborogal

This is a nice horse owned by Charlie Carter [former Kilkenny hurler] who bred him. He is a half-brother to two good blacktype horses. He is a big, very good-looking horse who moves well. It’s Charlie’s first time with us so hopefully we will have a bit of luck for him. He raced the dam and it’s his own family.

Q: Who are the other members of the team helping you at this sale?

Katie, my wife, is very hands-on at home and at the sales. We are very lucky at home that we have my brother Adrian and my niece Anna. The whole team at the sales runs through Denise O’Brien. She organises all the staff and it’s a good team. Our job is to get the horses there and Denise gets the team there and it works well. Denise has been with me 13 or 14 years.

Q: What was the best result you have had from this sale in the past?

Last year Mags O’Toole bought a nice Walk In The Park from us for €180,000. Impressively, we had five first time out four-year-old winners from the sale last year. That is a huge plus and we are proud of that.

Q: Why the Derby Sale?

It’s the oldest and most reliant sale. It is the one that, no matter what happens anywhere else, shows up to be the highest average. At the end of the day, that is where the best horses go. We have increased our draft every year at the Derby Sale. I get on really well with Simon Kerins and Jamie Codd. Jamie comes to see my horses and in a very short time we have a very good working relationship.

Luke Cummins, Belleville

Tell us about your consignment for the sale?

Lot 61: Getaway 3yo g ex She’s My Mate

I bought the Getaway at the November NH Sale as a foal. He is a lovely, big horse, 16.3hh. He is very straightforward. He is from the family of Best Mate. Getaway gets plenty of winners and I am hoping he will be popular.

Lot 268: Masked Marvel 3yo f ex Diane D’Arc

She is a beautiful filly, 16.2hh and a great mover. She is the first foal out of a Ballingarry mare who was placed in all her starts and is from the family of Ball D’Arc, Royal D’Arc and Edene D’Arc. I bought her too at the November NH Sale as a foal from Sean Gorman. She is the best of our draft.

Lot 272: Sageburg 3yo g ex Double Dream

Another big horse, 16.2hh. He walks and trots very well. He is a very straightforward, easy-going sort. As a half-brother to two blacktype horses in Storm Control and Tagrita, he is very well-bred. Sageburg is getting plenty of winners so hopefully he will go down well and be a racehorse for someone. He again was bought as a foal at the November NH Sale.

Q: Who are the other members of the team helping you at the sale?

Mostly family. We are stabled beside the Rathurtin draft and we help each other out. Amhairghean Kennedy is a big part of the team and Tina Browne helps me prep them at home. Tina does most of the work! She does a super job. I shoe them and show them myself. My sisters Jordan and Kara play a big part – they are busy girls at home.

Q: What is your best result you have had from this sale in the past?

I only started consigning on my own in 2020 and Covid hit! It made sense going out on my own. In the past we would have had only four or five horses at the Derby Sale. Dad started making trips to France and the numbers grew. The time was right, and I started renting another yard close to home.

In a relatively short time I have sold two fillies for €75,000 and €80,000. Dad (Denis Cummins) sold Tahmuras and Fiddlerontheroof at the Derby Sale, two Tolworth Hurdle winners. He also sold Alsa Mix who was a Grade 2 winner. It is only in the last few years the numbers have been getting bigger that we are sending to the sales, so we are hoping the best is ahead of us!

Q: Why the Derby Sale?

The Derby Sale has always been regarded as the premier store sale in Ireland. We do our best to get our best horses we have there. The buyers are there for the best store stock available. We have been lucky there. Tattersalls Ireland’s improvements to the complex are fantastic, they have done a wonderful job. It is a serious upgrade. The horses have taken well to it and people at the sale can get a better look at a horse before they go into the ring. It’s a credit to Tattersalls Ireland – the efforts they have made in the last couple of years are really fantastic.

Marie Harding, Glen Stables

Q: Tell us about your consignment for the sale?

Lot 38: Kaiser De Chanay, Manatee 3yo g ex Rose Celebre

He’s 16.2hh and a lovely horse. Really good mover and great presence about him. He was bought in France as a two-year-old. He is one of those straightforward horses, he does everything you ask him to do, and he is never tired.

Lot 335: Flemensfirth 3yo g ex Jeanquiri

He is one of the last by Flemensfirth. He is a hardy sort. He’s athletic and is going to improve with time but he is a racehorse. I really like him. He is one of the best that this mare has bred. He is a half-brother to Lifetime Ambition and Life In The Park so there is plenty of blacktype there.

Lot 171: Kingston Hill 3yo g ex Andreas Pride

He is homebred. He is really well-made and has a great action on him. He is a really straightforward horse. He is a half-brother to Magnor Glory who the breeder Joseph Sheahan raced himself.

Lot 228: Australia 3yo f ex Camelia De Cotte

She is a homebred belonging to Rolland Crellin and Treasa O’Keeffe. The mare herself (won seven races including Grade 2 chase) doesn’t need any introductions, it’s a super pedigree. She has a lovely presence about her. I am hoping she will sell well. She catches your eye in passing.

Lot 332: Yeats 3yo g ex Izzygonnacatcher

We had Nobel Yeats here and we have had great success with the sire. This lad is a big, strong horse and you could see him being a proper horse in time. He is homebred.

Q: Who are the other members of the team helping you at this sale?

I have some great staff. It is a small operation and very much a family operation. We have Jennifer Cooney, Abbey Clancy, Joette Gallagher, Eddie Roche and Marie O’Brien. They are a great team. When the horses know you and know your voice they relax and do what they are supposed to do.

Q: What was the best result you have had from this sale in the past?

We sold a filly out of Our Girl Salley to Sue Magnier for €155,000. We have had a few €100,000-plus horses in the ring.