USING the services of Ennel Bloodstock, breeder Robert Allen sold a son of Court Cave (Sadler’s Wells) out of the Presenting (Mtoto) mare Lady Knightess for €30,000 at the 2017 Tattersalls Ireland November Sale to Jimmy Murphy’s Redpender Stud.

Two and a half years later, the gelding was resold at the Goffs Land Rover Sale to Peter and Ross Doyle Bloodstock for €48,000, the agents acting at the time for Colin Tizzard. The purchase was made for owner JP Romans who has had a fruitful association with the Tizzard yard, and all of his blacktype winners trained by Colin, and now Joe, have gained their biggest wins over fences.

The first was Gentleman Jon, followed by his most successful runner to date, Elegant Escape, who won the 2018 Welsh Grand National. Storm Home was another, but he sadly was fatally injured racing. When Colin Tizzard retired and handed the reins to his son Joe, Romans’ Amarillo Sky gave the new licence holder his first blacktype winner in November 2022, just months into Joe’s first season training.

Now the Court Cave gelding, given the name JPR One in honour of his owner, has provided Joe Tizzard, whom I had the pleasure of interviewing recently on behalf of the Northern region of the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association, with his fourth Grade 2 winner in his second season training. This followed his success on Sunday in the Lightning Novices’ Chase at Lingfield. Past winners in recent years of this race include Shishkin and Sceau Royal.

Smart novice

JPR One is a very smart novice and could well contest the Arkle at Cheltenham. He was thoroughly deserving of this win, as he has been knocking at the door of a big race success for some time.

JPR One bypassed bumpers and his first three starts in the care of Colin Tizzard marked him out as a talent, winning twice and beaten a neck at Cheltenham. His next two runs, in much better company, perhaps indicated at the time that he was not up to blacktype standard.

Off the track for a year, JPR One made a comeback in March last year and won a handicap hurdle on his return, before being beaten at Aintree while still running creditably. A chasing career beckoned, and in October he comfortably landed a three-runner novices’ handicap in the hands of his regular pilot, Brendan Powell. JPR One faced a much tougher task next time out in a Grade 2 at Cheltenham, and he gave a great display of jumping, looked odds-on to be an impressive winner, but crumpled on landing after the last.

Third to Le Patron and Colonel Harry (since then a Grade 2 winner) in the Grade 1 Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown in December, JPR One was up against some more-fancied runners on Sunday, but he showed that he is back on track with this victory, and he looks certain to bag a few more valuable prizes in the years ahead.

Court Cave

The veteran Court Cave, who stands at William and John Flood’s Boardsmill Stud for €4,000, continues to be used by discerning breeders, and he is fit and well having just turned 23.

JPR One follows Meetingofthewaters as yet another blacktype chase winner for their immaculately-bred sire in the past month, and brings to 16 Court Cave’s tally of listed and graded-winning progeny. That group includes the Grade 1 winners Willoughby Court and City Island, both of whom gained their biggest wins at the Cheltenham Festival.

Lady Knightess, the dam of JPR One, only raced on three occasions, winning a bumper at Wexford on her second start. All three of her runners to date have won, two on the track and the other in point-to-points. Her other racecourse winner is Deep Cave (Court Cave), JPR One’s full-brother, and he recorded the fastest time of the day when he won his sole outing in a point-to-point for Ciaran Murphy at Belclare.

Deep Cave was despatched to the Goffs UK Aintree Sale, sold to Henry de Bromhead for £235,000, and made a promising start to his hurdling career when winning a maiden at Leopardstown after finishing second on his debut. Less than five lengths behind Good Land when fifth in a Grade 1, Deep Cave was a well-beaten fourth on his last start in Ireland. Transferred to France, he won on his chasing debut at Compiegne but then fell on both his subsequent starts. Hopefully he will resume winning ways in the near future.

Third winner

The third winner for Lady Knightess, Truckers Pass (Kalanisi), sold to Tom Malone for £175,000 as a four-year-old, but both of his wins have been between the flags, while also placing a few times in bumpers and over hurdles. His four-year-old own-brother Red Oak (Kalanisi) has yet to face the starter, while coming along behind them is a three-year-old gelding by Poet’s Word (Poet’s Voice) and a yearling filly by Walk In The Park (Monsun).

Lady Knightess was the only winner for her dam Soupinette (Noblequest), and that mare’s three victories in France included a listed hurdle race at Auteuil. Two listed Auteuil hurdle victories were the highlight of the racing career of Soupinette’s half-sister Gastina (Pistolet Bleu). She won 11 races in all, but her final four runs, at the age of six, were for Robert Waley-Cohen.

Then in the care of Nicky Henderson, Gastina won two of her four chases in England, all within a seven-week period, and was placed on her final outing in the Grade 2 Pendil Novices’ Chase at Kempton. She is now a successful broodmare.

Tripoli is off to a Flyer

THE second staging of the valuable Winter Million Open National Hunt Flat Race was won by the Fergal O’Brien-trained Tripoli Flyer, having his second outing, and he is most certainly a horse to keep an eye on.

The immediate reaction to his victory was that he was likely to swerve Cheltenham and instead head to Aintree, given his preference for a flat track. Tripoli Flyer is bred to be a good ‘un. Produced by a man who knows how to breed smart runners, Tony Slattery, Tripoli Flyer was bought and sold by another man who has had plenty of smart runners through his hands, Dick Frisby.

A son of Getaway (Monsun), Tripoli Flyer is a five-year-old son of the useful racemare Collen Beag, herself a daughter of Mountain High (Danehill).

Bred and owned by Tony Slattery, Collen Beag was a most consistent performer for trainer David O’Brien. She won and placed on her only starts in bumpers, while over hurdles she won three of her 10 starts, and was in the first four on all her runs apart from falling once.

On what proved to be her last time to face the starter, Collen Beag was third behind a pair of Willie Mullins-trained mares in the Listed Pat Walsh Memorial Mares Hurdle at Gowran Park.

Sent to stud after that, she has, with one exception, visited only Getaway. In 2019 she was covered by Walk In The Park (Monsun), the resulting offspring being a now unraced four-year-old son, The Long Walk.

First produce

Collen Beag’s first produce was Anyharminasking (Getaway), and this point-to-point winner sold for €145,000 afterwards and won twice over hurdles for Jonjo O’Neill. Tripoli Flyer was next, making it two winners from two runners for his dam, and The Long Walk is Collen Beag’s third produce.

Tally-Ho Stud spent €58,000 on the now three-year-old full-brother to Tripoli Flyer as a foal, and he will likely grace one of the major store sales this spring/summer. At home in Tipperary is the most recent offspring of Collen Beag, her two-year-old Getaway daughter.

Collen Beag is a full-sister to last year’s point-to-point winner and a placed hurdler and chaser, Lillian Bland (Mountain High), and a half-sister to Noah And The Ark (Vinnie Roe). Also bred by Tony Slattery at his Milltown Britton Stud, Noah And The Ark earned further blacktype in some style in 2022, running out a nine-length winner of the Listed [Grade 1 in the USA] Lonesome Glory Hurdle at Aqueduct.

This success followed a 16-month layoff, and the Todd McKenna owned and trained Noah And The Ark took the honours at odds of more than 80/1. The gelding was then making his first appearance since winning the 2021 Carolina Cup, and that important victory was gained on just his third US start after a 12-race career in England. Those dozen starts included winning his only point-to-point at four for Jill Dennis and, after selling for £20,000 to Donald McCain, he won four hurdle races.

Major race

Last year Noah And The Ark won a third major race over jumps in the USA, adding the Grand National Steeplechase at Far Hills to his tally of victories at odds of 40/1, a race he had been runner-up in the previous year. Since he moved to the USA he has won more than $325,000 with his three successes.

Sold to Gerry Hogan as a yearling for €8,000, there was no profit earned when Noah And The Ark next appeared in the Tattersalls Ireland sale ring as a three-year-old, where he traded for €9,000 to Thorne Farm

This is a female line that is full of good winners back in the third generation. Noah And The Ark’s third dam was Well Mannered (Menelek). Trained by Ruby Walsh and ridden by his son Ted, she was placed in a bumper in 1978, finishing second on her debut at Thurles behind News Letter who was trained by Paddy Mullins and ridden by his son Willie.

Well Mannered had two winners on the racecourse, the better of that pair being the Grade 3 Scottish Grand National winner Moorcroft Boy (Roselier). Well Mannered’s multiple point-to-point winning daughter, Well Over (Over The River), was even more successful at stud, breeding the Grade 1 Feltham Novices’ Chase winner Lord Of The River (Lord Americo) and the Grade 2 Red Mills Chase hero Ballistraw (Carroll House).

Perfect advertisement for Jeu St Eloi

INTHEWATERSIDE took his career tally to four wins in five starts, a pair of victories each in bumpers and over hurdles, at Lingfield on Sunday, and the Paul Nicholls-trained six-year-old looks as though he will be a fascinating recruit to the chasing ranks in time.

This win was also a timely advertisement for his sire, Jeu St Eloi (Saint Des Saints). Rathbarry’s Glenview Stud is the new home this year to Jeu St Eloi, and the 13-year-old has moved from Haras de Cercy where he set firm foundations to his stallion career.

He is already sire of the Grade 2 Ascot Hurdle winner Blueking D’Oroux, Grade 3 Prix Sagan Hurdle winner Kargesse, and three listed hurdle winners in Hano De Loi (also a listed chase winner), Nara and Hucello. While yet to win a blacktype race is Jazzy Senam, but he was runner-up in the Grade 1 Prix Maurice Gillois Chase.

From the immediate family of the leading French sire Balko (Pistolet Bleu), Jeu St Eloi is a half-brother to the dual Grade 1 Auteuil chase winner Oculi (Denham Red), and is certainly one of the most interesting additions to the National Hunt stallion ranks in Ireland this season. His fee is listed as private.

Jeu St Eloi gives Irish breeders a chance to use one of the most promising young sires in National Hunt circles, and a horse who simply would never have been given a start at stud in Ireland. His race record, two placed efforts in four runs over hurdles, and placed efforts in both his starts over fences, would not have wooed breeders here, though they will now flock to him as a consequence of the results he has achieved.

Sales ring

These good results are not just restricted to racecourse performances. Last year Jeu St Eloi’s stock sold for prices up to €175,000 and £130,000 in the sales ring. Another feature of Jeu St Eloi is that he is showing an ability to upgrade his mares. Take the case of Inthewaterside. An €8,000 foal purchase in France, he resold from Clifton Farm (Hugh Bleahen) to Tom Malone and Paul Nicholls at the Goffs Land Rover Sale for €90,000.

In The Waterside is one of a pair of winning offspring from Vared (Denham Red) who was unplaced over jumps in France. She had four winning siblings, none out of the ordinary, but her grandam was Sirta (Le Pontet), a seven-time winner and twice victorious in listed chases at Auteuil.

Sirta bred four winners, and she is grandam of the Grade 3 French hurdle winner Ultraji (Denham Red) and his half-brother Tennis Cap (Snow Cap), runner-up in the Grade 3 Vincent O’Brien County Hurdle at Cheltenham.

Bargain mare is a successful producer

GHISLAIN Coutre spent just €3,000 to purchase Hahyasi (Kahyasi) at Arqana in 2015, and at the time she was carrying a filly, Amazonya (Zanzibari), a subsequent winner of six races.

Hahyasi was, at the time of her sale, the dam of a winner in Shayandi (Creachadoir), but he was to end his racing career with a final tally of 10 wins, eight on the flat, and winnings of £200,000. Now, Hahyasi is responsible for three winners, and the most significant of these is last weekend’s Grade 2 chase winner, Harmonya Maker (Saddler Maker).

Acquired privately by Peter Vaughan’s Moanmore Stables in France, Harmonya Maker sold as a three-year-old at the Goffs Land Rover Sale for €70,000 to her trainer Gordon Elliott and bloodstock agent Aidan ‘Mouse’ O’Ryan. She has been hitting the crossbar when it comes to winning blacktype, placed in a listed bumper and hurdle race, but she has taken her career to another level over fences.

At Thurles on Sunday, Harmonya Maker won a Grade 2 mares chase from her great rivals Hauterie and Silent Approach, having been beaten by both when she placed in Grade 2 chases at Cork and Limerick. She is winner number 34 at blacktype level for Saddler Maker (Sadler’s Wells), a sire well known for the prowess of his daughters, the best of which include Apples’ Jade.

Champion juvenile

While the first two generations of Harmonya Maker’s family have a jumping emphasis, the rest is one of the best families on the flat. Rainbird (Rainbow Quest), the grandam of Harmonya Maker, is a half-sister to Minority (Generous) and Skiphall (Halling).

The former was group-placed but is the dam of the champion juvenile Proportional (Beat Hollow), successful in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac.

Skiphall did not win, was placed a number of times, but she is the dam of Grade 1 E P Taylor Stakes winner Folk Opera (Singspiel), and third dam of a pair of top-level winners, one of them a current star. Mr Bailetti (Exchange Rate) is a Group 1 winner in Peru, but Romantic Warrior (Acclamation) is a major winner in Hong Kong and Australia, and has won five Group 1 races so far.