IF you were sent shopping this week with €5 million, what would you have bought, and had some change left over?

Well, at the Magic Millions Gold Coast National Broodmare Sale, you could have purchased a champion two-year-old filly, and a multiple Group 1 winner, though the change would barely cover their first set of stallion fees.

Away Game, a Group 2 winner by Snitzel (Redoute’s Choice), sold for A$4 million, while four-time Group 1 winner Tofane, a daughter of Ocean Park (Thorn Park), realised A$3.1 million. These amounted to the equivalent of about €4.7 million.

The top price was given by Yulong Stud, signing in the name of Written Tycoon Syndicate, for Away Game. Bought as a yearling at the same venue for A$425,000, she has won almost her new purchase price to date with five victories. Rated the best filly in Australia last season, she is still seeking a first Group 1 win, and that could be achieved this weekend at Eagle Farm. She has been runner-up at the highest level on three occasions, last time out in the Robert Sangster Stakes.

Away Game

A full-sister to stakes winner and group-placed Modern Wonder (Snitzel), Away Game is the best of five winners from the stakes-placed two-year-old winner Elusive Wonder, a daughter of Elusive Quality (Gone West). Away Game’s grandam Abbotswood (Sir Tristram) bred a listed winner among her five successful runners, and she was a daughter of the Group 3 juvenile winner Freedom Fields (Bluebird).

As the buying name might suggest, Away Game will have a future covering date with Yulong’s current champion sire Written Tycoon, a son of Iglesia (Last Tycoon). Winner of the Group 2 Todman Stakes during his racing career, Written Tycoon began his stud career in 2007 at a service fee of A$8,250, but his exceptional results brought a meteoric rise.

He was to become Australia’s leading first season sire in 2010/11, and last year claimed the overall title. His more than 50 individual stakes winners include Golden Slipper hero Capitalist, Blue Diamond winner Written By, and fellow Group 1 winners Ole Kirk, Pippie, Tycoon Tara, Music Magnate, Despatch, Tyzone, Booker, Odeum and Luna Rossa. Many of his sons are now forging their own careers at stud.

Tofane

Joining Away Game on the roster of likely mares to visit Written Tycoon will be the New Zealand-bred Tofane, and her purchase price of A$3.1 million by Yulong is less than what she has earned on the racecourse. Four of her eight wins are at Group 1 level and she has been placed five times too at the highest level, last time out in the ATC All Aged Stakes at Randwick.

Tofane has an Irish connection. She is one of four winners out of the Australian mile winner Baggy Green (Galileo), and that mare’s other successful offspring include the Group 3 winner No Compromise (Pins) and the Group 1 Australian Derby runner-up Benaud (Reliable Man). Baggy Green is one of six winners for Starspangled.

If that name seems to be familiar, she is a daughter of Danehill (Danzig) who won an extended mile handicap at Cork in 2006, racing for Sue Magnier and partners and trained by David Wachman. Starspangled has been an outstanding success at stud in Australia and two of her daughters are Group 1 winners, trained by Chris Waller. Funstar (Adelaide) won the ATC Flight Stakes, while Youngstar (High Chaparral) landed the Queensland Oaks.

Starspangled is out of the triple classic winner User Friendly (Slip Anchor), successful 30 years ago in the Group 1 Oaks, Group 1 Irish Oaks, Group 1 St Leger and also in the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris. Starspangled is a full-sister to the Group 3 Give Thanks Stakes winner Downtown, and a half-sister to a pair of geldings whose biggest wins were gained in National Hunt blacktype races, Cork Grand National winner Streets Of Gold (Sadler’s Wells) and Aintree listed hurdle winner Two Miles West (Sadler’s Wells).

User Friendly sold at Keeneland in November 1995 to Kazuo Nakamura of Japan. He paid $2.5 million for her carrying User History (Mr. Prospector). That mare won three times in Japan and bred a number of minor winners.

At the Keeneland November Sale in 1999, User Friendly was again sold, this time for $1.7 million to David and Diane Nagle of Barronstown Stud. In all she had 11 foals, all but one of which raced, and she had eight winners.