Dark Angel Rules Goffs UK Premier Sale

Dark Angel was king of the ring on the opening day of the Goffs UK Premier Sale, with four of the top five lots being by the Yeomanstown Stud star and two of them consigned by his home team. Top honours, however, went to fellow Irish farm, Manister House Stud, when lot 144, a strong bay colt from a solid family replete with German black type went the way of Angus Gold – the sale's leading buyer on behalf of his boss Sheikh Hamdan by a wide margin – at 250,000gns.

“All the trainers loved him and that's what Sheikh Hamdan wants me to do – buy horses that they want to train, “Gold explained. “Dark Angel has been lucky for us – with Markaz (Ire), Estidhkaar (Ire) and Heeraat (Ire) – and this is a lovely colt. Funnily enough he wasn't the most fluent walker but he trotted beautifully.”

Manister House Stud's Luke Barry, who has also previously consigned the Group 1 winners La Collina (Ire) (Strategic Prince {Ire}) and Law Enforcement (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}) through Goffs UK in its former DBS guise, commented, “A partnership that took a punt on a nice foal brought him to Doncaster because it's been a very lucky sale for us. The sire speaks for himself and let's hope he's a racehorse.”

The first-day figures posted improvements across the board, with turnover of £8,739,000, a rise of 6%, accrued from the sale of 200 of the 226 yearlings offered – a clearance rate of 88.5%. The average of £43,695 was up by 11.5% while the £35,000 median represented a 17% increase.

By the end of the first day's trade, the Shadwell buyer had signed for 12 yearlings for a total of £1,151,000, including Redpender Stud's Bahamian Bounty colt (lot 52) out of Avenbury (GB) (Mount Nelson {GB}), an unraced half-sister to Group 3 winner Ouqba (GB) (Red Ransom), for £140,000, and lot 147, a colt by Kodiac (Ire) from Ballyphilip Stud at £130,000.

Topping the fillies' chart at £210,000 was lot 121, the Yeomanstown homebred by Dark Angel out of Cover Girl (Ire) (Common Grounds {GB}), a proven producer of black-type earners Shermeen (Ire) and Mister Manannan (Ire), both by Desert Style (Ire) and grandam of G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. winner Surdiman (Henrythenavigator). After being signed for by Eamonn Reilly of BBA Ireland, the grey filly will head temporarily to Mark Gittins and Aisling Kinane's Castlefarm Stud to in Co Kildare to be broken in before being assigned to a trainer to race for Mark's mother, Maura Gittins.

Just six lots later, a profitable pair of transactions was completed for Yeomanstown when lot 127, the Dark Angel colt out of a winning Verglas (Ire) half-sister to the crack sprinter Pipalong (Ire) (Pips Pride {GB}) was sold to Ed Sackville for £165,000. The agent confirmed that the colt would be trained by Tom Dascombe for Michael Owen and Steve Mound.

“He's by a very good stallion from an exceptional female family and looks a real 2-year-old type,” offered Sackville.

Commenting on the two highlights of their seven-strong first-day draft, Yeomanstown's David O'Callaghan said, “We're absolutely delighted – they are both homebreds from families we've had for a long time. Dark Angel continues to produce horses who sell and run well and these two have both gone to good homes.”

As well as breeding Dark Angel himself, Yeomanstown also bred his top-rated performer, Mecca's Angel (Ire) who completed back-to-back wins in the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. last week. It seems extraordinary in hindsight that the talented grey mare fetched just 16,000gns as a yearling when sold to her trainer Michael Dods. Subsequent full siblings Markaz (Ire) and the current 2-year-old filly sold for £200,000 and 825,000gns respectively, and O'Callaghan said of their dam, the Atraf (GB) mare Folga (GB), “She's really well and has a lovely Dark Angel filly in Book 1 at Tattersalls. She's grey and is much more like Mecca's Angel than last year's filly. God bless Mecca's Angel, for her to come back like that in the Nunthorpe was really special.”

Completing the Dark Angel domination late in the session was lot 225, Mountarmstrong Stud's first foal out of the Listed-placed juvenile winner Jadanna (Ire) (Mujadil {GB}), who was bought through Stroud Coleman Bloodstock for Peter Swann of the Cool Silk Partnership which owns this year's G2 Norfolk S. winner Prince Of Lir (Ire) (Kodiac {Ire}).

Agent Matt Coleman explained, “I actually bought Jadanna for Peter as a yearling. She was a good filly, the only foal of her dam Savannah Poppy (Ire), and we ended up selling her to Noel [O'Callaghan of Mountarmstrong Stud].

“This filly was expensive but Jadanna has produced a very good first foal and of course the sire is excellent so the plan will be to emulate Prince Of Lir by winning a Group race at Royal Ascot!”

The sole yearling in the sale by Darley freshman Farhh (GB) broke the Dark Angel stranglehold at the top of the table when sold as lot 119 for £170,000 from the Newsells Park Stud draft. The half-brother to Listed winner Danehill Destiny (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) was the selection of Jill Lamb on behalf of her clients David and Julie Martin, who raced G2 Dubai Challenge S. winner Cable Bay (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) before his sale to Highclere Stud.

“Cable Bay gave us such fun and when we sold him to Highclere it spurred us on to buy a few more,” said Julie Martin, who also raced the Cheltenham Festival-winning steeplechaser Darna (GB) (Alflora {Ire}).

She added, “This is just a lovely individual and he'll be trained by Charlie Hills.”

Lucy Horner of Worsall Grange consigned just one yearling to the sale through Ted Voute but it proved to be a worthwhile trip when her homebred Zoffany filly (lot 233) was bought by Amanda Skiffington for £160,000.

Horner, a former successful military-race rider, said, “It's a fledgling company called Killashee House and we keep 18 mares – both Flat and National Hunt – at Worsall Grange in Yorkshire. We bought the filly's dam Just Joey (GB) from her previous owners in Scotland and decided to send her to Zoffany. Ted came to look at the filly and liked her so we went from there, and this is a pleasing first attempt.”

Just Joey, a daughter of Averti (GB) won the Listed Hilary Needler Trophy among her three victories and has had one previous foal.

Ross Doyle and Richard Hannon returned to a family they know well when buying lot 97, a son of Acclamation (GB) from Pier House Stud for £145,000, but despite being a full-brother to Listed winner Cake (Ire), it was another son of Acclamation that he reminded of them most.

“We felt he was a lot like [dual Group 2 winner] Mehmas (Ire),” commented Doyle. “He's by a great stallion who has reminded us all how good he is with some talented runners this year and of course we bought Cake from Acclamation's first crop, too, so we're very happy to have been able to buy his brother.”

If Swiss Spirit's yearling sales debut is anything to go by, then the Whitsbury Manor Stud resident could be in for a good season ahead. Baroda & Colbinstown Studs consigned his top price of the sale so far – receiving £110,000 from Shadwell for lot 165, a half-brother to Listed winner Silver Rainbow (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) who was a €72,000 Goffs November pinhook. The young stallion's five to sell on Tuesday returned an average of £50,400 from a first-crop fee of £4,500.

Coolmore's Most Improved (Ire) also started his stud career at an affordable level with an initial fee of €6,000. His six sold on Tuesday recorded an average price of £29,333, with a high of £90,000 for lot 129, Glenvale Stud's colt out of a Cadeaux Genereux (GB) half-sister to dual Group 1 winner Daliapour (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) who was one of 12 purchases on the day for Peter and Ross Doyle.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club team continued their European shopping spree, going to £105,000 for lot 112, a Kodiac colt from Monksland Stables. Being out of the juvenile winner City Dancer (Ire) (Elusive City {Ire}), both the colt's sire and damsire appealed to buyer Mark Richards, who said, “He's just the right type for us. We had a lovely griffin winner by Kodiac recently and Elusive City has done well in Hong Kong too. He'll go to Malcolm Bastard's to be gently brought up and shown the ropes before heading to Hong Kong ahead of his 3-year-old season.”

The second and final session of the Goffs UK Premier Sale begins today at 10am.